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In this edition:-
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Guest Editor
Yvonne Thomas
Director of Offender
Management for Wales |
| We hope you enjoy reading this edition, which is being guest edited by Yvonne Thomas, Director of Offender Management for Wales |
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Work on our new online home is progressing and we hope to launch soon and we will be sending you more details shortly.
The new website will give us an opportunity to create an interactive learning and networking environment for our members, which will complement our events and other activities.
Our new e-Bulletin will be launched with the Summer edition and this will feature links through to articles so that you can more easily navigate to the stories you are interested in. |
In the meantime we’ve revamped the format of the current version to make it an easier read – we hope you like it.
We’ll keep you up to date with all developments, but in the meantime we are always keen to hear from you – our members – and welcome your input into future ebriefings and our events programme.
Keep in touch with us at academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk or give us a call on 01733 425205.
Warm Regards,
The Academy for Justice Commissioning
A Faculty of the Justice Academy |
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This edition of the Academy Bulletin has a Celtic flavour to it – for which I will not Apologise! You wouldn’t
expect anything else from an edition guest edited by the Director of Offender Management for Wales. I hope you find the two articles which draw on our experiences in Wales of interest.
We do, as they say, live in “interesting times”. The appointment of the Directors of Offender Management to the English Regions and Wales have now been confirmed, and
the NOMS Agency part of the Ministry of Justice is progressing the commissioning
agenda on a number of fronts; the devolving of budgetary authority to DOM’s for all offender related services in
their geography will enable rapid progress to be made in ensuring that resources follow
risk, and that services should be based on understood need, and delivered to appropriately specified requirements.
There are a number of pieces in our complex jigsaw moving into place at the moment – the |
specification and benchmarking
programme will, over time, give us the ability to commission what we need and what we can
afford, and to determine what
constitutes value in our service delivery. The Probation Trust
programme opens up an exciting new series of possibilities for local
commissioning as Trusts start to exercise their freedoms. The
creation of the NOMS Agency is driving us to look at end-toend
service delivery in both
custody and community, and new models of operating are starting to emerge already.
The challenges of driving efficiency of public sector delivery are starting to cause us to look at more joined up approaches to our system to leverage our considerable scale. Innovation is alive and
well – the article in this bulletin on the East of England “The Right Step” initiative is
particularly interesting, and we hope to derive some learning from the proposed pilots for use in Wales. The virtual campus, use of ADEPT and proposed use of Meganexus are all very exciting developments, and we will watch the outcomes with close interest. There is a timely |
reminder in this bulletin from Skills for Justice regarding the
importance of training – a appropriate reminder that
although it is tempting to cut the training budgets in hard times,
we need to develop new and improved skills, and invest in
our talent.
Perhaps the answer is we can do both by more rigorous
assessment of development
needs, supported by well commissioned development
programmes. It’s that
commissioning word again – a powerful series of tools to not
only develop our service delivery offerings, but to also
improve our own organisational
approach.
I’m a passionate deliever in using commissioning to support thoughtful and positive change – I hope some of the examples you will read in the following pages will give you food for
thought for your own
commissioning strategies.
Yvonne Thomas
Director of Offender Management for Wales
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Identifying the need
“In order to properly assess the need, a more in-depth analysis was conducted”
In the 2008 business and commissioning plan for Wales, an in-depth assessment of the need for programmes to address issues around offending behaviour related to alcohol was proposed. The need had been identified at the all-Wales level from OASYS data, which showed that offenders in Wales demonstrated the requirement for interventions to treat their alcohol-related offending at a significantly higher rate than the average for England. There were further indications in assessment data for offenders in custody and in the community, that there were significant offending links between alcohol and violence. In order to properly assess the need, a more in-depth analysis was conducted through the use of the AUDIT alcohol questionnaires to all offenders in custody in Wales. The audit return rate of 35% showed a clear need for intervention for men, to help prevent further alcohol related offending.
