UNCLASSIFIED
GENERIC PAROLE PROCESS (GPP) amended to incorporate Electronic WorkingThis instruction applies to: / Reference:
NOMS Agency staff (Headquarters)
Prison
Probation Trusts / PSI 36/2012
PI 18/2012
Issue Date / Effective Date
Implementation Date / Expiry Date
(Update)31 May 2013 / 3 December 2012 / 26 November 2016
Issued on the authority of / NOMS Agency Board
For action by (Who is this Instruction for) / All staff responsible for the development and publication of policy and instructions (Double click in box, as appropriate)
NOMS HQ
All prisons
Contracted Prisons*
Probation Trusts
Governors
* If this box is marked, then in this document the term Governor also applies to Directors of Contracted Prisons
Instruction type / Service specification support
For information / All staff involved in the Generic Parole Process for indeterminate sentenced prisoners
Provide a summary of the policy aim and the reason for its development/revision / This PSI has been revised due to an amendment to the pre-tariff sift process. Prisons arenow required to send the record of the Sentence Planning Review Meeting to the prisoner at the same time as it is sent to the Public Protection Casework Section in NOMS for consideration. As a result, two additional template letters (new Annex F - Outcome of Pre-tariff Sift and new Annex H - Consideration of exceptional Pre-Tariff review) have been added.
Contact / For Policy issues:
Associated documents / PSO 4700 Indeterminate Sentence Manual
PSO 9050 Functional Mailboxes
PSI 22/2009 Indeterminate Sentence Manual
PSI 29/2010 Indeterminate Sentence Manual amendments
PSI 36/2010 New chapter 4 for PSO 4700 – indeterminate sentences
PSI 61/2010 Handling of sensitive information provided by Criminal Justice Agencies
PSI71/2011 Parole Hub Pilot
Replaces the following documents which are hereby cancelled: PSO 6010 “Generic Parole Process”, PSI 33/2009 “Pre-Tariff Sift Reviews for Indeterminate Sentence Prisoners”, PSI 09/2008 ‘Offender Management Functional Mailboxes’, and PI 02/2012 “Parole Processes”
Audit/monitoring:Governors and Directors of Contracted Prisons must ensure that any staff who input into the Generic Parole Process are familiar with this PSI and the mandatory requirements it contains. The Public Protection Casework Section at NOMS HQ will monitor and report on cases.
Introduces amendments to the following documents: There are no amendments to existing documents other that annex positioning, instead two new document templates have been added.
Updated 31 May 2013: Annex K replaced - This update provides clarity regarding the development of the central process for transfer to date, including prioritisation criteria to be used in the event of delays, since implementation in October 2011.
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CONTENTS
Section / Subject / Applies to1 / Executive Summary / NOMS Agency staff (Headquarters), Prison, Probation Trusts
2 / Introduction
3 / Generic Parole Process Timetable – an overview
4 / Pre Tariff Sift Reviews for Indeterminate Sentenced Prisoners
5 / Consideration of exceptional transfer to open conditions by the Secretary of State without referral to the Parole Board
6 / Moving to open conditions following on from a Parole Board recommendation
7 / Adverse developments, warning letters, advice cases and re-referrals
8 / Referral and Deferral of cases
9 / Transfer of Prisoners during review
10 / Mental Health Cases
11 / Quality of Parole Reports
12 / The Challenge Process for Generic Parole Process performance data
13 / Creation and deletion of PPUD accounts
Annex A / PPUD naming conventions
Annex B / The Criminal Justice Secure eMail (CJSM) Accounts
Annex C / GPP Timeline – PPCS, Prisons, Probation and PPUD
Annex D / Directions to the Parole Board under Section 32(6) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991- Issued August 2004 (Guidance only)
Annex E / Notification of Sentence Planning Review Meeting and pre-tariff sift
Annex F / Outcome of pre-tariff sift
Annex G / Outcome of pre-tariff sift review
Annex H / Consideration of exceptional pre-tariff review
Annex I / Outcome of consideration of exceptional pre-tariff review
Annex J / Executive decision request for application for transfer to open conditions under the ‘exceptional’ circumstances criteria
Annex K / Transfers to open conditions for adult male indeterminate sentence prisoners
Annex L / Process for consideration of open conditions
Annex M / SPR D template
Annex N / SPR E template
Annex O / SPR F template
Annex P / SPR G template
Annex Q / SPR H template
Annex R / SPR J template
Annex S / SPR L template
Annex T / PAROM 1 template
Annex U / PAROM 1+ addendum template
Annex V / PAROM 1 Evaluation Tool
Annex W / SPRL Evaluation Tool
- Executive Summary
This PSI replaces PSO 6010 ‘Generic Parole Process’, PSI 33/2009 ‘Pre-Tariff Sift Reviews for Indeterminate Sentence Prisoners’ and PSI 09/2008 ‘Offender Management Functional Mailboxes’. It sets out the Generic Parole Process (GPP) for pre and post tariff indeterminate sentence prisoners (ISPs) incorporating the changes to procedure that have arisen from:(i) the introduction of a “pre-tariff sift” to consider whether a pre-tariff ISP should be referred to the Parole Board; (ii) Secretary of State consideration whether to transfer ISPs to open conditions without seeking a Parole Board recommendation; and (iii) the rollout of electronic caseworking (e-working), including the use of functional mailboxes.
