Pure Fiction: An Infallible Guide To Meeting National Standards
| Date | 01 June 2000 |
| Published date | 01 June 2000 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455050004700207 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
REFLECTIONS
Pure Fiction: An
Infallible
Guide To Meeting
National Standards
In the first of three satirical episodes (Performing, Storming and
Re-norming), David Bale reminisces about his former probation
team’s exceptional, but ultimately insufficient, achievements.
Episode One: Performing
told that Spoton still tops the Home Office
It is with
league table (unofficial as yet) for the best
a
mixture of amusement, affection
and
performing probation office.
(mostly) sheer unadulterated awe that I
look back at my time at the Spoton
It certainly should top the table - in
Probation Office. We were a remarkable
every year since the Spoton rescue team
team. Hand-picked and head-hunted in the
were first sent in, in 1989, every single
late-eighties, we were drafted into Spoton
National Standard has always been met,
to ’turn around’ the failing probation team.
even those standards (like doing a home
In doing this we didn’t realise that we were
visit) that are still to be officially
providing the blueprint for similar
monitored. I can hear you pointing out that
interventions in every other area of our
National Standards had not even been
national life. Within a year we had turned a
published in 1989 - and of course you are
badly tarnished probation office into a
right. But we had been given advance
shining example of good practice. George,
copies of the first projected initial draft
our senior, would joke: &dquo;Spoton by name,
(which was scarcely altered) and told we
spot on by nature&dquo;. And as always he was
would be expected to adhere closely to
absolutely right.
every syllable. So we did. Or rather, George
saw to it that we
did.
When
we
arrived,
only
five
appointments were kept for every ten
It would be immodest of me to pretend
appointments made. Six months later, eight
that I merited my place in such an
out of every ten appointments were kept
illustrious team. However, I had achieved
and half of those who failed to attend
some notoriety in the...
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