2205 on Offender Assessment and Sentence Management
Prison
Service
Order
ORDER
NUMBER
2205
Offender Assessment and
Sentence Management -
OASys.
20/04/05
Date of Initial Issue
Issue No
10/07/2003. Reissued 20/04/05
228
PSI Amendments should be read in conjunction with PSO
Date of Further
Amendments
PSO 2205 Page 1
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
This Prison Service Order provides the Service with instructions and guidance on OASys, the
IT based Offender Assessment System, developed jointly by the Prison and Probation
Services.
This is a revised version of PSO 2205, to take account of developments since the previous version was published in July 2003 and it applies to eligible offenders aged 18 and over. It is a briefer document, focusing particularly on the mandatory actions and is supported by an
OASys Guidance Document .
DESIRED OUTCOME
OASys has been designed to:
assess how likely an offender is to be reconvicted
identify and classify offending related needs
assess risk of harm (to self and others)
assist with management of risk of harm
link assessments, supervision and sentence plans
indicate any need for further specialist assessments
measure how an offender changes during the period of supervision/sentence.
The principal outcomes that OASys will deliver are:
improved prisoner management so as to protect the public and reduce re-offending
seamless sentence management through closer working with the Probation Service
MANDATORY ACTIONS
This PSO includes a number of mandatory actions relating to:
Offenders for whom an OASys must be completed
Timescales for completion and review
Involvement of offenders
Access to OASys information
Quality assurance
All mandatory items are indicated by use of italic typeface.
RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS
ECG have agreed estimated average timings of three hours for OASys 1 and five hours for
OASys 2.
OASys practitioners require training, including familiarisation with the IT application. Training is provided for assessors, supervisors, managers, and administrators and includes risk assessment, interviewing and IT skills. A Computer Based Training (CBT) package is available for the general user.
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This revised version of PSO 2205 introduces a significant change to timescales for OASys reviews, which will reduce the resource requirement.
For all eligible offenders, an initial OASys assessment must now be produced within 8 weeks, reviewed at least annually, and for parole reviews or within 1-3 months before release.
5 May 2005 IMPLEMENTATION DATE:
(signed)
Michael Spurr
Director of Operations
Further advice or information on this PSO or the systems contained within it can be sought from:
NOMS – OASys Unit, Room 129, Abell House, John Islip Street, London SW1P 4LH.
Information on OASys is on the OASys website on the Prison Service Intranet.
the OASys Business Helpdesk number in the OASys unit is 020 7217 5825
for technical support the number is 0191 587 8388
Named contact points are currently as follows:
Dave Whitfield, OASys Operational Manager 020 7217 5825
dave.whitfield@hmps.gsi.gov.uk
Andy Munn, OASys Support Manager 07968 907153
Andy.munn@hmps.gsi.gov.uk
Caroline Nowell, OASys Support Manager
Caroline.nowell@hmps.gsi.gov.uk
Michael Cole, OASys Policy Development
Michael.cole@hmps.gsi.gov.uk
O7968 907184
020 7217 5255
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PSO 2205 OASYS - CONTENTS
Overview
CHAPTER 2 PRINCIPLES OF POSITIVE SENTENCE MANAGEMENT
Aims of sentence management
Respect for diversity
CHAPTER 3 THE OFFENDER ASSESSMENT SYSTEM
Information not be disclosed to the offender (INTBDTTO)
Self-assessment form (SAQ)
Management of Risk of Harm & Action Plans
Contents of the management action plan
CHAPTER 5 SUPERVISION AND SENTENCE PLANNING
Introduction
Setting objectives
Transfer and Termination
Offenders for whom OASys must be completed
When to complete OASys
Scheduled and special reviews
Young offenders
CHAPTER 7 TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
Transition from previous Sentence Planning system to OASys
Communication between establishments during the implementation period
Communication between the Prison Service and Probation Service during the implementation period
Handling of paper OASys forms received from Probation Offices
The OASys Assessor
The OASys Supervisor
CHAPTER 9 INFORMATION TO INFORM THE OASys ASSESSMENT
Contributions and collateral information
CHAPTER 10 ENGAGING THE OFFENDER
Issue No. 228
The OASys interview
The aim of the interview
Engaging the offender
Assessing the reliability of the interview data
Interview conditions
An open process
Issued 20/04/05
PSO 2205
Access to information
CHAPTER 11 SENSITIVE INFORMATION
Information not to be disclosed to the Offender
Managing the process
Information about victims
– general guidance
Disclosure of victims’ views to offenders
Probation Service responsibilities
CHAPTER 12 ACCESS TO OASys INFORMATION
Access control
Requesting access
Limited access
Printing
Charging for copies of OASys
Quality assurance and defensible decision-making
Accountability and countersigning of assessments
CHAPTER 15 OASys AND OFFENDER MANAGEMENT
Public protection and dangerous offenders
Prevention of suicide and self harm
Order and control
Healthcare
Life sentence offenders
Prolific and other priority offenders
CHAPTER 16 OASys INTERFACES WITH OTHER PROCESSES
Categorisation and allocation
Short term offenders
Incentives and Earned Privileges
CHAPTER 17 OASys AND DECISIONS TAKEN ABOUT RELEASE FROM CUSTODY
Parole
Preparation for release on licence
CHAPTER 18 OASys AND REGIME INTERVENTIONS
Drug Treatment
Page 4
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Chapter 1 - Introduction
Overview
1.1 This Prison Service Order provides instructions and guidance on OASys, the IT based
Offender Assessment System, developed jointly by the Prison and Probation Services. It is a joint prison/probation programme, whose assessments are completed and used by both services.
1.2 This PSO applies to offenders aged 18 and over. Different arrangements, to meet the requirements of the Youth Justice Board, apply for offenders aged under 18. The YJB has a separate risk and needs assessment tool, ASSET, which is used for juveniles sentenced to Detention and Training Orders.