It also updates processes and expectations with regard to the parole dossier and completion and quality of reports, to bring it in line with changes in offender management practice. All ISPs will have an Offender Supervisor. For ISPs this should be what was formerly known as a Prison Service Designated Staff Member (PSDSM). As the roles have been aligned, the ISP-specific SPR K form is no longer in use and all its criteria are replicated in the SPR L form which is to be used in all parole cases from this point.
Background
1.1.This PSI sets out the Generic Parole Process (GPP) for all ISPsfollowing the introduction of electronic caseworking (e-working) on 20August 2012. It incorporates processes arising from the “pre-tariff sift”, which was introduced in 2009, and the process by which Public Protection Casework Section (PPCS) to consider on behalf of the Secretary of State whether to transfer an ISP to open conditions without seeking the advice of the Parole Board. It requires establishments to ensure that actions identified are undertaken in the prescribed timescales set out in the process.
Desired outcomes
1.2.A parole process for indeterminate prisoners that is easily understood by those it affects, and the ability to identify clearly where weaknesses are within the parole process in order that they can be corrected.
A parole process which ensures that prisoners’ reviews are conducted speedily and efficiently, and which eliminates nugatory work provides all participants with clear timescales for their part of the process.
A parole dossier which provides a coherent assessment of the offender and which is comprisedof good quality reports produced by authors with a good understanding of the case.
To limit the potential for delays within the parole process for indeterminate prisoners, in order to ensure that prisoners are not detained any longer than is necessary to protect the public.
To introduce e-working, which will move the GPP to a paperless system of working, thereby increasing the efficiency of the process, improving the security of personal data, and facilitating better communications between all the agencies involved in the process.
Application
1.3.This instruction provides updated guidance on the process to be followed in parole reviews for indeterminate sentenced prisoners, including the processes to be followed to ensure a timely review and the requirement to produce a coherent assessment of risk based upon good quality reports.
Mandatory Actions
1.4.All staff involved in parole reviews for ISPs must be fully acquainted with this PSI and the mandatory instructions listed.In particular, staff must be aware of:
- the GPP timetable and the deadline for submitting a completed dossier to the Parole Board;
- the mandatory reports to be included in the dossier and the issues to be addressed in each report
- how to use the Public Protection Unit Database (PPUD) in order to complete their mandatory tasks within the GPP;
- the arrangements for handling Parole Board directions;
- the arrangements for undertaking an ISP pre-tariff sift; and
- the roles and responsibilities of PPCS and Parole Board Case Managers;
- the requirement on report writers to provide the Parole Board with a coherent assessment of risk based up a range of high quality reports.
Governors must ensure that systems are in place to underpin the GPP, particularly in terms of communication with report writers, the Parole Board and the Public Protection Casework Section.
Nominated staff must input key points of the GPP onto PPUD having first been trained by PPCS on how to use PPUD.
Resource Implications
1.5.There are no new cost implications arising from this PSI / PI provided reports can be provided to establishments in electronic form. If they cannot, it may be necessary in some establishments to provide additional scanning facilities. We expect savings to be made in terms of staff time (for the collation and pagination of the complete dossier), postage and printing costs.
(signed)
Digby Griffith
Director of National Operational Services,NOMS
- Introduction
2.1.Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights provides all ISPs with the right to have their continued detention reviewed by an independent body or court (in the UK this role falls to the Parole Board) once they have served the punitive element of their sentence – in the UK this is referred to as the minimum term or “tariff”. The first review must take place no later than the expiry of the tariff and at least every two years thereafter.
2.2.PPCS must notify the prisoner, prison and the offender manager of the datethe tariff will expire, as well as the date of all subsequent reviews. The review date in these cases reflects the date the case will be referred to the Parole Board for consideration at a provisional oral hearing. The complete dossier must be disclosed to the prisoner 18 weeks before the month in which the review is due to be considered by the Parole Board.
2.3.Where an ISP has a minimum term of over three years, the first Parole Board review may take place in advance of tariff expiry, albeit to consider suitability for open conditions only. This is a non-statutory review and a pre-tariff ISP can only have their case referred to the Parole Board if the Governor is satisfied that there is a reasonable prospect of the Board making a positive recommendation for transfer to open conditions. The Governor must ensure that the Sentence Planning Review Meeting (SPRM)prior to the commencement of an ISP’s pre-tariff review considers whether to recommend that a case be referred to the Parole Board for consideration of the prisoner’s transfer to open conditions. The arrangements for this process are set out in section 4 below.