Meeting the need
“It was important to align the locally identified need with national strategic requirements”
The NOMS Cymru team members, Dr Siriol David and Ingrid Zammit, worked with colleagues in probation, public and private sector prisons to identify possible models to address the evidenced need. Using these inputs, they approached the interventions directorate in NOMS Agency London HQ with their findings. It was agreed that there was no obvious existing programme to address the requirement for structured group work. It was important to align the locally identified need with national strategic requirements, and after extensive discussions with the interventions directorate and the accreditation panel, it was agreed that the COVAID (Control of violence for angry impulsive drinkers) programme should be progressed. |
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Barriers to overcome
“NOMS Cymru strategy required a multi-site delivery across at least two prisons in Wales”
There were a number of issues to be solved. For example, the programme was not accredited; the programme was the intellectual property of the authors; NOMS Cymru strategy required a multi-site delivery across at least two prisons in Wales and money was tight, as ever! It was agreed that the programme would be taken through the full CSAP accreditation process, which was the responsibility of the programme authors, supported by NOMS Cymru team intervention team members.
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This was achieved in December 2008, and was a vital part of the process of ensuring delivery into both HMPS and contracted establishments. A delivery model was agreed with the authors which protects NOMS in allowing competitive tendering of the delivery to our specification, and it was agreed that we would implement in our two largest prisons, Cardiff and Parc – one HMPS, one contracted. The programme was funded by decommissioning an ineffective programme which had been running in one establishment in Wales.
The specification for delivery
“It will culminate in a contract or SLA notice of change (NOC) for each establishment”
It was decided that a standard delivery model with one provider would be used across both establishments. This required negotiation with each establishment to determine the costs and environment arrangements required to facilitate delivery by an outside provider. It will culminate in a contract or |
SLA notice of change (NOC) for each establishment specifying their role in enabling and facilitating delivery, including volume targets for identifying suitable prisoners for consideration for admission to the programmes. This delivery model had not been attempted previously.
The Procurement Process
“It has also provoked lively discussions among public, private and third sector providers”
A full delivery specification was developed for the competitive tender process. It required technical knowledge of the programme, and a full understanding of procurement and contracting rules. The NOMS Cymru lead managers consulted with the Regional Procurement Unit, OMS Analytical Services, the COVAID author and trainer, NOMS Interventions and |
Substance Misuse Group and NOMS Cymru colleagues. A number of potential providers have been identified. The competition to place a contract valued at c £500k over three years to address the requirements of between 200-300 offenders is now underway. In summary, it has been a lengthy, but important process. It has demonstrated how we can work across the new NOMS Agency system using commissioning as a driver of needs-based solutions, in support of local and national strategic initiatives. It has also provoked lively discussions among public, private and third sector providers who are seeing an opportunity to deliver a key accredited programme in a standard manner across establishments. We are anticipating a good response to the tender, with the indications being that a number of partnerships will emerge, thus providing more options for the NOMS Agency in the delivery of custodial interventions.
Yvonne Thomas
December 2008 |
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During times of economic crisis, it is often organisations’ training and staff development budgets that are the first to be slashed, and importantly, it’s not just the private sector that feels the pinch. Yet by doing this, we’re not equipping our teams and services with the skills to take us through the recession and out of the other side.
Experience shows that organisations which continue to invest in professional development opportunities for their employees do better in recessions and emerge stronger in the long term. Training in the right skills can have an impact immediately and over time as the economy recovers. Skills for Justice, the sector skills council which works to help organisations in the UK Justice sector to work more effectively and efficiently through quality workforce development programmes, is already playing an important role in helping employers to focus their activity and investment where it can best be used, and during a recession, investment in skills is more important than ever.
Alan Woods, OBE, Chief Executive of Skills for Justice says: |
"It is a difficult time for organisations in the private and public sector, with lots of uncertainty around the future of the economy, but in these tough times it is absolutely vital that organisations invest in the talent of their people, and they are far more likely to succeed if they do.
“Funding constraints can often mean that training and development budgets are the first to be cut, but do we really want to hinder our effectiveness and efficiency by not taking the time to invest in the talent of our people? Regardless of the line of work you’re in, good skills form the bedrock of success.”
One way of investing for the future is through Apprenticeship schemes. Many readers will have seen the current Apprenticeship advertising campaign. There is a preconception that apprenticeship schemes are expensive, timeconsuming and best utilised in manufacturing or engineering sectors. Yet this is simply not true. There is an apprenticeship in public services which can help people succeed in careers across the Justice sector.
Keith Marshall, Chair of the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils Qualifications Reform Strategic Group, and CEO of SummitSkills says: |
“The people who are in training now will be the same people who will pull us out of recession in the coming years. Apprentices are the future and will be crucial when the green shoots of recovery come. It is vital we do everything we can to help today’s generation of apprentices and safeguard the next.”
Research suggests that companies that do not train their staff during a recession are two and a half times more likely to go out of business. Whilst training may not be the number one priority when organisations are under pressure to deliver using less funding, to put it on the back burner is a mistake.
It is essential that all organisations recognise that the recession is temporary, and that by investing in the talent of their people, they are equipping themselves and their people with the tools to succeed.
© Ally Mogg, Skills for Justice, 2009, with thanks to Jan Podsiadly, Alliance of Sector Skills Councils. |
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The “Better Together” project was born out of the formation of the new NOMS Agency, and the pilot operation of the new NOMS model in Wales.
We had formed a “virtual” senior management team (SMT) in Wales as part of trying new models of working, and as part of learning to work more closely together, the team embarked on defining an appropriate operational strategy for the delivery of end-to-end offender service in Wales within the appropriate national context. We were also trying to plan and integrate a number of significant programmes including Specification and Benchmarking (SBC), Best Value in Probation, and the Probation Trust programme implications. We determined that in order to plan properly for three years and to leverage the potential benefits of being one Agency, we should form a project team to look at our options, and that the team should be led by senior leaders from both the custody and community side.
NOMS Cymru is a relatively small operation and it was felt that the management and organisational pressures of attempting to take on a series of new initiatives, all individually interfacing with London HQ, would put an unnecessary strain on operational delivery. |
We therefore determined that one, holistic change planning programme led by senior management and supported by operational practitioners would result in high quality planning processes and an implementation plan that could be owned by operational delivery staff. The prison and probation service in Wales contributed significant resources to assist in the project.
A project board was set up with a core programme team of two Chief Officers, one Governor and a senior NOMS Agency finance professional. Independent advice was provided in the shape of two probation chairs.
The project objectives and scope were agreed as:
- Scope the boundary of the organisational analysis requirement
- Produce an “as is” organisational cost analysis
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- Scope the boundary of analysis of OM, court, interventions and programme delivery work in prison and probation and recommend priorities for process analysis
- Analyse current delivery processes in selected areas and propose alternatives where appropriate
- Develop options for meeting budget requirements for 09/10 and 10/11 for consideration by Governors, Chiefs, Chairs and NOMS Cymru.
- Develop a project plan to show how the options could be implemented.
The project was planned in three phases; the “as is” analysis, the “to be” recommendations and finally the planning of the agreed recommendations for operational implementation by each constituent part of the organisation.
Existing data from projects such as SBC, activity costing data and the KPMG analysis was also fed in. After phase 1, we had a detailed map of physical and skill resources across prison and probation in Wales. We analysed data from a wide range of perspectives, looking at |
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operational workloads and at operational overheads in each part of our organisation. The project was split into two workstreams. Workstream 1 concentrated on the analysis of offender management and intervention provision and delivery structures across prison and probation. Workstream 2 looked at common infrastructures such as HR, Finance, IT and administration. It additionally analysed a range of key delivery ratios.
A particularly valuable part of the phase 1 activity was the external benchmarking undertaken by workstream 2, which involved discussions and comparisons with a range of public and private sector bodies facing similar challenges to ours.
Phase 2 was the work through of all identified alternatives to current ways of working. These ranged from an option to investigate a fully integrated people development organisation across prison and probation in Wales to replace current fragmented structures through to the redesign of delivery models for unpaid work in probation, and aspects of sentence planning and OM between prison and probation.
In all, over 50 viable alternative methods of working were identified which would either enable delivery of a better service, or enable us to deliver an appropriate service more |
efficiently. Of these options, the SMT and the project board have agreed a selection to take forward to fully costed viability planning in phase 3, which will be completed in 2-3 weeks.
Better Together has now been running for 16 weeks. It has been an intensive and time consuming process, but has resulted in a high quality piece of work which will deliver genuine options for each part of the organisation in Wales. Most importantly, they are options which have been designed by operational practitioners, led by operational delivery leaders.
