Introducing “Payment by Results” in Offender Rehabilitation and other reforms

The Ministry of Justice’s strategy document Transforming Rehabilitation: A Strategy for Reform, published on 9 May 2013, sets out a number of proposed reforms to the rehabilitation system in both custody and the community, with the aim of reducing reoffending. The document is the Ministry of Justice’s response to the consultation Transforming Rehabilitation: A revolution in the way we manage offenders.

Proposals relating to rehabilitation in the community include legislating to introduce a minimum of 12 months’ mandatory supervision for all offenders sentenced to less than two years in custody and changes to the conditions that can be imposed as part of a Community Order or Suspended Sentence Order (as set out in the Offender Rehabilitation Bill [HL Bill 2] 2013-14).

Controversially, the Ministry of Justice is also proposing to invite a range of new providers from the voluntary and private sectors to bid for contracts to provide rehabilitation services to all but the most high risk offenders. Providers would be paid according to a system of “payment by results”. A new public sector probation service would be created to directly manage high risk offenders.

Other proposals include the introduction of a network of “resettlement prisons”, which would allow offenders to be relocated to a prison near to their home and begin resettlement work for at least three months prior to release.

This note provides a summary of the paper’s main proposals and reaction to them.