The Assessment, Case Management And Evaluation System
| DOI | 10.1177/026455059904600304 |
| Published date | 01 September 1999 |
| Date | 01 September 1999 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
The
Assessment,
Case Management And
Evaluation System
Probation staff in some 25 services in England and Wales, as well as
Northern Ireland, have been using or have been trained to use the
’British’ developed Assessment, Case Management and Evaluation
System (ACE), to help them undertake structured assessments at all
stages of supervision with offenders. Here, Anita Gibbs, who was part
of the team which developed ACE, describes its development and
reports the results of a small-scale survey of practitioners and
managers responsible for implementing it in their areas.
~1~ began as a good practice
initiative
research findings which highlighted the
between researchers at
need to improve assessment quality and
Oxford University and managers and
consistency (ACOP, 1996; Aubrey and
practitioners from Warwickshire Probation
Hough, 1997; Burnett, 1996) as well as a
Service in 1994. The initiative pooled the
national drive for increasing evidence and
skills and resources of the researchers and
empirically based practice (Macdonald,
probation staff to develop a system of
1994; Roberts et al, 1996)
structured written materials, designed to
The materials produced by the initial
enable the improvement of assessment
group of researchers and practitioners have
practice, and which incorporated research
come to be known collectively as the ACE
findings about the criminogenic and
system. The key features are:
dynamic needs of offenders. The
.
The assessment of
practitioners
criminogenic and
were keen to incorporate
’practice wisdom’ (Fletcher and
non-criminogenic needs and levels of
Broad,
motivation;
1993) alongside the ’What Works’
literature (Andrews &
Bonta, 1994;
.
A systematic recording process; and,
McGuire, 1995; Harland 1996) to devise
.
The measurement of progress through
materials which might help them evaluate
re-assessment at
different stages of
their practice and thereby lead to
probation supervision.
appropriate
interventions.
The
ACE distinguishes criminogenic needs
interventions would also be targeted on
from factors which may be a problem for
offender need and likely responsivity.
the offender but are not related to their
Effectiveness Led Practice, as it was known
offending. It is a system which focuses
in Warwickshire, was enhanced by UK
upon dynamic rather than static factors,
182
although the materials are used alongside
ACE can be used to evaluate the progress
the Offender Group Reconviction Scale
of offenders through regular re-assessment.
(OGRS) static-factor based predictive score
ACE also promotes the involvement of
(Copas, 1998). ACE includes a simple
practitioners in researching their own
scoring procedure which allows for the
practice
and
developing recording
measurement of changes in offenders’
instruments which explicitly highlight the
attitudes,
behaviour
and
social
aims and achievements of supervision
circumstances. It collects information on
practice. The benefits to probation staff
the social, health and personal needs of
include training in undertaking the
offenders, as well as their attitudes towards
assessment of offenders; the development
offending, their lifestyle and associates and
of information systems for effective
their motivation to...
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