1.3 OASys will have a major impact in helping us to manage offenders more consistently and more effectively. It will enable staff to make sound and defensible decisions. It will provide a comprehensive audit trail. It marks a major step towards a more joined up Criminal
Justice System.
1.4 The introduction of OASys has brought significant change to the way in which many decisions about offenders are made. This will require active and enthusiastic management in Areas and establishments. The Training Development Group (TDG) provides training for assessors and others and is available to support establishments to make implementation a success. The OASys IT application has been rolled out across the estate, Area by Area, from June 2003 to December 2004. The electronic link with the
National Probation Service is planned to start in late Summer 2005 and be completed in
Autumn 2005.
1.5 OASys is a risk and needs assessment tool. A new assessment system was developed because none of the existing tools and inventories fully met the requirements for consistent assessment to help practitioners make sound and defensible decisions. OASys contributes towards ensuring security and control through the identification and management of risk. OASys identifies and classifies offending related needs, such as a lack of accommodation, poor educational and employment skills, substance misuse, relationship problems, and problems with thinking and attitudes. It also assesses the risk of harm offenders pose to themselves and others. From these assessments, sentence plans are drawn up within OASys to manage and reduce these risks. Thereby, OASys will help target interventions, making them more effective, and contribute towards reducing reoffending and protecting the public.
1.6 OASys has replaced the paper based sentence planning system, covered by PSO 2200
Sentence Management and Planning: an operational guide for the Prison and Probation
Services. PSO 2205 on OASys replaces PSO 2200 on sentence management and planning.
1.7 This new edition of the PSO has been reduced in size to concentrate on the main issues and mandatory actions. It is designed to be used along with the OASys Guidance
Document as a practitioners’ guide to help staff in prisons complete assessments and should also be used in conjunction with the help provided on the IT application.
1.8 There will be a significant investment of effort in establishing systems and gaining familiarity with OASys processes. As practitioners gain experience, they will complete assessments and sentence plans more quickly. The process will be further streamlined by the build-up of easily accessed previous assessments on the individuals who have had previous dealings with the Prison and/or Probation Services.
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OASys Guidance Document
1.9 The related Chapter 1 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
Sentence management and planning in the Prison Service
OASys: joint sentence and supervision planning for the Prison Service and the
National Probation Service
Supervision planning in the National Probation Service
IT support for OASys.
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Chapter 2 - Principles of positive sentence management
2.1 The related Chapter 2 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
Aims of sentence management
The ‘seamless sentence’ and continuous offender management
Respect for diversity
Public protection
Risk assessment and risk management
- Aims of risk assessment
- Methods of risk assessment
- The Sentence Planning Risk Predictor
Reducing re-offending
– targeting interventions
Respect for diversity
2.2 The Prison and Probation Services have policies which aim to ensure that all work with offenders is free from discrimination. This builds on active efforts by staff within both services to recognise and understand difference.
2.3 Staff will need to take care at every stage of the assessment process to avoid stereotyping or distorting risk assessment. It is essential that assessors are fully committed to ensuring that stereotyped and prejudiced attitudes towards any individual or group are not allowed to influence the assessment and consequent service delivery. Such attitudes must always be challenged.
OASys can contribute to non-discriminatory practice, as it requires evidence for assessments made and decisions taken. Supervisors and managers must look for such evidence when exercising their responsibilities for quality control.
2.4 When interviewing the offender and evaluating the information available assessors must take account of issues relating to cultural diversity which may affect the assessment.
For example, the sections dealing with family relationships might be affected by cultural expectations.
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Chapter 3 - The Offender Assessment System
3.1 The related Chapter 3 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
An outline of OASys and its components
The likelihood of re-offending assessment
The risk of serious harm assessment
Summary documents
Supervision/sentence plan (SSP)
Request for information
Self-assessment questionnaire (SAQ)
Information Not To Be Disclosed To The Offender
Triggers to other assessments
3.2 The following are mandatory actions.
Information not be disclosed to the offender (INTBDTTO)
3.3 This is a confidential section where information is held which would not be disclosed to the offender but would be available to general users. Confidential information of a sensitive type must be held elsewhere and only a reference to its location entered here .
Self-assessment questionnaire (SAQ)
3.4 The self-assessment questionnaire must be completed on paper, and must be signed, when printed, by the offender and retained in the offender’s OASys file.
A new SAQ must be completed during each subsequent review. The details are entered onto the SAQ within the
OASys system, so that it is easily accessible to those who will view the assessment in future and is available for data analysis.
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Chapter 4 - Risk of serious harm
4.1 The risk of harm part of OASys is divided into three sections:
screening
full risk of harm analysis
harm summary.
4.2 If the screening process suggests that there are indications of risk, then the relevant parts of the full risk of harm analysis will normally be completed. If it is decided this is not necessary, the reasons for not doing so must be recorded.
4.3
In order to support risk management and public protection work in establishments, a flag has been added to LIDS to record the level of risk of harm . OASys Clerks must input the risk level on LIDS using one of the following codes:
L - Low / M - Medium / H - High / VH - Very High
Management of risk and action plans
4.4 For those offenders who have received a rating of very high, high or medium in relation to risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks, a management plan must be completed.
4.5 The management of this group of offenders must be in line with the Prison Service Public
Protection Standard.
High risk or Very high risk of serious harm
4.6 Where prisoners are assessed as presenting a high or very high risk in custody, and/or the community, consideration must be given to whether any action needs to be taken immediately to minimise the risk in the prison environment.
Staff will need to check whether any procedures in the public protection standard apply.
4.7 The risk of harm assessment must inform assessments and decisions about the management of the prisoner, for example, allocation, work allocation, re-categorisation, release on temporary licence etc. Sentence plans must be developed which work to minimise the risk.
The Prison Service Dangerous Offender Strategy may also inform the management of this group of offenders. Close and effective liaison with the supervising service will be crucial in these cases.