We have learned some lessons along the way;
- The scope of the project was very wide, and we have been hard pushed to keep to timescale on the project. More dedicated senior resource would have eased this pressure
- Read across between the workstreams could have been more systemised
- More effort was needed in the development of options around prison OM and intervention integration with probation – we are now re-visiting part of this work
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There are definitely some quick wins in terms of joining together
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Communications were regular and good – but the project still raises concerns with staff who are “unsighted”
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Setting up a full time project office was absolutely necessary – and we still struggled for administration support on producing very large reports!
We are nearly at the end of the formal project. Recommendations are being costed for operational adoption, and we will have a series of measure and plans that we believe will support the continued development of end to end offender management service in Wales. Most importantly, it has been a learning and maturing exercise for our development as an integrated leadership team. We have a much better insight into each other’s operational detail, and we can genuinely see where we will be “Better Together”.
Yvonne Thomas
March 2009 |
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The East of England Test Bed, which was set up to look at reducing re-offending through skills and employment, held an event at the Radisson Hotel, Stansted on 12 March to celebrate the success of the test bed and to look at how the various activities that have been worked on can be rolled out across the region.
The aim of the morning was to get constructive feedback and commitment – there was no sitting quietly for the delegates as the interactive sessions, using Crystal technology, certainly made everyone earn their lunch!
The morning was superbly facilitated by Stewart White of the BBC Look East programme.
Diana Edwards, Test Bed Project Manager, started the morning with a presentation on the journey and gave a flavour of some of the many Test Bed initiatives that have been tried. |
One of the aims of the event was to ensure that those people delivering the service had a chance to speak. The first of three sessions saw Claire Miller, (previously of Cambridgeshire Probation), Cindy Man of Jobcentre Plus, and Steve Howard A4e at HMP Wayland, being interviewed by Stewart White about their work with the Employability Compacts.
Each table was then tasked with looking at three questions:
What did you like about what you heard and why?
Sample answers:
- Joined up approach
- Compact increases motivation and engagement and is attractive to an employer
- Has helped in getting employment
What did you dislike and why?
- The apparent lack of ‘through the gate’ support
- Not available for sentences under twelve months
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What challenges might there be:
- Getting employers engaged
- Economic downturn
- How to keep the good practices and build on them. How to sustain Test Bed activity post Test Bed
Following a welcome refreshment break the delegates had a fascinating session interviewing Val Chiesa, Offender Learning and Skills (OLASS) Regional Manager, Julie Welch and Chris Metcalfe, Tribal, on ICT and the Virtual Campus.
Julie talked abut the Mentoring Toolkit and Chris was able to share his experience of working with the Virtual Campus and linking this with the Employability Compact, the Adult Employability Profile Tool (ADEPT) and the Mentoring Toolkit. Val discussed, amongst other |
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topics, the pilots underway of OLASS Managing Information across Partners (MIAP) Learner Plan and the issuing of a Unique Learner Number to offender learners.
More table work followed looking at:
- How could the Meganexus software, Mentoring Toolkit and the MIAP Individual Learning Plan support offenders to progress in learning, up-skilling and into employment?
- How do you see them being used in custody and community?
- What are the main challenges in implementation?
The answers came back showing unanimous support for taking the pilots forward. Challenges of funding, acceptance and duplication of effort were highlighted as barriers that need to be overcome.
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For the third and final session the meeting was joined by Mike Brophy of Business In The Community. Mike talked about the positive outcomes from the Seeing Is Believing events held in 2008 and the work which had been done at the Employer Engagement workshops and the issues surrounding the creation of a list of contacts on an Employer Database.
Questions which the tables were asked to consider were:
- What practical steps need to be taken to improve employer engagement?
- How should we share the collective information we have on who the positive employers are?
- How do we recession-proof this agenda so that employers will consider employing with ex-offenders in an upturn?
