Your World of Legal Intelligence
 United Kingdom | +44 (0) 20 7284 8080

The national PPO evaluation: Research to inform and guide practice

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Date01 September 2007
AuthorCaroline Hughes
Published date01 September 2007
DOI10.1177/0264550507080374
Subject MatterArticles
/tmp/tmp-18vjpgS6xM1KKw/input Probation Journal
Research
& reports
The Journal of Community and Criminal Justice
Copyright © 2007 NAPO Vol 54(3): 277–287
DOI: 10.1177/0264550507080374
www.napo.org.uk
http://prb.sagepub.com
The national PPO evaluation: Research to inform and
guide practice
The report summarizes the findings from a wider Home Office evaluation of the
Prolific and other Priority Offender (PPO) programme. The PPO programme is
intended to direct resources to the small number of offenders said to be respon-
sible for a disproportionate amount of all crime. The programme was introduced
in all areas of England and Wales from 6 September 2004, and has been imple-
mented by Crime and Disorder partnerships and Community Safety partnerships
across all areas of England and Wales.
The research findings are based on in-depth semi-structured qualitative inter-
views with PPO practitioners and 60 offenders across ten areas of England and
Wales. The report looks at the implementation of the programme and provides
recommendations for improved practice.
The research findings indicate that there have been improvements in both infor-
mation sharing and partnership working between agencies involved in the PPO
programme, although the importance of identifying and addressing any problems
in such communication was highlighted. Feedback gained from interviews with
practitioners showed that those working within PPO schemes felt that they developed
a more holistic understanding of the offender which led to better management. The
importance of a multi-agency approach and the availability of appropriate services
have been highlighted, due to the particular needs of the PPOs that can include
accommodation, drugs misuse and education, training and employability.
In relation to the interviews with the offenders, a number conveyed that the inter-
ventions as part of the PPO were more stringent than their previous contact with
the criminal justice system, with some favourably comparing the number of inter-
ventions they...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT