- London Probation Trust
-
London Probation Trust 
Logo of the London Probation Trust. Agency overview Formed 2010 Legal personality Governmental: Government agency Jurisdictional structure General nature - Law enforcement
- Civilian agency
Operational structure Headquarters London, United Kingdom 
Website www.london-probation.org.uk London Probation Trust is a law enforcement agency that is part of the National Probation Service (NPS). It employs more than 3000 staff and at any one time supervises 45,000 offenders.[1] London Probation Trust works with other justice agencies and public bodies to protect the public and reduce re-offending.
London Probation Trust staff work with offenders from their first court appearance to completion of their sentence. Staff implement court sentences through credible and effective community punishments including programmes designed to change offending behaviour.
Contents
Work with courts
Before deciding on a sentence, a judge or magistrate may ask London Probation Trust to prepare a pre-sentence report to describe the circumstances of the crime and assess the risk the offender poses to the public. This report will propose a sentence but it is the court that makes the final decision. London Probation Trust prepares 34,000 pre-sentence reports for the courts every year.
Community sentencing
London Probation Trust manages community sentences imposed by the court for adult offenders: those aged 18 and above. At the heart of the community sentence is compulsory unpaid work, which is tough, demanding and designed to ensure offenders pay back to the community. Over one million hours of unpaid work have been undertaken by offenders under London Probation supervision for the benefit of London communities.
The Community Payback scheme gives local people a say in what unpaid work takes place in their area and how it will benefit the community. From bringing derelict areas and buildings back into public use to cleaning graffiti from the streets, offenders on compulsory unpaid work orders do work that otherwise may not be carried out.
Other elements of the community sentence include prohibited activities, where an offender is banned from undertaking certain activities, and curfews supported by electronic monitoring. London Probation Trust also runs programmes to tackle the root causes of offending. The programmes teach offenders to think before they act, improve their literacy and numeracy, and address specific problems with behaviour including drug abuse. London Probation Trust provides strict supervision and offenders who break the terms of their order are taken back to court.
Work with prisons
London Probation Trust staff based in prisons assist with sentence planning and ensure that the release of high-risk offenders is governed by strict conditions. These conditions can stipulate where the offender should live, whom they may or may not see, and compulsory attendance on programmes such as anger management. If an offender breaks these conditions they can be sent back to prison.
Supporting victims
London Probation Trust staff work with victims of serious crime. They keep the victim informed about the progress of the sentence and conditions of release. Staff also work with offenders to make sure they understand the impact of their crime on victims.
References
- ^ "London Probation Trust - About Us". London Probation Trust. http://www.london-probation.org.uk/about_us.aspx. Retrieved 2010-04-15.
External links
Categories:- Penal system in the United Kingdom
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