Answers given included inviting more employers into prisons, re-engaging with existing employers, making more use of the database, and encouraging employers to do more of the smaller steps, such as help with CV writing, interviewing skills etc. Involving them in this way would hopefully make them more employers to engage in the future. |
Prior to the delegates escaping to enjoy an excellent lunch they completed evaluation forms. The Test Bed team were delighted to know that the majority of the delegates felt that the event had improved their knowledge of the Test Bed activities. Examples of some of the commitments made were:
- Expand the use of Compacts and encourage other establishments to implement
- Try to develop more ‘through the gate’ activity
- Link more with employers to get ex-offenders jobs
The Test Bed Team:
From left Di Edwards, Matthew Kelly,
Sharon Carey & Joy Cradick
So what does all this mean? The Test Bed team are hoping that all the good work done at the event will help to inform their overall Test Bed evaluation and help shape their plans going forward into next year going.
Joy Cradick
Test Bed Communication Officer
March 2009
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Contributions and feedback are most welcome.
If you are interested in submitting comments, relevant information or an article for
inclusion in a future edition please contact us at academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk
or call Janet on 01733 425205 |
The Academy for Justice Commissioning
Monthly Evening Seminars |
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These events are free and open for anyone to attend and provide
important context for our work as commissioners & providers,
open up networks of contacts and promote the role of the Academy
amongst participants from other sectors.
Places are limited at these Seminars
To book your place please contact the Academy via email: academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk |
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Wednesday, 22 April
The Future
Commissioning System
Seminar featuring Richard
Selwyn - Government &
Public Sector, PIPC
Consultancy
A discussion on new systems that are developing in public sector commissioning & how these could work in the future, with examples drawn from emerging commissioning design in children’s services & the PIPC Commissioning Model.
Venue: Grosvenor Hotel,
Victoria, London |
Tuesday, 12 May
Lessons from the Ombudsman’s Investigations
Seminar featuring Stephen Shaw – Prisons & Probation Ombudsman
An exploration of an
Ombudsman’s investigations into
complaints & fatal incidents with the aim of revealing the health & performance of prisons & other institutions.
Venue: Central London |
Wednesday, 17 June
The Challenges of Collaborative Leadership
Seminar featuring David Archer & Alex Cameron - Directors, Socia Ltd
Explores the common challenges & distils the lessons of how leaders can share control; manage conflict; build lasting relationships & change behaviour.
Venue: Central London |
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Joining Together – A Strategic
Commissioning Conference
3 June, 2009
This major conference will bring together speakers and delegates from central and local government with representatives of the voluntary and community sector to explore how strategic commissioning can contribute to excellence in service delivery |
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Run by the National School of Government in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice’s Academy for Justice Commissioning, IDeA and the Office of the Third Sector. The Conference will include a mix of high profile plenary speakers and a choice of a range of breakout sessions led by commission experts and high profile third sector organisations.
All enquiries to the National School of Government Corporate Events Team – 01344 634 165 or visit the website:- www.nationalschool.gov.uk/Commissioningconference |
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OUTCOME-BASED COMMISSIONING AND CONTRACTING
Taunton - 5th March 2009
Cleve Hotel, Wellinton, Somerset
http://www.eventbrite.com/event/273851096
London - 13th May 2009
CanMez, Loman Street, London
http://www.eventbrite.com/event/273860123
Cost £175 + VAT pp
Enquiries to Rachel Taylor on 020 7922 7824 or Rachel.Taylor@publicinnovation.org.uk
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Facilitator:
Richard Tamlyn (MA BA CQSW)
Richard is Chair of CPI Board of Directors. He has extensive experience of enabling organisations to convert to an outcomes based commissioning approach. He has 20 years experience as both a provider and commissioner in health and social care. His specialist interests include drug treatment and criminal justice.
Why this seminar?
Pressure is growing on organisations to deliver evidence based outcomes from their investment.
Commissioning frameworks across the public sector are signposting the need for outcome-based commissioning. From the World Class Commissioning agenda to TOPS and other NTA initiatives to the five outcomes set by the Every Child Matters agenda – the attention on outcome thinking is growing rapidly.
However, local managers are grappling with the challenge linking high level statements to direct service delivery.
More knowledge and skills are required to make the connection to outcomes tangible and real.
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Aims and outcomes:
This intensive one day course will teach you outcome based commissioning and contracting skills. Participants will learn how to apply them to a range of services, in particular health and social care.
