Cheshire West probation service criticised over public protection

Inspectors did praise some aspects of the service, including its work to help prevent reoffending

A probation service has been ordered to improve after inspectors criticised the way it managed high-risk individuals who could be a danger to people.

HM Inspectorate of Probation carried out the inspection of Cheshire West probation delivery unit in March.

The watchdog said not enough was being done to safeguard the community and "more robust" training of new recruits was needed.

The Ministry of Justice said it had taken action to address issues raised.

Inspectors said managing those serving court sentences needed to improve, particularly people who pose a higher risk of harm to the public.

They said not enough was being done to deliver sentence requirements and safeguard the community.

Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell said work to manage the risk of harm to the public "wasn't of the quality required to keep people safe".

'More robust plans'

The HM Inspectorate of Probation found this was largely due to a high number of inexperienced, newly qualified staff and called on Cheshire West to have "more robust plans" to support and train new recruits.

However, inspectors did say they found "some very good work" being done, with a "wide range of services available to people on probation to prevent reoffending".

Mr Russell said: "Despite the rating of requires improvement Cheshire West is a promising and passionate probation service."

The report found a strong leadership team and "positive morale" among staff and praised its investment in helping people with mental health and neurodiversity needs as well as those with alcohol and drug dependency.

A statement from the Ministry of Justice said: "We are pleased inspectors recognised the hard work of probation staff and have taken immediate action to address the issues raised, including additional training for staff to improve risk assessments and more regular quality checks on management plans for offenders.

"We are also now investing an extra £155m a year into the Probation Service compared to 2019 and recruiting record numbers of staff to deliver tougher supervision and keep the public safe."

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]