Probation Officer
CurrentI am a Probation Officer with fifteen years of experience of working in a highly diverse city. Until recently I held a caseload of approximately 40 cases, the majority of whom were considered to be high or very high risk of serious harm to the public.Key roles included risk management/assessment, preparation of reports such as pre-sentence reports, parole reports, recall reports and breach reports. One to one supervision of offenders, focusing on desistance and underpinned by motivational interviewing techniques.I am currently working as a programme facilitator, delivering the Northumbria Sex Offender Groupwork Programme // Better Lives // Horizon. I have a particular interest in the subject of Domestic Abuse and to this end I have previously represented the National Probation Service as Designated MARAC Officer for Bradford panel meetings. Although not 'core' Probation work, the multi agency meetings are a vital component in managing vulnerable victims of domestic abuse. The role requires a high level of collaboration with agencies such as Social Services, Police, Primary Care Trusts, and specialist Domestic Violence groups such as Women's Aid and Staying Put. My role within the MARAC forum also extended to contributing to 'Clare's Law' disclosure meetings where the NPS are a statutory agency.I have also sat as a Panel Member on local Domestic Homicide Reviews and have experience in co-authoring Individual Management Reports that contribute to these reviews.Between July 2008 and December 2011 I was seconded to the Bradford Youth Offending Team. I was actively involved in setting up a dedicated custody team working with the most complex and challenging of cases. The key skills I developed while working with these service users include flexibility; responsiveness to rapidly developing situations; close multi-agency cooperation; excellent decision making; active listening skills; effective challenging; and of course a high degree of patience.
