Probation Into the Millennium: the Changing Features of Community Justice

PROBATION INTO THE MILLENNIUM: THE CHANGING FEATURES OF COMMUNITY JUSTICE A thesis submitted to Middlesex University in partial fulfilment of the requirementsfor the degreeof Doctor of Philosophy Anthony Harvey Goodman School of Social Science Middlesex University September2000 ABSTRACT This thesis briefly examines the changing nature of punishment in England and the origins of the probation service. From its religious roots probation became a professional organisation, probation and social work shared the same qualification. The 1960's was the golden age of the treatment ideal, casework techniqueswere employed to work with offenders on their problems, which were seenas being located in their life experience. The service expandedtaking responsibility for prison welfare and offering support to prisonerson discharge. Optimism in the ability to reduce reoffending waned in the 1970's, although probation officers had almost total autonomy. Seniors offered supervision and carried small caseloads themselves. In 1984 the Home Office set priorities for the service and with the threat of `cash limiting' made it clear that management had to co-operate. Reports from the Audit Commission and the National Audit Office continued the drive for stronger management as well questioning the relevance of social work. The Criminal Justice Act 1991 introduced the notion of `just deserts'. My interviews with informants highlight thesetensions and pressures.The 1992 and 1995 versions of National Standardsfor the supervision of offenders changedthe nature of probation to one of administering punishmentand this is consideredin depth. The service has becomestratified, with low morale as officers adjust to a risk focused, more punitive and highly regulated organisation. Notions of actuarialjustice, casemanagement replacing individual casework, and the use of set unchangeableprogrammes with offendersare evaluated.Links with social work endedin 1995 and the changeof governmenthas not affected moves to turn probation into a correctional agency. Probation remains a political issue and its future is located within contemporary thought on the changingnature of community control, particularly of minority groups where probation historically held a commitment to anti-discriminatory practice. The reflection of the informants is that the old ethos of `advise, assist and befriend' is evolving into one of `control and monitor'. 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis is dedicatedto the memories of the late Pearl Goodman and Frank Zadik. I would like to thank my supervisors,Professor Jock Young and Professor Vincenzo Ruggiero, for all their support, guidanceand patienceover the duration of the time it has taken to get to the production of this thesis. I wanted to tell the story of how probation has changed,and is still changing, and their encouragementhas been invaluable. My anonymousinformants have been very honestand open with me and were preparedto sharetheir thoughts and views on probation. They were preparedto submit to the ordeal of the taped interview and I owe them a huge debt of gratitude. My family encouragedme and were my greatestand politest critics, I could not have completedthe thesis without them. Sue,Michael, Hannah and Peter I am forever in your debt) TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract of Thesis Acknowledgements 3 Introduction: 9 Background to the Thesis 9 My Motivation in Conducting the Research 11 From Professional to Technical Skills 13 Fast Track Punishment 16 What Works? 17 The Specific Tasks Involved in the Research 21 The Specific Aims of the Study 21 The Investigation 22 The Structure of the Thesis 23 Chapter One: 29 Methodology: Background to the Research and the Paradigms Being Applied 29 Discussionof the Paradigm(s)and Criteria Selected 39 Initial Questions/Hypotheses Employed in the Research 45 ResearchIntentions 48 Operationalisationand Strategiesfor the Control of Identified Variables; and Sampling Selection 49 Participant Observation 55 Semi- Structured Interviews 59 Chapter Two: 64 The Changing Nature of Punishment and Supervising Offenders: Punishments and Help Offered to Those Incarcerated 64 The Role of Religion with Offenders 66 Techniquesof Gaining Control of the Population, by Discipline of the Mind 67 The Threat of the Destitute 69 The Growth of the Prison System 71 The Export of Offenders 72 Positive Custody? 