4.8 Prior-to-release cases must be referred to the multi-agency arrangements provided by
Section 67 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
Contents of the management action plan
4.9 The plan will include the following:
Interface with other assessments, procedures and decisions o The risk of harm assessment must inform all relevant assessments, procedures and decisions, for example:
the type of cell accommodation
transfer decisions
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arrangements for escort and visits.
o In the light of the risk of harm assessment prison staff may need to invoke specific procedures, for example:
review of re-categorisation
inform managers of concerns submit a security information report.
Multi-agency arrangements o The plan must indicate which agencies are involved with the case. Where appropriate it must identify individuals and contact points. The role of each agency in managing the risk must be clear.
Has there been a public protection panel meeting?
Are there mental health issues which require liaison with health professionals?
4.10 Staff need to ensure that there are good channels of communications with the offender’s supervising officer. All information about victims must be stored in the confidential section of OASys (INTBDTTO) and regularly reviewed.
4.11 Offending behaviour work must focus on victim awareness if this has been highlighted as an issue.
OASys Guidance Document
4.12 Further details on risk of harm are given in the related Chapter 4 in the OASys Guidance
Document.
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Chapter 5 – Supervision and sentence planning
Introduction
5.1 Good supervision and sentence planning is vital to ensure that the work done with the offender is appropriate and effective. By integrating supervision and sentence planning into the overall process of assessment, OASys helps the assessor by making the links between these two essential aspects of offender management.
5.2 OASys is designed so that the objectives for supervision by the Probation Service and sentence planning by the Prison Service are clearly targeted to the profile of risk and needs identified during the assessment stage. The supervision and sentence planning section allows progress against objectives to be monitored and this will, in turn, inform the re-assessment of risk of reconviction and serious harm.
5.3 The development of the framework for the supervision and sentence planning section of
OASys was based on the previous sentence planning procedures in the Prison Service that were defined in Prison Service Order 2200 (which is replaced by this PSO) and the framework for supervision of offenders required by the Probation Service National
Standards.
Setting objectives
5.4 Objectives must always be achievable and reflect what opportunities are actually available. The focus must be on what the assessor is trying to change. Objectives must be
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound – SMART – and directed towards a long-term impact, after the offender returns to the community.
However, in relation to an overall objective, it may be sensible to stage the work over a period of time.
This will then be reflected in the sections on how the work is to be done, and the timescales for doing it.
5.5 It is important to set objectives on which evidence of progress can be recorded when the plan is reviewed. The assessor must indicate the criteria or evidence they will use to judge whether the objective has been met.
Some measures will be evident from the way in which the objectives are formulated. Self-report information from the offender may be an acceptable measure. Other objectives are more difficult and may require the use of pre- and post-test measures. If someone has attended a cognitive skills programme, for example, it is not enough to say that the programme was completed, there needs to be evidence of whether there has been cognitive change.
Transfer and termination
5.6 Specific sections are to be completed if a case is being transferred to probation or at the termination of the sentence.
5.7 An ‘OASys assessment group’ is formed when the first OASys assessment is completed relating to a sentence served (including any concurrent or consecutive sentences). This
‘OASys assessment group’ must be closed by a Termination TT, completed when the
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5.8 If custody is followed by a licence period for which Probation is responsible, Probation will complete the termination TT.
If there is to be no such licence on release from custody, the
Prison Service must complete the termination TT.
5.9
Prison Service staff must complete a termination TT for any prisoner on whom there is a current OASys if the prisoner is to be released with no ongoing licence for which Probation is responsible, whether or not any OASys assessments have been completed while in custody.
5.10 Prisoners on whom OASys assessments have been completed while in custody must have a TT at the point of release from custody. There are two types of TT:
A transfer TT must be completed if there is an ongoing licence and the OASys work will be transferred to the Probation Service.
A termination TT must be completed if there is no such ongoing licence.
5.11
Staff must not complete any sort of TT section for transfers between one Prison Service establishment and another.
OASys Guidance Document
5.12 Further details on supervision and sentence planning are given in the related Chapter 5 in the OASys Guidance Document.
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Chapter 6 - The Scope of OASys
Offenders for whom OASys must be completed
6.1 Those for whom an OASys assessment is a requirement:
Young offenders (sentenced when 18-20) with at least 4 weeks left to serve
ACR offenders (12 months and over, but less than 4 years) with at least 6 months
left to serve up to the conditional release date
All DCR offenders (4 years and over)
All offenders sentenced under CJA 2003 (12 months and over)
Life sentence offenders (OASys assessment is included within the Life Sentence
Plan system)
Extended sentence recall offenders, if their time in custody after recall will be one year or more
Licence recall offenders, if their time in custody after recall will be one year or more.
When to complete OASys
6.2 Eligible offenders who are received into an establishment from a court on sentence after the establishment has gone live on the OASys system, must receive an OASys assessment as part of the induction process or within 8 weeks.
6.3 Young offenders with less than eight weeks left to serve after sentence must receive an
OASys assessment as part of the induction process as soon as possible.
Scheduled and special reviews
6.4 The OASys assessment must be reviewed at least annually, but it is good practice to undertake a review after completion of a significant milestone .
A full review is not mandatory following transfer, but a receiving establishment will wish to consider whether the existing sentence plan is practicable and may consider re-allocation to a more appropriate establishment.
6.5 For public protection sentences (when implemented) and lifers, reviews must be completed as part of the parole process.
6.6. Final reviews in custody must be completed at least one month and not more than three months before release.
6.7
An OASys assessment must be reviewed in preparation for a parole review, if it has not been reviewed within the previous three months or if there has been any material change of circumstances since the most recent review. The full OASys assessment must be included in the parole dossier.
