Probation services

Tender description

The Ministry of Justice intends to retender the intervention and rehabilitation services in Wales which form part of probation services. The services to be procured are expected to comprise: — Provision of unpaid work schemes (also known as community payback) and all accredited programmes (except sex offender treatment programmes), — Co-ordination, delivery and facilitation of access to rehabilitation services, including as part of rehabilitation activity requirements, — Working with National Probation Service and Prisons to provide and facilitate access to support to offenders in custody pre and post-release from prison, and, — Working with partners to reduce crime and protect the public, including the National Probation Service, Prisons, the Police, Courts, other criminal justice agencies and wider partners such as local authorities and health providers. Probation services are at the heart of an effective criminal justice system. They deliver the orders of the court, protect the public from harm and rehabilitate offenders. Whether an offender receives a community sentence or is sent to prison, probation will be central to ensuring that justice is done and criminals become law-abiding members of society. For many offenders, community sentences are a more effective option than prison, but if these punishments are to fulfil their potential it is vital they are properly delivered and enforced, that offenders are effectively supervised and that the courts, victims and the public have confidence in the ability of probation to do this. The Ministry of Justice intends to retender the intervention and rehabilitation services in Wales which form part of probation services. The services to be procured are expected to comprise: — Provision of unpaid work schemes (also known as community payback) and all accredited programmes (except sex offender treatment programmes), — Co-ordination, delivery and facilitation of access to rehabilitation services, including as part of rehabilitation activity requirements, — Working with National Probation Service and Prisons to provide and facilitate access to support to offenders in custody pre and post-release from prison, and, — Working with partners to reduce crime and protect the public, including the National Probation Service, Prisons, the Police, Courts, other criminal justice agencies and wider partners such as local authorities and health providers. The delivery of these services will be to all offenders who are identified as suitable for the intervention(s) by the National Probation Service or prisons in Wales. Offenders will be drawn from across the offender cohort in Wales and allocated to specific interventions in accordance with Probation Service assessment and the sentence of the court. Although criminal justice in Wales is not devolved, vital agencies such as healthcare, education and social services are, and probation relies heavily on close working relationships with these key organisations. Due to the unique arrangements in Wales, the decision has been made that in the future the NPS will assume responsibility for the management of all offenders in Wales. Intervention and rehabilitation services would then be separately procured.