Probation staff felt ‘pressured’ by government not to return criminals to prison, watchdog finds

Trend reversed after failings were exposed by a murder by a serial rapist who had been released from prison

Leroy Campbell raped and murdered Lisa Skidmore, and left her mother for dead (PA)

Probation staff felt “pressure” from the government to send fewer criminals back to prison for committing new crimes or breaking their licence conditions, a watchdog has found.

HM Inspectorate of Probation said a sharp drop in the rate of recall to prison across England and Wales from 2016 onwards was linked to policy changes, and that a reversal was only sparked by a high-profile murder case.

Senior National Probation Service (NPS) leaders said that when an “alternatives to recall” strategy was implemented four years ago, there was “pressure from the Ministry of Justice to reduce the number of recalls in their divisions”.

One senior manager told the watchdog: “Policies changed in response to political and ministerial pressure.

“Previous ministers were keen to reduce the prison population and one of the ways is to reduce numbers of recalls … high-profile cases change practice and policy, on both local and national levels.”

HM Inspectorate of Probation said the view was “commonly held” among NPS staff, and that although official guidance said recall should always be used when necessary for public protection, staff felt the practice was “discouraged”.

Staff told the watchdog the trend continued until 2018, when probation processes came under fire following the murder of a nurse by a serial rapist who had been freed from prison.

An inquest found probation failings contributed to the death of Leroy Campbell’s victim, Lisa Skidmore, and a separate review said he could have been recalled to prison before the murder.

In early 2019, another freed prisoner attacked and raped a string of victims aged between 11 and 71 after being released from prison.

A review found Joseph McCann could have been sent back to jail weeks before the rampage and that eight opportunities to recall him were missed.

HM Chief Inspector of Probation, Justin Russell, said McCann was left free “in the context of a national policy that emphasised alternatives to recall should be used whenever it was safe to do so”.

“They meant that McCann remained in the community when he could, and should, have been recalled to prison,” he added.

“The national policy on recalls has been updated and we found staff making recall decisions to protect victims, potential victims and the public.”

In a report released on Tuesday, which was commissioned after the McCann case, HM Inspectorate of Probation said high-profile coverage of failings appeared to have sparked an increase in the number of offenders being sent back to prison.

The number of recalls rose by 12 per cent in 2018-19 and a further 9 per cent in 2019-20 to just over 27,000.

The report said practices had changed and there was currently no management pressure to avoid a recall where an offender poses a risk of serious harm.

But HM Inspectorate of Probation issued a warning about “external pressures” on probation decision-making.

“Practitioners are concerned they will be held personally responsible for serious further offences committed by individuals under their supervision,” the report said.

“The development and maintenance of a robust decision-making framework that is not susceptible to knee-jerk reactions are central to developing a professional rather than a fear-based culture.”

It also warned of inconsistencies between different probation providers over when an offender should be sent back to prison, or given a warning for breaching their licence conditions.

The watchdog called for analysis of potential racial disproportionality, warning of possible “bias and unconscious bias” against black and ethnic minority offenders.

“Decisions about recall and licence warnings are often complex and rely on the judgment of individual practitioners,” Mr Russell said.

“We recommend greater scrutiny of these decisions to ensure they are fair, consistent and do not show bias against any groups, for example ethnic minorities. We also recommend greater evaluation to ensure recall practice is based on what works.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “We are pleased inspectors recognised our improved use of recall as being clear, effective, and with public safety as the top priority.

“We have introduced new, mandatory training on when offenders should be recalled, bolstered probation officer numbers and are working closer than ever with police to manage offenders in the community.”