Generic Parole Process (GPP)
2.4.The GPP is the parole process for pre-tariff and post-tariff ISPs. The performance of all agencies involved in the process is monitored centrally. There is a Parole Monitoring Board (PMB) on which the NOMS Director of National Operational Services sits, together with the Chief Executive of the Parole Board. The NOMS Performance Hub records performance data for both probation performance (submission of PAROM1s) and prison performance (submission to the Parole Board of complete ISP parole dossiers) and displays data at a regional and national level broken down into monthly, quarterly and annual data. The PMB monitors performance against the delivery of timely parole reviews. This includes monitoring the performance of establishments against targets for completion of dossiers. The key performance indicators include:
- the timeliness of mandatory reports from HMPS and Probation
- the disclosure of dossiers to the Parole Board by HMPS
- the provision of core dossiers by PPCS Case Managers
- the compliance on the part of NOMS with Parole Board directions
- the setting of the date for the Parole Board’s oral hearing and consideration of Parole Board recommendations for transfer to open conditions;
- the receipt of Parole Board decisions and the timely issuing of ISP licences.
2.5.The GPP covers all parts of NOMS involved in the delivery of the parole process for indeterminate sentenced prisoners. Senior managers within the NOMS agency are responsible for supporting the GPP and driving forward its delivery and performance indicators.
2.6.PPUD is the database that underpins and supports the GPP. All agencies involved in the GPP, ie PPCS, establishments, probation trusts and the Parole Board, have access to PPUD.
2.7.As from 20 August 2012, the date e-working was rolled out to trusts and establishments, the GPP became a paperless process. All actions were recorded onto PPUD and dossiers, reports and information were collated, paginated and transferred electronically.
2.8.Parole dossiers provided to the Parole Board by establishments must contain all the mandatory reports before they are sent. Under e-working, the dossiers will be stored and collated on PPUD and the Parole Board is automatically notified, via e-mail, of the dossier being completed and availableon PPUD.Although previously the Parole Board would reject dossiers that were assessed as incomplete, under e-working it will no longer be possible to submit a dossier that does not contain all of the mandatory documents.
2.9.PPCS has overall responsibility for administering the GPP and the reporting of prison and probation performance against indicators, using data recordedon PPUD. Therefore, Case Administrators who are involved with the GPP must have access to PPUD and must input data into the relevant fields, in a timely manner for performance monitoring purposes. Governors mustensure that nominated staff input the appropriate data into PPUD so that accurate management information can be produced for monitoring performance indicators, the end-to-end targets and to allow all agencies involved in the parole process to track progress of individual cases.
2.10.The Parole Board also has access to PPUD and hassimilar data inputting responsibilities.
2.11. Where there are disputes within NOMS regarding data entries the PPCS Quality Assurance Team will resolve them and their decision will be final.
2.12.For the purposes of this PSI “Governors” applies to “Directors” in private prisons.
2.13.Governors may delegate any requirement under this PSI to suitable grades within their establishment as long as that person has the necessary knowledge and skills to perform that requirement.
2.14.All Offender Management Units (OMUs) must maintain a team functional mailbox (for example: ) in order to ensure that communication is not disrupted due to the absence of a single member of staff. Each pre-release team in PPCS must also maintain a team functional mailbox. PPCS Case Managers and HMPS Case Administrators must ensure that any communications relating to the GPP are copied to the team functional mailboxes.
3.Generic Parole Process (GPP) Timetable – an overview
3.1.The GPP timescale and process is divided into 3 parts:
- Part 1: 26 week period starting at week 26 and leading up to Week 0, which is the 1st day of the calendar month period in which the Parole Board hears the case. The dossier compilation and disclosure and Parole Board directions are completed during this stage.
- Part 2: the calendar month during which the Parole Board hears the case. The Parole Board may list the case at anytime during that month.
- Part 3: follows on from the oral hearing, and requires that the Parole Board provide the decision and supporting reasons within 2 weeks of the oral hearing date. After the decision has been issued PPCS must consider any Parole Board recommendation for transfer to open conditionsin cases where the Secretary of State has invited the Parole Board to consider such a transfer, and/or set a new further review date if the Parole Board does not direct release.
3.2. Particular care is needed in cases where tariff expiry is occurring to ensure that the oral hearing is held sufficiently early to allow release at tariff expiry.
3.3.Establishments are involved in all stages of the process and must ensure that all key actions relevant to their involvement are fully completed within the prescribed timescales.
3.4.The GPP sets out the key milestones that are required to be achieved at various stages through the process. The role of PPCS Case Managers is to oversee the process and to ensure the timely progression of all cases in order to enable the Parole Board review to be completed on target.Case Administrators in establishments, or those responsible for the parole process, must complete all their required tasks and input data onto PPUD for the areas that their establishment is responsible for.See Annex C.
3.5.The process set out below highlights the key milestones and required action by relevant parties in the process.