Interested in a simple Skills Scan and Learning Progress Tracker tool for the Probation officer standard?
Knowledge
K1: Legislation relevant to all aspects of probation and rehabilitation including sentencing, dangerousness, risk assessment and management, human rights and equality and diversity.
K2: Organisational aims and structures and how they relate to the wider Criminal Justice System and the role of a Probation Officer.
K3: Key organisational policies and procedures, and how to embed these into practice.
K4: Different perspectives drawn from psychology, social theory, criminology, desistance research, behavioural sciences and their application.
K5: The reasoning behind and development of probation work with victims.
K6: The impact of prison upon the individual, prison and parole processes and stages of resettlement and re-integration into the community. Appreciation of the importance of planning and preparing the individual for release.
K7: The principles of professional judgement, including; defensible decision making, how to guard against own conscious or unconscious bias, how to maintain professional boundaries and how these principles support effective practice.
K8: The principles of effective risk assessment and management and how to apply these.
K9: The impact of prison upon the individual, prison and parole processes and stages of resettlement and re-integration into the community. Appreciation of the importance of planning and preparing the individual for release.
K10: The importance of effective communication and the need to gather and share information ensuring accurate and appropriate recording throughout all aspects of work.
K11: Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements and the role of strategic partnerships and how this supports the management and rehabilitation of complex/high risk casework.
K12: The nature of the local community and resources available there, as well as the range of services available to assist with practical and social issues and/or to provide opportunities to build positive social capital and pro-social activities.
K13: Performance measures and quality assurance processes and how to implement into practice.
K14: The importance of maintaining own learning and development and sharing knowledge and experience with others.
K15: The role of coaching and mentoring to support work with service users and colleagues.
K16: Principles of effective team work to achieve outcomes, build and sustain effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders
Skills
S1: Integrate academic knowledge and understanding into work in multi-agency settings such as MAPPA and safeguarding groups. Demonstrate knowledge of the legal framework and relevant policies and guidelines for work with individuals posing high risk of harm and/or re-offending.
S2: Demonstrate good communication skills in complex situations and contexts by applying them in a way which promotes desistance, rehabilitation and resettlement in one to one and group settings.
S3: Gather, valid, authentic, reliable, current and sufficient information. Recognise discrepancies in information and provide a balanced assessment of risk, needs and responsivity. Produce robust, well written reports, for a range of audiences using professional judgement and defensible decisions.
S4: Maintain records securely in line with data protection and security of information and use information to support delivery of services.
S5: Make effective use of assessment tools to inform decision making.
S6: Apply strength based approaches and make professional judgements on developing service user engagement, including the likelihood of causing harm or re-offending. identify interventions to develop sentence plans and achieve positive change.
S7: Produce robust and realistic sentence/risk management plans to meet complex needs that are delivered within required time-frames and are negotiated with the service user wherever possible.
S8: Work in a pro-social and collaborative way with Service Users and others to achieve compliance, sentence plans objectives and positive outcomes.
S9: Recognise and respond to behaviour which may indicate a mental health/personality disorder issue and potential risk to self, staff and others.
S10: Evaluate and appraise different methods and interventions. Undertake comprehensive referrals and deliver appropriate interventions to meet Sentence Plan objectives and robustly oversee progress.
S11: Work with other agencies like the police, social services and youth offending teams, to develop and maintain effective inter-agency relationships, channels of communication, boundaries of confidentiality and information sharing agreements to protect and safeguard those identified as being at risk.
S12: Affirm and feedback positive changes in attitudes and behaviour to service users.
S13: Recognise the need to review plans and risk based on changing circumstances or behaviour. Determine when the case escalation process is required and undertake this in accordance with organisational timeframes
S14: Effectively liaise with the service user/prisons/Through the Gate providers to manage transitions into the community. (Through the Gate is provided by a range of organisations who are based in the prison and work specially with services users to ensure that their basic needs are met on release this might include accommodation, medical and Job Centre appointments)
S15: Apply principles of promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in communication with others.
S16: Lead team work within own and other agencies to achieve key priorities and objectives. Effectively manage workload with high volumes of complex cases.
S17: Maintain own continuous professional development, revise practice based on feedback received.
S18: Apply principles of promoting equality diversity and inclusion in communication with others.
S19: Identify and manage the ambiguity and diversity of the Service User population and be adaptable to the changing nature of the sector.