The course will help you to:
- Understand what outcome-based commissioning is
- Learn how it differs from and is more appropriate than current practice
- Consider the changes needed in purchasing processes
- Explore practical steps for implementing the new regime
- Apply outcome-based commissioning to
- Health and adult social care services
The course will cover the technical skills needed to produce:
- Outcome based tender specifications
- Outcome based contract templates
- Outcome based monitoring tools
Who should attend?
Commissioners who have a role in the commissioning of services for health and social care.
Service Providers who want to know more about responding to outcome based commissioning and contracting requirements.
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New, Open Supplier Diversity Workshops
These are 1 day workshops ideally suited to commissioning and procurement professionals. We also run tailored workshops for your teams in-house
The workshop will help you to:
- Understand what supplier diversity is and link it to employee diversity
- Understand the increasing business case for supplier diversity and links to organisational strategy
- Understand the implications for your role, others’ roles and your organisation
- Develop approaches appropriate for your procurement function and supply chain, and your marketing/sales functions and target markets/customers
- Plan co-ordinated and sustainable approaches across key departments
- Understand how not to do it
- Gain confidence in managing supplier diversity
- Explore experiences and approaches with peers from other organisations
- Network with peers in other organisations
- Create your own action plans to take back to the workplace
For full details please see doc
http://www.prorepman.co.uk/Data/DCW.doc
Or contact Lisa at PRM Diversity
Consultants on 0845 330 6738 or email
lisa@prorepman.co.uk
www.prorepman.co.uk |
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Contributions and feedback are most welcome.
If you are interested in submitting comments, relevant information or an article for
inclusion in a future edition please contact us at academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk
or call Janet on 01733 425205 |
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The Academy for Justice Commissioning was formed in September 2007 to further develop & enhance the knowledge, skills & relationships that are essential to the effective commissioning of justice services.
The aim is to create a centre of excellence for justice commissioning, thereby having a demonstrative impact on reducing crime, strengthening public safety & improving confidence in our justice system. |
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Seminars held in 2008/9
What Does Economics add to
Decision Making
Kevin Marsh, Matrix
The Winners Curse –
Structuring Procurement
Alistair Dick, Serco
Challenging Delivery Models
Ian Clark, Ministry of Justice
Lessons Learnt on Regional/Local
Commissioning in Children’s Services
Claire Lazarus, Department for Education &
Skills
Spotting a Quality Supplier
Joe Goasdoué, British Quality Foundation
Developing Community led Approaches
to Designing & Delivering Services
Richard Kramer, Turning Point
World Class Commissioning to
Improve Health Outcomes
Gary Belfield, Dept of Health
Sharing Commissioning Experiences
Carolyn Regan, Legal Services Commission
Developing Commissioning Skills
Dan Burke, Price Waterhouse Coopers
Leadership across Public Services
Chris Bull, Herefordshire PCT
Managing Competition
Bob Ricketts, Department of Health
Third Sector Commissioning: the reality
Gordon Murray
Three Myths & The Magnificent Seven
Nigel Walker, Commissioning & System
Management Directorate
If you would like summaries of any of
these presentations please contact
Janet via email:
academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk |
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Academy Achievements
The Academy has held 9 seminars from April 2008 to February 2009 with over 400 members registering to attend our events during that period.
We have nearly doubled our membership in just 6 months and now have over 600 members from the public, private & 3rd sectors. |
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Delegate feedback from recent
Academy Seminars
"The speaker was excellent; knew his subject & was a charismatic speaker – this was probably the best seminar that I have attended"
"Relaxed ambiance which encouraged
sharing of ideas & expressions of opinions"
"Excellent & experienced speaker & good networking opportunities"
"Really good to have something like this organised for sharing across the sectors" |
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Contributions and feedback are most welcome. If you are interested in submitting comments, relevant information or an article for inclusion in a future edition please contact us at academy@justice.gsi.gov.uk or call Janet on 01733 425205 |
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The Academy Executive Group members are:
Trevor Williams, Michelle Jarman-Howe John Graham, Patsy Northern
Richard Heys, David Griffiths
David Parkin & Stephen Shaljean-Tilley | |
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