6.8 If there is no OASys assessment available for review - this is likely in a number of cases during the transition period from the previous sentence planning system to OASys - where resources permit, an OASys assessment should be prepared for the Parole Board and included in the dossier. Further guidance will become available in PSO 6000 on Parole,
Release and Recall.
6.9 The Parole Board will not need to see a full OASys for license recall offenders for the initial recall review.
6.10 In DCR cases, a Sentence Planning Board must be held.
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6.11 In ACR cases a board may be held, according to local circumstances. It is recognised that in some establishments it would create practical difficulties for all shorter term ACR offenders to be considered by a board. In such cases an equivalent process must take place which would achieve the same purpose.
6.12 The use of a board offers a number of advantages. It does not replace the use of Request for
Information (RFI) within the OASys system, but it does encourage effective communication between contributors. The offender will have the opportunity to be present for at least some of the board, in accordance with the open nature of the process.
6.13 If the offender declines to attend a board this must be recorded. If possible, a disclaimer signed by the offender should record this non-attendance. However, if the offender refuses to complete a disclaimer then this will be recorded using a memo signed by the offender’s wing or unit manager so that an auditable trail is maintained.
Young adult offenders
6.14 For young offenders who have between four weeks and three months left to serve, it may not be appropriate to complete all of the OASys process. Although the same documentation will be used, the focus will need to be on resettlement, particularly:
an address for release contact with the probation service child protection issues risk of harm issues
6.15
Partial completion of the documents, focusing on these key issues, will be acceptable in these cases.
6.16 Sections 1 to 4 of OASys must be completed and any other sections which assist the focus on resettlement.
The risk of harm section must be completed in all cases.
OASys Guidance Document
6.17 The related Chapter 6 in the OASys Guidance Document contains information about the wo versions of OASys – OASys 1 and OASys 2 and a short paragraph about civil prisoners.
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Chapter 7- Transitional arrangements
Transition from previous Sentence Planning system to OASys
7.1 Within one year after an establishment has gone live on the OASys IT system, all sentenced offenders eligible for OASys in that establishment must have a current OASys assessment, unless they are within the first eight weeks after sentence.
7.2 Each establishment must determine a policy on how to prioritise OASys assessments for sentenced offenders who are already in the establishment at the date when the establishment goes live on the OASys IT System. This policy must be based on the overriding priority of protection of the public.
Communication between establishments during the implementation period
7.3 During the implementation period:
Establishments with the facility to complete OASys assessments (“OASys-live establishments”) receiving a offender from a ”non-live establishment” must include that offender in their programme of transition to full OASys coverage
Establishments which are not ”OASys-live” sending a offender to any other establishment must send the paper sentence planning forms to the receiving
establishment in line with the provisions of the previous sentence planning system
“OASys-live establishments” sending an offender to a “non-live establishment” must send a paper copy of the OASys assessment.
Handling of paper OASys forms received from Probation Offices
7.4 Paper OASys forms received in an establishment must be checked promptly by an OASys
Clerk, in order to identify any risk or need factors which must be notified immediately to any department or unit in the establishment. Any risk of harm information must be passed to the manager of the unit where the offender resides.
7.5
Paper OASys forms received in the establishment must be stored in the sentenceplanning file or OASys paper file.
7.6 Establishments must use paper OASys forms as collateral information.
7.7
Establishments must have a policy on whether to enter paper OASys assessments for their offenders on the IT system. Any such policy would require the involvement of establishment assessors to enter paper OASys information.
OASys Guidance Document
7.8 The related Chapter 7 in the OASys Guidance Document contains further information.
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Chapter 8 - OASys staff roles
The OASys Assessor
8.1 The OASys Assessor is at the heart of the OASys process and of case management in the Prison Service. Since OASys is the core risk and needs assessment process for the
Service, a wide range of decisions and judgments will depend on its accuracy. For that reason, the training and support of the Assessor, and work of consistent and high quality by the Assessor, are vital to prisoner management across the Service. In order to maintain the quality of OASys assessments they must be completed by prison or probation staff who have the necessary knowledge of offender behaviour and contact with offenders.
It would not appropriate for assessments to be completed by administrative staff, such as
AOs and EOs, nor by OSGs.
8.2 Assessors must remember that access to the OASys system is enabled by their personal log-in rights, and that it is their personal responsibility to maintain the security of the system.
There is an auditable trail to record whoever has input information onto the system. Assessors must never allow offenders, in particular, to access the OASys IT system directly.
The OASys Supervisor
8.3 The Supervisor is normally at least one grade higher than the Assessor. The role must be underatken by prison or probation staff who have the necessary knowledge of offender behaviour and contact with offenders.
It would not appropriate for assessments to be supervised by administrative staff, such EOs.
8 .
4 Every assessment must be checked by a Supervisor , who will either approve it or return it for further work by the Assessor, adding comments to indicate where improvement is needed. The act of approval by the Supervisor makes the new OASys assessment available to all eligible users as a trustworthy basis for decision-making. The supervisor must therefore check the assessment thoroughly before approving it.
8.5 The supervisor is responsible for marking assessments historic; this is done at the end of a sentence, as a result of the offender being deported or as a result of death in custody, for instance. Supervisors must not mark as historic a record when the Offender is being transferred to Probation when they are released on Licence as in this case the control of the OASys will move to the Probation Service.
OASys Guidance Document
8.6 The related Chapter 8 in the OASys Guidance Document contains further information about the roles of assessor and supervisor, as well as the role of OASys Clerk, OASys
Manager and OASys users.
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Chapter 9 - Information to inform the OASys assessment
9.1 The related Chapter 9 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
Previous assessments
PSR OASys
Asset
Information from the Local Inmate Database System (LIDS)
Requests for information
Contributions from personal officers
Other contributions
Other collateral information.
9.2 The following paragraphs cover mandatory actions on contributions and collection of collateral information.
9.3 The written consent of the offender and the Medical Officer must be obtained before entering specific health information on the OASys documents.