S20: Apply understanding of domestic violence and sexual offending and characteristics of those convicted of such offences including awareness of trigger factors, risk indicators and criminogenic factors and how they relate to offending behaviour and wellbeing
Behaviours
B1: Work to the highest professional and quality standards, act with personal integrity upholding moral and ethical codes.
B2: Be open, approachable, authentic and able to build rapport and trust with all either inside or outside of the organisation.
B3: Be adaptable to the diversity of Service Users and the changing nature of the sector and external environment.
B4: Seeks to engage and proactively look for opportunities to work in partnership with internal and external stakeholders.
B5: Model pro-social behaviour and encourage service users and others to do the same.
B6: Lead a culture of openness, challenging others when required, whilst maintaining appropriate professional boundaries.
B7: Demonstrate values of equality, diversity and inclusion and express these in all aspects of practice and interaction with others
Duty 1
DUTY: Carry out risk assessments on service users who pose higher levels of risk with complex needs, including sex offenders, domestic abuse perpetrators, individuals who resort to violence and extremist activities.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and procedures
K1
K4
K7
K8
K10
K13
S15
S20
B1
B2
B7
Duty 2
DUTY: Develop Sentence and Risk Management Plans that promote positive change
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and procedures
K1
K6
K7
K8
K9
K10
K13
S2
S5
S6
S7
B1
B2
B5
Duty 3
DUTY: Manage and enforce the order of the court for higher risk service users, including individuals who commit sexual offences, domestic abuse, violence and other extremist behaviour.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and proceduresExcellent interpersonal skills
K2
K7
K8
K10
K11
K12
K13
S8
S9
S10
S12
S13
B2
B5
Duty 4
DUTY: Rehabilitate service users through strength based approaches for example desistance theory, cognitive behavioural therapy, motivational interviewing techniques and person centred work.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and proceduresExcellent interpersonal skills
K5
K6
K7
K10
K12
K13
K14
K15
S2
S8
S14
S18
S19
B1
B2
B3
B6
B7
Duty 5
DUTY: Work with service users during their sentence, motivate and support them to change their attitudes and behaviour to reduce further offending and to help them to build social capital and reintegrate into the community, whilst proactively reviewing risk levels and sentence plans to ensure that public protection is maintained and progress monitored.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employerpolicies and proceduresExcellent interpersonal skillsPlanned activities meet service user needs and requirements
K4
K6
K7
K10
S2
S8
S12
S14
B2
B5
B6
Duty 6
DUTY: Use your knowledge of local communities to connect individuals with the services they need including accommodation, substance misuse, mental/physical health, education, training and employment services
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Excellent interpersonal skillsPlanned activities meet service user needs and requirements
K5
K10
K12
S11
S13
S14
B2
B4
Duty 7
DUTY: Identify, refer to and deliver interventions. Oversee the delivery and quality of interventions delivered to service users as part of their sentence plan.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Excellent interpersonal skillsPlanned activities meet service user needs and requirementsCost and quality standards meetBusiness requirements
K8
K12
K13
K16
S10
S16
S18
B2
B3
B4
B5
Duty 8
DUTY: Engage in multi-agency case working to ensure that the public and victims are protected. Liaise with Victim and Partner Link Workers about service users who have committed serious crimes e.g. violent or sexual offences.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: 3. Excellent interpersonal skillsPlanned activities meet service user needs and requirementsCost and quality standards meetBusiness requirements
K1
K2
K5
K8
K9
K10
K11
K12
K16
S11
S14
B1
B2
B4
Duty 9
DUTY: Represent the organisation in a range of strategic forums to promote the work of the organisation, build effective relationships and influence decision making.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Excellent interpersonal skills
K11
K16
S8
S11
B2
B4
Duty 10
DUTY: Formulate accurate, robust and timely records
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Compliance with employer policies and procedures
K10
S3
S4
S7
B1
Duty 11
DUTY: Write professional reports supported by defensible decisions and recommendations for a range of audiences
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Compliance with employer policies and procedures Excellent interpersonal skills
K7
K9
S3
S5
B1
Duty 12
DUTY: Contribute to Quality Assurance arrangements to achieve best practice.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Compliance with employer policies and procedures
K3
K13
S19
B3
Duty 13
DUTY: Use a range of digital tools to record information and maintain security of information on service users
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and procedures
K10
S4
B1
Duty 14
DUTY: Proactively manage own continuous professional development, respond to and implement feedback. Provide professional advice and guidance to colleagues to achieve targets and quality outcomes.
CRITERIA FOR MEASURING PERFORMANCE: Adherence to legislative requirementsCompliance with employer policies and proceduresExcellent interpersonal skills
