A Community Safety and Criminal Justice Conference - 29th March 2010

CDRPS: The New Statutory Duty to Reduce Re-offending

Monday 29th March 2009

Local Government House, Smith Square, Westminster, SW1

Local Government House, Westminster

The Police and Crime Act 2009 received royal assent on November 14th 2009. This Act creates three key changes for Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships; firstly, partnerships will have a statutory duty to reduce reoffending. Secondly, the Probation Service will change in legal status from a co-operating body to a full responsible body as defined by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and thirdly, responsible authorities will each be required to routinely reduce reoffending through an extension of their section 17 duties. New guidance will be issued in early 2010 with new duties expected to come into force into force from April 2010.

The emphasis on the reduction of reoffending will require a review of the current focus of priorities by CDRPs with both offences and offenders requiring consideration. The inclusion of the Probation Service will bring a new dimension to partnership working, including much closer links with wider Local Strategic Partnership planning and delivery to support pathways around integrated offender management.

This conference looks at the amended legislation and new duties on partnerships and individual responsible authorities (Police, Police Authorities, Fire Services, Health, Local Authorities and Probation), the role of probation in CDRPs, the expectations of central government of the role of partnerships in offender management as well as looking at good practise in areas where offender management is already embedded in partnership working.

Conference Objectives:

• To examine the impact of the new statutory duty to on Crime and Disorder Partnerships to reduce reoffending from April 2010;

• To look at the expectations shown in the guidance, due in early 2010, on the new reduction of reoffending role of Responsible Bodies;

• To examine the changes required to CDRP priorities in order to include offenders as well as offences;

• To examine the impact of the change in legal status of the Probation Service to a full Responsible Body;

• To look at the objectives of central government in increasing the role of partnerships to include reducing reoffending;

• To learn form partnerships where offender management is already embedded in partnership working.