Tag: Lord Beecham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-09-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 15 September (HL2049) which committed to helping to protect taxpayers from the rising cost of subsidising rent, what steps they are taking to achieve this commitment.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

We have included provisions in the Welfare Reform and Work Bill currently before Parliament to reduce social rents in England by one percent a year for four years from April 2016. We estimate that by 2020/21 there will be an in-year saving to the tax payer of some £1.4 billion, so helping to protect taxpayers from the rising cost of subsidising rents through housing benefit.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of report writers and court staff have received training arising from the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

Lord Faulks

All staff have received comprehensive guidance on the implementation of the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014.

A cadre of staff received central training to enable them to train other staff, as required, in the Act’s provisions. We do not hold statistics for the total number of staff who have been trained under this system.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many vacancies for qualified staff there are in each National Probation Service region.

Lord Faulks

Staffing levels are kept under constant review to ensure public safety is maintained. A new reporting tool for the National Probation Service is being implemented which will provide functionality to capture vacancies centrally as part of the ongoing development of workforce planning processes and capability.

We continue to invest in a qualified workforce. Last autumn, we made over 270 training places available for new probation officers. A similar number were made available in January this year, and a further intake is planned for April. Recruits undertake on-the-job training and study, and graduate in 15 months as qualified probation officers. This represents the biggest investment in the professionalism of the probation workforce for some considerable time.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the current sickness rates for practitioners in the National Probation Service; and what were the rates for 2013 and 2014.

Lord Faulks

Information on sickness absence rates among National Probation Service (NPS) staff for the period 1 June – 30 September 2014 was published on 17 November in a Management Information Release. The annualised rate of absence for this period in the NPS was 10.6 working days lost per staff year. Information for the whole of 2014-15 will be published in the Management Information Addendum to the National Offender Management Service Annual Report 2014-15.

Information on sickness absence rates in the former Probation Trusts is published annually in the Management Information Addendum to the National Offender Management Service Annual Report. The sickness absence rate for Probation Trusts for April 2013 to March 2014, published on 30 July 2014 was 9.8 working days lost per person.

The NPS statistics are not directly comparable to the annual Probation Trust data, as they relate to different timescales.

We take the health and wellbeing of probation staff extremely seriously and have worked closely with the NPS to support staff. We recognise this has been a challenging time for them and they can be extremely proud of how they have maintained standards throughout the transition period.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2015-02-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what budgets have been set for professional development for (1) qualified, and (2) trainee, probation officers.

Lord Faulks

Under the Government’s Transforming Rehabilitation reforms, probation staff are now employed either by the National Probation Service (NPS) or one of the 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs).

Probation Officers in the NPS are supported by the National Offender Management Service’s Human Resources Learning & Development team, which delivers professional skills training for the NPS. Funding for this work is found from within the National Offender Management Service’s overall Human Resources budget.

In addition, all NPS staff have free access to Civil Service Learning which includes a range of generic face to face and e-learning modules covering a wide range of subjects.

The professional development of probation officers employed by the 21 CRCs is the responsibility of those companies.

As regards trainee Probation Officers, their training and development is overseen by the National Offender Management Service, through the Probation Qualification Framework (PQF). Recruits undertake on-the-job training and study, leading to graduation in 15 months as qualified probation officers. The final budget for delivery of the PQF will depend on the total number of trainees recruited. Last autumn, we made over 270 training places available for new probation officers and a similar number in January this year. A further intake is planned for April. This represents the biggest investment in the professionalism of the probation workforce for some considerable time. The NPS will continue to use the PQF and the CRCs are also free to do so should they choose.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-05-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the closure of the court cells at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court since December 2013.

Lord Faulks

The cell accommodation at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court is housed within the interconnected Pilgrim Street Police Station which is due to close in summer 2014 and belongs to Northumbria Police.

The cells have not been in use since 7April, 2014 when a temporary arrangement was put in place to enable urgent fire safety works to be undertaken. Whilst five of the 13 cells are unlikely to be used again due to safety concerns, the remaining eight are now available for use as the fire safety work has been completed.

The current temporary closure has been extended until 30 May, 2014 to enable conclusion of discussions with the Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner over future use and maintenance of the cells once the Police Station closes.

The temporary arrangement, comprising a daily remand court at North Tyneside and the listing of other custody work in available courtrooms across the court estate in Northumbria, is not wholly satisfactory and the impact is being assessed on a daily basis, in particular the impact on victims and witnesses. HM Courts & Tribunals Service is seeking to conclude the discussions with the Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner as quickly as possible and currently intends to resume use of the cells on 2 June, 2014.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-05-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on how many occasions in the last two years parcels sent to prisoners have been found to contain drugs, extremist materials, mobile phones, SIM cards or pornography.

Lord Faulks

Details of illicit items found in post or packages are recorded on the prison incident reporting system, and collated in a central database. However, to identify the number of parcels containing drugs, illicit materials, mobile phones, SIM cards or pornography would require a manual search of over 34,000 individual records, which could only be done at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-06-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have received, and from whom, about the proposal to establish a secure college for young offenders.

Lord Faulks

The Government’s Transforming Youth Custody consultation in 2013 attracted 238 responses from statutory organisations, charities, private companies and individuals. In addition, more than 400 young people responded to the young person’s consultation on Transforming Youth Custody. These submissions informed the Government’s consultation response, published in January 2014. The Ministry of Justice continues to engage with stakeholders as the programme develops.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-06-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the changes in the eligibility of legal aid on the number of litigants in person and the consequential impact on the administration of justice.

Lord Faulks

We are closely monitoring the impact of the legal aid changes. The number of family cases showing self representing parties are published in Courts Statistics Quarterly (www.gov.uk/government/collections/court-statistics-quarterly). We are working towards publishing data on self representation in civil cases more widely and will include this in future publications.

Litigants in person are not a new phenomenon in our courts. Judges are used to helping persons with no legal representation, including explaining procedures and what is expected of them. We have taken steps to help people who either want or have to represent themselves in court, including publishing a revised guide for separating parents and increased training for judges. The link to the guide is:

http://hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk/HMCTS/GetLeaflet.do?court_leaflets_id=2756

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2014-06-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to review the arrangements for providing court interpreters in the light of recent criticism by the President of the Family Division.

Lord Faulks

The arrangements for the provision of interpreters are kept under review.

There has been dramatic improvements in performance in the last two years. The Ministry continues to manage contracts to ensure this improvement is maintained.