Manifesto for Higher Education (HE)
| Author | Jane Dominey, Anthony Goodman |
Probation agencies and higher education: the need for constructive partnership
This is a manifesto outlining a relationship between higher education and the new agencies of probation, community rehabilitation and public protection. It argues for constructive partnership.
The manifesto was developed at a conference in Kendal when ten probation academics came together to share experiences and debate the future of probation as a professional activity. Each participant had experience and knowledge of professional practice and was conscious of their privileged position in higher education in contrast to practitioners who, without the luxury of sitting outside the changes, were working hard to engage with offenders and protect the public during a period of profound change and uncertainty. Noone in the Kendal group was looking back with ‘rose tinted glasses’ at a golden age of probation which never existed. The manifesto is intended to be forward looking, drawing on the best evidence and a commitment to a holistic approach to work with offenders which is enhanced through partnerships with higher education.
The quality of the interaction between probation agencies and higher education matters for a number of reasons. Academic research provides the evidence supporting effective practice while the successful implementation of policy requires the expertise and experience of practitioners. In order to make the case for community penalties, the voice of probation scholarship needs to be heard alongside that of prisons and policing. Practitioners and managers gain from the confidence that comes from external assessment of and support for their activities. Professional standards and reflective practice are maintained if probation qualifications and post qualifying opportunities are at higher education level.
The Manifesto: A blueprint for action
This manifesto sets out ways in which higher education institutions and their staff can ensure that the link with probation agencies and probation staff can be maintained and developed.
1. Research
• Research work will continue to develop the evidence base for probation and community justice. A variety of types of study are required, both quantitative and qualitative, and including surveys, ethnographies, case studies, data analysis, impact and process evaluations, peer research and working in concert with both the National Probation Service and Community Rehabilitation Companies.
• Universities and...
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