9.4 Before the Assessor commences the assessment, the Clerk must collect as much relevant written information as possible from the F2050 core record, the Sentence Planning file, residential unit records, and any other sources in addition to the RFI responses.
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Chapter 10 - Engaging the Offender
The OASys Interview
10.1 OASys is a dynamic process in which the offender has a central role. OASys is an open process and the offender will be made aware of the information contained in the form and the risks and needs identified and the targets set. All staff completing OASys assessment interviews must have successfully completed the OASys interview skills training .
The Aim of the Interview
10.2. A completed OASys is only as good as the quality of the information on which it is based.
The OASys assessment must be completed after an interview with the offender, using both collateral and file information (see chapter 9).
10.3 The OASys form is not intended as a structured or semi-structured interview schedule. A short interview schedule, which covers the information needed for sections 2-12, is available in the OASys IT help system. The interview schedules are intended as a guide only. The interviewer must ask the questions in their own words and expand on these questions as the depth and nature of the answer require.
It may be necessary to change the order of questioning.
Engaging the offender
10.4
If the offender declines to be interviewed this must be recorded. If possible, a disclaimer signed by the offender will record this. However, if the offender refuses to complete a disclaimer then this should be recorded using a memo signed by the offender’s wing or unit manager so that an auditable trail is maintained.
Assessing the reliability of the interview data
10.5 If the information provided by the offender conflicts with that obtained from reports and records, the interviewer must explore these discrepancies. When completing the form the interviewer must draw conclusions about the reliability of the sources from all the available evidence before completing the relevant sections of the documentation. Advice must be sought from line managers whenever necessary.
If it is difficult to distinguish which source is more reliable, the interviewer should use professional judgement and record reasons in the evidence boxes (at the end of each section) to back up decisions reached. This is essential so that when the OASys is reviewed, other assessors can understand how decisions relating to the assessment were made.
Interview conditions
10.6 The establishment must ensure that the facilities necessary to carry out the interview are made available. The interview must be carried out in private, subject to security considerations. The interviewer must ensure that they are aware of any factors that may affect the behaviour of the offender during the interview.
An open process
10.7 Staff who interview offenders and assess information must be aware that their written assessments will be seen by, and usually discussed with, offenders.
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Access to information
10.8 The open nature of the process and documentation will need to be explained and discussed with the offender. Staff must be aware that much of the information in the
OASys documentation, particularly that relating to family, health and offending behaviour, will be of a sensitive and personal nature. Information must be kept securely whether it is on paper or IT.
If offenders wish to retain a paper copy, the security of that copy becomes their responsibility. The offender may, on request, be provided with a copy of the completed assessment. Offenders must not be charged for the first copy of their OASys assessment, whether initial or review, but additional copies will be charged for (see
Section 12.5).
OASys Guidance Document
10.9 The related Chapter 10 in the OASys Guidance Document contains further information on engaging the offender, including withholding information, r etention of OASys records following a quashed conviction and the self-assessment questionnaire.
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Chapter 11 - Sensitive Information
Information not to be disclosed to the Offender
11.1 OASys is an open document and the information in it will normally be shared with the offender. But there will be certain types of information which will not be disclosed where to do so would cause harm. The offender must be made aware that there are exceptions to the general principle of openness.
Managing the process
11.2
The confidential information entry must be dated and the name of the assessor recorded.
11.3 If an entry is no longer applicable due to a change of circumstances, the Supervisor records the reason for m arking the entry ‘Obsolete’. The original entry remains on the system with a line though it.
11.4 The information remains sensitive and must not be disclosed.
Information about victims
11.5 Information that is not open to offenders includes victim information where disclosure would compromise the confidentiality of the victim or their family.
11.6
11.7
Establishments must take particular care over their handling of confidential material and must avoid inappropriate disclosure.
Disclosure of victims’ views to offenders
Staff must be familiar with the responsibilities of the Service towards victims and their families.
11.8 Line managers must ensure that staff are aware of and understand policy, requirements and practice with regard to victim issues. When counter-signing and/or monitoring sentence plans or case records, line managers must ensure appropriate management of information about victims.
11.9 It is important to note that the main OASys documents are open to the offender.
Disclosure of other sentence management documents must be subject to the relevant instructions and
PSOs, such as those covering release on temporary licence.
11.10 The PSOs and Probation Circulars also give guidance about the management and handling of victim information, which must be handled with considerable care within these guidelines .
Third party information about victims, which might put them at risk, must not be entered on sentence planning documents which offenders are entitled to see.
Probation Service Responsibilities
11.11 Staff will be aware of the sensitivity of victim work and that the safety of victims and their families is paramount. However, victims and families must be informed that there are limits to the confidentiality that can be offered. In particular, they must be made aware that decisions about temporary or permanent release cannot normally be made on the basis of the victim’s concerns without those concerns being disclosed to the offender, so that he or she has the opportunity to challenge them.
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11.12 OASys managers must address the following :
if disclosure of information may possibly put a victim at risk, consideration will be given to presenting the information in an edited or summarised form, which protects the anonymity of the victim. The full information will be stored in a confidential file
no third party information will be included on any sentence planning document
methods for acquainting the Supervising Officer, or child protection managers, of establishment procedures for receiving and storing confidential material.
methods of storing confidential reports which are not for disclosure, but need to be referred to when making decisions about the offender, for example information which might be needed for ROTL decisions.
11.13 Staff must be prepared to explain that it is usual in sexual and/or violence cases to consider additional licence conditions.
OASys Guidance Document
11.14 The related Chapter 11 in the OASys Guidance Document contains some additional material on sensitive information and, for ease of reference and context purposes repeats the mandatory items.
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Chapter 12 - Access to OASys Information
Requesting Access
12.1 Any member of staff with any OASys log-in rights may request read-only access to the
OASys record of any specific offender. They must give the reason(s) for the request .
