`People first: Probation officer perspectives on probation work' — A practitioner's response
| DOI | 10.1177/0264550509102653 |
| Author | Jon Matthews |
| Date | 01 March 2009 |
| Published date | 01 March 2009 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
‘People first: Probation officer perspectives on
probation work’ – A practitioner’s response
Jon Matthews, South Wales Probation Trust
Abstract This article is a response to Jill Annison, Tina Eadie and Charlotte Knight’s
article ‘People First: Probation officer perspectives on probation work’ published
in the September 2008 edition of Probation Journal. The authors compared three
studies that explored the reasons why individuals chose probation as a career, the
views and experiences of staff at a range of levels of experience, and the career
trajectories of DipPS graduates. The article argued that individuals enter probation
in order to work with people and that this element of the work continues to provide
the most satisfaction for staff.
Keywords anti-discriminatory practice, bureaucratization of practice, casework
relationships, training
Introduction
I currently work for the South Wales Probation Trust as a Probation Officer in an
Offender Management Unit supervising individuals assessed as tier 3 and 4
(medium, high and very high risk of causing serious harm), either on community-
based sentences or periods on licence. As part of my role I am also required to
complete up to six Standard Delivery Pre-Sentence Reports each month. I com-
menced employment with the South Wales Probation Area (as it was then known)
as a Trainee Probation Officer in September 2007. At the time of writing I have 12
months experience working for the service post-qualification.
Applying for the TPO scheme
In their analysis of why individuals applied for the DipPS training process, Annison
et al. (2008) found that, across the three studies considered, the most important
factors related to the work being people-focused despite a concerted effort from
61
Probation Journal
The Journal of Community and Criminal Justice
Copyright © 2009 NAPO Vol 56(1): 61–67
DOI: 10.1177/0264550509102653
www.napo.org.uk
http://prb.sagepub.com
Practitioner
Response
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