Probation

Circular
UNCLASSIFIED

ACCESS TO PRISON REFERENCE NO:

ESTABLISHMENTS FOR 38/2006

OFFENDER MANAGERS ISSUE DATE:

30 October 2006
PURPOSE
IMPLEMENTATION DATE:
In advance of the commencement on 6 November 2006 of the second phase 6 November 2006
of Offender Management implementation, this Circular provides guidance for
offender managers on obtaining access to prison establishments. EXPIRY DATE:
November 2011
ACTION
TO:
Chief Officers are asked to make their Offender Managers aware of the Chairs of Probation Boards
contents of this Circular. Chief Officers of Probation
Secretaries of Probation Boards
SUMMARY
CC:
This Circular provides guidance for Offender Managers on obtaining access
Board Treasurers
to prison establishments, including the High Security Estate, and on booking
Regional Managers
appointments to see offenders.
AUTHORISED BY:
RELEVANT PREVIOUS PROBATION CIRCULARS Richard Mason,
Head of Offender Assessment
N/A
and Management Unit

CONTACT FOR ENQUIRIES ATTACHED:

N/A
Bobbie Jones, 020 7217 8208 or 07810 854 202 or at:
bobbie.Jones71@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk

Alternatively, the OM helpdesk on 020 7217 5951 or

omqueries@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk or omqueries@noms.gsi.gov.uk

UNCLASSIFIED

National Probation Directorate

Abell House, John Islip Street, London, SW1P 4LH
 UNCLASSIFIED

Background

1. Probation staff need access to offenders held in custody for a variety of reasons during the course of their work.
The extension of the Offender Management Model to include offenders in custody – starting on 6 November 2006
with PPOs and high/very high risk of harm determinate sentence prisoners serving 12 months or more – means
that Offender Managers will need to have regular access to offenders being held in prison establishments in order
to carry out, for example, sentence plan reviews and pre-release interviews. Ideally Offender Managers will have
the least restrictive access to prisoners that can be safely accommodated.

2. This Circular outlines procedures for booking appointments and gaining access to establishments, including those
in the High Security Estate. It refers specifically to the arrangements necessary for Offender Managers to see
prisoners for the purposes of carrying out their Offender Management responsibilities.

3. HMPS Headquarters will shortly be writing to all prison establishments, including COPs, in similar terms.

Access to those Prison Establishments that are not part of the High Security Estate

Escorted Access

4. The security clearance currently held by probation staff is sufficient to allow escorted access to establishments
outside the High Security Estate. Probation staff will need to provide photo identification on arrival at an
establishment. Their probation pass, provided it contains a photo, will be sufficient proof of identity.

Unescorted Access

5. Unescorted access involves Offender Managers being provided with a set of keys to enable them to move freely
within the establishment. The NOMS Offender Management Team has been negotiating arrangements for this
with HMPS Headquarters but there is not as yet a national agreement. For the moment, therefore, there is only
provision for Offender Managers to carry keys at the discretion of each establishment’s Governor or Director.
Nevertheless, probation areas are likely to find that unescorted access to even a limited number of
establishments will enhance their ability to deliver effective Offender Management.

6. In order to arrange unescorted access probation areas should identify those Offender Managers who will need to
make frequent visits to a particular establishment and make a request to the Governor or Director. Separate
requests will have to be made for each establishment to which the probation area would like their Offender
Managers to have unescorted access. If unescorted access is agreed, the establishment will be responsible for
providing training in the use of keys.

7. The NOMS OM Team is continuing negotiations with HMPS Headquarters in order to establish a national
arrangement for unescorted access. Further guidance will be issued in due course.

Access to Establishments in the High Security Estate

8. The following establishments are in the High Security Estate: Belmarsh, Frankland, Full Sutton, Long Lartin,
Manchester, Wakefield, Whitemoor and Woodhill.

9. Probation areas already have arrangements for gaining limited access to prisoners held in High Security
establishments. However an enhanced level of security clearance is required for Offender Managers to carry out
the full range of offender management responsibilities such as chairing sentence planning meetings. Counter
Terrorism Checks will be needed to gain this higher level of access.

PC38/2006 – Access to Prison Establishments for Offender Managers

UNCLASSIFIED 2
 UNCLASSIFIED

10. Probation areas should identify those Offender Managers who will need access and should approach the
Governor(s) of the relevant establishment(s) about obtaining enhanced security clearance. The process can take
several months, so areas are advised to identify staff needing access to these establishments as soon as
possible.

11. Unescorted access will not be available to Offender Managers in any of the establishments in the High Security
Estate.

Making Appointments to see Prisoners

12. Each establishment’s Offender Management Unit (OMU) will be responsible for arranging Sentence Planning
interviews and other meetings with those prisoners who are subject to Offender Management.

13. Probation areas need to give the OMU enough time to set up an interview with a prisoner and should provide as
much notice as possible. In the main, it should be possible to make appointments associated with routine
offender management visits well in advance. At a minimum Offender Managers should give 24 hours notice of an
intended meeting with a prisoner.

14. If there is good reason why the Offender Manager is unable to give 24 hours notice and there is an urgent need
to see the prisoner the OMU will look sympathetically upon the request but may be unable to arrange an interview
at such short notice. Whether an interview can be arranged or not will be at the OMU’s discretion.

15. Probation areas can expect OMUs to notify them quickly of any problems with a planned visit. They can, in
particular, expect notification when an offender has been moved to another establishment.

Video links

16. NOMS is working toward the wider availability of video links between prison establishments and probation areas.
This should reduce the number of sentence plan reviews and other meetings that need to be carried out face-to-
face. Further information on this will follow.

17. However, video links clearly cannot replace all visits and the guidance contained in this Circular will apply
whenever an Offender Manager needs to visit an offender being held in custody.

PC38/2006 – Access to Prison Establishments for Offender Managers

UNCLASSIFIED 3