A report published by the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies at King’s College London suggests that record numbers of people are serving court orders in the community.
The report, published by the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies highlights that in 2007, 162,648 people started court orders in the community, the highest ever recorded number. It represents a 36 per cent increase in the decade since 1997. The orders include both community sentences and Suspended Sentence Orders.
The Community Sentences Digest report states: ‘Prison overcrowding is a well-known fact. What is less well known is that community sentence caseloads are also overcrowded. The effect is far less graphic than images of overcrowded jails but the impact is equally damaging.’
The report notes that the ratio of offenders to quali?ed probation of?cers has risen from 31:1 to 40:1, with staff supervising caseloads which are, on average, much larger than those of practitioners in youth offending teams. It also highlights high sickness levels amongst the probation workforce. In 2007-2008, the average number of sick days for each employee was 12.1, one of the highest in the public sector.
Helen Mills, the project lead on Community Sentences at the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, said: ‘The Digest shows three years on from their introduction, half of the requirements which can be issued with community sentences are rarely used. Given a key part of the government’s community sentences agenda is that orders should be tailored to meet sentence purpose and individual need, their limited use should pose serious questions for the Ministry of Justice.’
Doubt
Richard Garside, Director of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, added: ‘Community sentences are one of the main ways the state imposes punishment on those convicted of offences. Indeed far more community sentences are given out each year than prison sentences. Over the past decade community sentences have grown alongside the rise in the prison population. This places in some doubt the regular claim that their increased use can be an effective means of controlling the growth in prison.’