Limited Access
12.2 All assessments undertaken on Limited Access Offenders within the Prison Service must be printed to paper copy for forwarding to a nominated member of Probation Service staff
.
Printing
12.3 In prisons, printed copies of any part of an OASys record (except for offenders’ own copies) must be locked away when not in use.
12.4 INTBDTTO information must never be printed.
Charging for copies of OASys
12.5 All offenders who wish to have a copy of their OASys assessment, completed while they are in prison, must be provided with one copy of their full OASys assessment (not just the sentence and supervision planning part) at no charge. This also applies when the OASys is reviewed.
12.6 If, however, an offender wishes to have an additional copy, then that must be paid for at the current rate. Similarly, if an offender’s solicitor wishes to have a copy of an OASys assessment, and the offender gives consent, that should also be paid for at the current rate.
OASys Guidance Document
12.7 The related Chapter 12 in the OASys Guidance Document contains some additional material on access to OASys information, including access control and disclosure of information to outside agencies. For ease of reference and context purposes it repeats the mandatory items shown here.
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Chapter 13 - Ensuring quality
Quality Assurance and defensible decision-making
13.1 To ensure that the quality of assessments is maintained, only staff who have completed the required OASys training and been allocated an active OASys role may complete assessments.
Accountability and Countersigning
13.2
Assessments are completed by authorised OASys assessors and must be countersigned on completion by an OASys Supervisor, who must ensure that the document is of at least satisfactory quality and that the objectives in the sentence plan are appropriate to the assessment of risks and needs .
13.3 The OASys Manager must check 10% of initial assessments and reviews. .
OASys Guidance Document
13.4 The related Chapter 13 in the OASys Guidance Document contains some further information and will be expanded when a Quality Assurance strategy is finalised.
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Chapter 14 - Process management
14.1 The related Chapter 14 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
Structures and communication
Management
Administration
– including an OASys process flow chart
Efficient use of resources
Communication with partner agencies
Management information.
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Chapter 15 - OASys and offender management
15.1 The related Chapter 15 in the OASys Guidance Document contains a section on integration of decision making and offender management to put this chapter in context.
Public protection and dangerous offenders
15.2
For those offenders who have received a rating of very high, high or medium in relation to risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks, a management plan must be completed. The management of this group of offenders must be in line with the Prison
Service Public Protection Standard.
.
15.3
The risk of harm assessment must inform assessments and decisions about the management of the offender, for example, allocation, work allocation, re-categorisation, release on temporary licence and so on. Sentence plans must be developed which work to minimise the risk.
.
15.4 The Prison Service Dangerous Offender Strategy also informs the management of this group of offenders. Close and effective liaison with the supervising service will be crucial in these cases. Prior-to-release cases must be referred to the multi-agency arrangements provided by Section 67 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
Prevention of suicide and self harm
15.6 Since the OASys assessment may contain essential risk information on these issues, it is vital that information from it is sent to the right place in a prison. The OASys Clerk must check the Risk of Harm section of OASys for any offender received into the establishment, or newly receiving an assessment. If risk to others or risk of self harm is positive in the assessment, the Clerk must immediately notify the area where the offender is located as soon as the risk is identified. The CARATs department must also be informed where self harm through misuse of drugs is indicated as a risk factor in OASys.
Order and control
15.7 Information on persons with Protected Witness status cannot be held in any information system which is accredited at the Restricted level of the Government Protective Marking
Scheme. Therefore, IT OASys assessments must not be initiated for such persons. If managers judge that there is value in the use of OASys for such persons, the assessment must be carried out using paper forms only. These must be stored under the same conditions of security that apply to other Protected Witness records.
Healthcare
15.8 Consent must be sought from the offender for health information to be shared with others outside the healthcare staff and the proposed use of the information must be explained to the offender.
Life sentence prisoners
15.9
Following allocation and transfer to a First Stage prison, and on arrival of the full lifer collateral information contained within a lifer Confidential Summary Dossier (CSD), LSP
Section 2A Offence Analysis must be completed.
15.10 Following completion of LSP 2A, C, D and E, all OASys sections must be reviewed and updated based on the more detailed assessments in the LSP, in particular the Offence
Analysis and Risk of Harm sections.
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15.11 The LSP 2B Risk Factor Summary can then be completed using the information provided by the updated OASys and other LSP sections. A sentence planning board must be held and the LSP 2B and updated OASys disclosed to the lifer, along with the setting of sentence planning objectives.
15.12 If the CSD has not arrived at the establishment twelve months after the initial OASys assessment in custody, the OASys assessment must be updated then, and in case of exceptional delays at twelve-monthly intervals thereafter until receipt of the CSD.
15.13 The establishment’s OASys Manager and Lifer Manager must liase closely to ensure the smooth operation of the interface and thereby ensure that the most accurate assessment of risk is produced.
Prolific and other Priority Offenders
15.14 OASys will be the main tool for assessing PPOs for interventions. An assessment will be done on all PPOs by the Probation Service at the PSR stage. Prisons must maintain and update the OASys record of all PPOs serving a year or more . Where resources permit, they must also do this in the case of prisoners serving under a year. Prolific offenders must be given due priority for appropriate interventions within prisons, and efforts must be made to avoid the movement of prolific offenders between prisons, so as not to detract from their rehabilitation.
OASys Guidance Document
15.15 The related Chapter 15 in the OASys Guidance Document contains additional material on
OASys and offender management, including a section on integration of decision making and sections on dispersal prisons and the dangerous and severe personality disorder
(DSPD) programme as well as more detailed guidance on the subjects covered above.
For ease of reference and context purposes it repeats the mandatory items.
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Chapter 16 OASys interfaces with other processes
Categorisation and allocation
16.1 Categorisation and allocation are not an integral part of the sentence management process but are governed by Function 1 of the National Security Framework. However, much of the risk information informing these procedures is also contained within OASys.