74 Circumventing the Gallows 75 Ensuring Punishment 79 Dealing with the Children: Reformatories 83 Dealing with the Adults: Prison and Punishment 84 Summary 88 4 Chapter Three: 89 The Changing Nature of Punishing and Supervising Offenders: The Probation Service from Inception Until 1984: From Idiosyncratic Individual Officers `Rescuing the Fallen' to the Start of a Centrally Managed Organisation 89 From Primitive to Industrial Society 89 Making OffendersProductive 90 Issuesof Power: From Control of the Body to Control of the Mind 92 The Early History of the Probation Service: The Position of the Mission 95 From the Mission to Social Work with Offenders 101 The Middle Period of Probation 103 The Incompatibility of Breaching Orders with Traditional Notions of Casework 105 The Taking Over of Prison Welfare and Work with Prisoners and Ex-Prisonersby the Probation Service 107 The Professionalisationof Welfare Work with Prisonersand Ex-Prisoners 111 From the Pessimismof `Nothing Works' to `What Works' 116 The ProfessionalIdentity of Probation Officers 119 The Home Office and Probation: From Indifference to `Hands- On' 122 `Just Deserts' and the Increasein Compulsory Supervision 126 Summary 128 Chapter Four: 130 The Changing Nature of Punishing and Supervising Offenders: The Probation Service After 1974: From Social Work to Social Control and Punishment 130 The Probation Task and `Taylorism' 130 Punishmentin the Community 132 Control Over Probation; The Role of Her Majesty's Inspectorateof Probation: Themed Inspections 137 Drugs: 1993 138 The Automatic Conditional Release(of Prisoners) 1994 139 The Quality andProvision of ExpeditedPre-Sentence Reports Prepared for the Crown Court by the Probation Service 1994 140 Young Offenders and the Probation Service 1994 141 Probation Orders with Additional Requirements1995 142 Probation ServicesWorking in Partnership:Increasing Value for Money 1996 144 The Work of Prison Probation Departments 1996 144 Family Court Welfare Work 1997 146 The Work of the Probation Service in the Crown and Magistrates' Courts 1997 146 Tackling Drugs Together 1997 147 Delivering an EnhancedLevel of Community Supervision... The Work of Approved Probation and Bail Hostels 1998 149 Exercising ConstantVigilance: The Role of the Probation Service in Protecting the Public from Sex Offenders 1998 150 HMIP Inspectionsof Probation Areas 152 Offender Assessmentand SupervisionPlanning: Helping to Achieve Effective Intervention with Offenders 1999 154 Towards Race Equality 2000 154 HMIP Annual Report 1998 155 Anti-Discriminatory Practice Issues 156 1. Women and the Criminal Justice System 156 2. Race and the Criminal Justice System 163 3. Young Offenders in the Criminal Justice System 170 4. Disability in the Criminal Justice system 175 The Growth of Managerialism 176 From Caseworkto Corrections 179 Probation Since the Changeto a Labour Government 189 Just Deserts 194 Probation and the Punitive Tendency 197 Social Exclusion 198 Summary 214 Chapter Five: 216 Textual and Visual Analysis of the Cover and First Three Pages of the 'National Standards for the Supervision of Offenders in the Community' (1995) and a Comparison with the First Edition Published in 1992. Implications from the Home Affairs Committee, Third Report, on 'Alternatives to Prison Sentences,July 1998. 216 Background to the Analysis 218 Context 222 1. Typographical Layout 222 2. Discursive Level 223 Lexical Fields NS 1992 224 Lexical Fields NS 1995 226 Textual Cohesion 230 3. SurfaceGrammatical Structure 230 A) Use of Active/ Passive 231 B) Enunciation or Narrative Voice 232 Use of Pronouns 232 Types of Speech 232 Modality 233 Use of Active/ Passive 234 CohesiveMarkers 235 4. The Narrative Level 236 5. The Semiotic Square 238 Commentary 239 Summary 244 Chapter Six: 246 Interviews with Informants on the Changes to the Probation Service 246 Introduction 246 The Informants: Ethnicity, Gender,Experience and Their GeneralViews on Probation 247 Main Grade Probation Staff 247 Middle Managers 253 Senior Managers 254 Associated Staff 255 I Changes in the Bureaucratic Tasks of the Probation Service 257 National Standards 257 Processing Offenders 259 Taking OffendersBack to Court (Breaching) 263 Coping with the Changes 264 Recording Contact with Offenders 266 Contact with Prisoners 271 II Changesin the Value Base of the Probation Service 273 Understandingthe World of the Offender 273 Discrimination and Offenders 275 Discrimination and Staff 278 `Advise, Assist and Befriend' as a Set of Values 279 III Changesin the Skills Base of Probation Officers 280 The Need for New Skills 280 PO's as CaseManagers Rather than CaseWorkers 284 IV Changesin the Knowledge Base of the Probation Service 288 Engaging with a Different Type of Offender 288 V Explanations About Why the ChangesHave Taken Place 292 Political Considerations 292 The OrganisationalResponse 293 Morale and Issuesof Control 298 Emerging Themesfrom the Interviews 299 Overview of the Changes 299 Chapter Seven: 309 Summary of the Thesis 309 Conclusions 316 Bibliography 320 Appendix One: 344 Research on Probation Practice with Prisoners During and After Their Sentence: The Context of Research 344 Background 344 TheProbation Caseload

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