Offender Supervision: New Directions in Theory, Research and Practice

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OFFENDER SUPERVISION: NEW DIRECTIONS IN THEORY9 RESEARCH AND PRACTICE McNeill, F., Raynor, P. & Trotter, C. (eds.) (2010). Collumpton: Willan. pp.584 (pbk) £29.95 ISBN 978-1843929352 This edited collection is a series of papers produced by a group of academics with an interest in the concept and practice of offender supervision. The book is edited by Fergus McNeill, Peter Raynor and Chris Trotter and, in their introduction, they chart the development of the international network of researchers and academics who have collaborated, encouraged each other’s thinking and worked together to produce the book. This is a substantial book and its 26 chapters offer a variety of perspectives on the business of offender supervision. Part One provides theoretical underpinning for the subsequent debate. Bonta and Andrews outline the Risk-Needs-Responsivity model, Ward sets out the Good Lives Model, and Maruna and LeBeI write about the importance of desistance in correctional practice. These chapters provide useful, accessible and, at least for a while, current accounts of the concepts and ideas that are shaping thinking about rehabilitation and offender supervision. The book draws on a number of research studies and projects to make its case. Part Two includes a chapter by Raynor, Ugwudike and Vanstone, reporting on their study of the practice skills (including communication, use of authority, pro-social modelling, problemsolving and the making of referrals) of probation officers in Jersey. Trotter and Evans write about researching similar themes in the practice of juvenile justice workers in New South Wales, Australia. Both chapters make valuable observations about the process of researching the people skills of professionals, for example, explaining how the researchers constructed tools to use in the analysis of observed practice. Both chapters also argue that paying attention to the quality of individual supervision of offenders should be part of the development of effective practice. The chapters in Part Three of the book consider contrasting ways in which offender supervision may be improved. Topics covered include the role of assessment tools, the importance of organisational culture and the scope for increasing the involvement of sentencers in the process. Durrance, Hosking and Thorburn write about the development and delivery of a structured programme for one-to-one supervision within London Probation. Their chapter raises some interesting questions for practitioners and managers to consider. The programme was generally well-received by both staff and offenders. Offenders commented positively on the material and the chance that the one-to-one programme gave to discuss individual problems and needs. Staff who were supervised and observed in their delivery of the programme benefited from this additional input and support. The authors ask whether the degree of structured input and framework for staff development achieved by this programme should be a routine feature of offender supervision.