16.2
Where an OASys assessment exists for an offender before the initial categorisation and allocation process begins, the content of that assessment must be taken into account in carrying out the process.
16.3 The initial categorisation and allocation process will in most cases take place before the first OASys assessment. If so, the OASys assessors must notify those responsible for categorisation and allocation if they believe that the OASys risk assessment calls in question any earlier decisions on categorisation or allocation. Those responsible for categorisation and allocation must then initiate a categorisation review in accordance with
Function 1 of the National Security Framework and the supporting guidance on prisoner re-categorisation.
Short term prisoners
16.4 Local initiatives have produced a number of tools for assessing urgent welfare needs and planning to address them and they are in use particularly for remand and short-term sentenced prisoners. Where information is gathered which forms part of OASys, then it must be recorded in the same way.
Incentives and Earned Privileges
16.5 The link between OASys and Incentives and Earned Privileges schemes is through the sentence planning part of OASys.
16.6 Sentence planning must be informed by information about the prisoner’s behaviour and subsequent progress in relation to incentives schemes, and assessment for incentives schemes must be informed by progress in relation to sentence planning.
16.7 Assessment for incentives schemes must be informed by progress in achieving sentence planning objectives .
OASys Guidance Document
16.8 The related Chapter 16 in the OASys Guidance Document contains additional material on
OASys interfaces with the above processes and also covers induction, resettlement/custody to work, the resettlement estate and intermittent custody. For ease of reference and context purposes it repeats the mandatory items.
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Chapter 17 OASys and decisions taken about release from custody
Parole
17.1
An OASys assessment must be reviewed in preparation for a parole review, if it has not been reviewed within the previous three months or if there has been any material change of circumstances since the most recent review. The full OASys assessment must be included in
the parole dossier. If there is no OASys assessment available for review - this is likely in a number of cases during the transition period from the previous sentence planning system to
OASys - where resources permit, an OASys assessment should be prepared for the Parole
Board and included in the dossier.
Preparation for release on licence
17.2 Where offenders are eligible to be considered for HDC, the HDC governor/clerk will be consulted two months prior to the HDC eligibility date to establish whether a pre discharge
RFI contribution will be generated at that point. If HDC is refused the contribution must be requested eight weeks before the normal release date. (It should be borne in mind that
HDC eligible offenders serving sentences of less than 12 months are not covered by sentence planning using OASys.)
17.3 Until the connected IT system is in place, the full OASys assessment (all component parts) must be printed and sent to the Supervising Officer at least seven working days before release.
17.4 Form DFB 1 - Discharge/Feedback Form - produced by LIDS must also be completed and sent to the Supervising Officer at least seven working days before release.
Establishments must use the DFB1 for all offenders and YOs subject to supervision under licence on discharge.
OASys Guidance Document
17.5 The related Chapter 17 in the OASys Guidance Document contains additional material on
OASys and decisions taken about release from custody and covers Home Detention
Curfew, Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL), parole, preparation for release on licence and child protection (Schedule One Offenders). For ease of reference and context purposes it repeats the mandatory items.
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Chapter 18 OASys and regime interventions
18.1 The related Chapter 18 in the OASys Guidance Document covers the following:
Structures and communication
Management
Allocation to regime interventions on the basis of risks and needs
Effective regime interventions
Offending behaviour programmes
Sex offence deniers
Therapeutic Communities
Drug Treatment
Education
Work
Physical education (PE)
Drug treatment
18.2 Where CJIP is in operation, CARATs workers must ensure that CJIP teams are kept informed of any resettlement needs/plans that flow from the sentence management process .
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3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
3.9
OASys GUIDANCE DOCUMENT
Introduction
This document should be read in conjunction with PSO 2205 on Offender Assessment and
Sentence Management – OASys.
The PSO provides an overview and focuses on mandatory actions. This OASys Guidance
Document provides supporting guidance and goes into greater detail.
The chapters in this document correlate with the chapters in the PSO.
Contents
1.1
1.2
1.3
Overview
Sentence management and planning in the Prison Service
OASys: joint sentence and supervision planning for the Prison Service and the
National Probation Service
1.4
1.5
Supervision planning in the National Probation Service
IT support for OASys
CHAPTER 2 PRINCIPLES OF POSITIVE SENTENCE MANAGEMENT
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
Aims of sentence management
The ‘seamless sentence’ and continuous case management
Respect for diversity
Public protection
Risk assessment and risk management
Reducing re-offending
– targeting interventions
CHAPTER 3 THE OFFENDER ASSESSMENT SYSTEM
Outline of OASys
The risk of re-offending assessment
The risk of serious harm assessment
Summary documents
Supervision/sentence plan (SSP)
Request for information
Self-assessment form (SAQ)
Confidential section (INTBDTTO)
Triggers to other assessments
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4.1
4.2
4.3
Risk of Harm
Risk of Harm Definitions
Management of Risk of Harm & Action Plans
CHAPTER 5 SUPERVISION AND SENTENCE PLANNING
5.1
5.2
5.3
5.4
5.5
Introduction
Prison Service sentence planning
Initial Plans
Review Plans
Transfer and Termination
6.1
6.2
6.3
6.4
6.5
6.6
Offenders for whom OASys must be completed
OASys 1 and OASys 2
When to complete OASys
Scheduled and special reviews
Young offenders
Civil Prisoners
CHAPTER 7 TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
7.1
7.2
7.3
Transition from previous Sentence Planning system to OASys
Communication between establishments during the implementation period
Communication between the Prison Service and Probation Service during the implementation period
7.4 Handling of paper OASys forms received from Probation Offices
8.1
8.2
8.3
8.4.1
8.5
8.6
The OASys Assessor
The OASys Supervisor
The OASys Clerk
The OASys Manager
OASys users
SPDR
CHAPTER 9 INFORMATION TO INFORM THE OASys ASSESSMENT
9.1
9.2
9.3
Previous assessments
PSR OASys
Asset
Information from the Local Inmate Database System (LIDS) 9.4
9.5
9.6
9.7
Requests for information
Contributions from personal officers
Other contributions
Other collateral information 9.8
CHAPTER 10 ENGAGING THE OFFENDER
10.1
10.2
10.3
The OASys interview
The aim of the interview
Engaging the offender
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10.4
10.5
Assessing the reliability of the interview data
Interview conditions
10.6 An open process
10.7 Access to information
10.8
10.9
10.10
Withholding information
Retention of OASys records following a quashed conviction
The Self-Assessment Questionnaire
CHAPTER 11 SENSITIVE INFORMATION
11.1
11.2
11.3
11.4
11.5
Information not to be disclosed to the Offender
Managing the process
Information about victims – general guidance
Disclosure of victims’ views to offenders
Probation Service responsibilities
CHAPTER 12 ACCESS TO OASys INFORMATION
12.1
12.2
Access control
Requesting access
12.3
12.4
12.5
Limited access
Printing
Charging for copies of OASys
13.1
13.2
Quality assurance and defensible decision-making
Accountability and countersigning of assessments
13.3 Audit and inspection
14.1
14.2
Structures and communication
Communication with partner agencies
14.3
14.4
Efficient use of resources
Management information
CHAPTER 15 OASys AND OFFENDER MANAGEMENT
15.1
15.2
15.3
Integration of decision making – case management
Public protection and dangerous offenders
Prevention of suicide and self harm
16.1
16.2
16.3
16.4
16.5
16.6
15.4
15.5
15.6
15.7
Order and control
Healthcare
Life sentence offenders
Dispersal Induction Assessment
15.8
15.9
Offenders who are dangerous and have severe personality disorders
Prolific and other priority offenders
CHAPTER 16 OASys INTERFACES WITH OTHER PROCESSES
Categorisation and allocation
Induction
Short term offenders
Incentives and Earned Privileges
Resettlement / custody to work
Intermittent custody
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CHAPTER 17 OASys AND DECISIONS TAKEN ABOUT RELEASE FROM CUSTODY
17.1
17.2
17.3
17.4
17.5
Home Detention Curfew
Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL)
Parole
Preparation for release on licence
Child protection (Schedule One Offenders)
CHAPTER 18 OASys AND REGIME INTERVENTIONS
18.1
18.2
18.3
18.4
18.5
18.6
18.7
18.8
18.9
Allocation to regime interventions on the basis of risks and needs
Effective regime interventions
Offending behaviour programmes
Sex offence deniers
Therapeutic Communities
Drug Treatment
Education
Work
Physical education (PE)
ANNEXES
OASys and the Local Inmate Database System (LIDS)
Guidance for completing the Actuarial Sentence Planning Risk Predictor (SPP) on
LIDS
Link back to PSO 2205 Contents
Link back to Guidance Document Contents
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Chapter 1 - Introduction
1.1 Overview
1.1.1 An overview is given in Chapter 1 of PSO 2205.
1.2 Sentence management and planning in the Prison Service
1.2.1 The Offender Assessment System (OASys) has been developed as a comprehensive assessment and planning instrument to give a systematic, reliable and evidence-based structure to the established sentence management process. It has been developed jointly with the National Probation Service (NPS), and therefore provides the basis for integrated offender management throughout all custodial and community sentences.
1.2.2 Risk assessment has always been central to sentence management and planning. The traditional approaches were actuarial risk assessments (based on past facts such as criminal history data) and clinical risk assessments (the exercise of professional judgement by the assessor). OASys incorporates dynamic risk factors (factors that can change over time) into a structured assessment that requires the exercise of professional judgement by the assessor, within an evidence-based framework, to produce improvements in sentence planning.
1.3 OASys: joint sentence and supervision planning for the Prison Service and the
National Probation Service
1.3.1 The two key aims in managing custodial and community sentences are:
to protect the public to reduce the risk of re-offending.
1.3.2 OASys-based supervision and sentence planning enables the Prison and Probation
Services to further these aims by:
assessing, managing and reducing the risk of harm assessing the factors associated with the likelihood of re-offending, and reducing that likelihood by identifying accurately targeted interventions.
1.3.3 The principles by which the OASys process is governed are:
all relevant information is gathered into a single comprehensive risk/needs assessment
the assessment is based on wide-ranging analysis of the results of research into which factors materially affect the risk of harm and the likelihood of re-offending, and the relative significance of specific factors
the assessment instrument has been tested in live pilot situations to establish that properly trained assessors will provide consistent and reliable assessments
a robust quality assurance system is required to ensure that consistency and quality are maintained
the assessment is updated and reviewed throughout the sentence
The OASys Data, Evaluation and Analysis Team (O-DEAT) will monitor the predictive accuracy of OASys, and recommend changes as required.
1.4 Supervision planning in the National Probation Service
1.4.1 Risk assessment and supervisio n planning are central to the Probation Service’s task of delivering community sentences which are effective in reducing re-offending. OASys is an
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The majority of probation areas in England and Wales have previously used some form of structured risk assessment to inform pre-sentence reports and supervision planning. OASys is replacing these systems. Staff in all Probation Areas have been trained in OASys assessment. Where a Pre-Sentence Report (PSR) is completed, it is informed by an OASys assessment which will be passed to the Prison Service in the event of a custodial sentence, in paper or electronic form as available. The Pre-Sentence Report includes an outline plan containing specific objectives for reducing the likelihood of re-offending and, where appropriate, the risk of serious harm.
1.4.2 Identical formats are used in the Probation and Prison Services to handle the Supervision and Sentence Plan within OASys. Continuity in planning and reviewing interventions will be of increasing value in establishing a seamless and integrated process of working with offenders before, during and after a period of imprisonment.
1.5 IT support for OASys
1.5.1 OASys has been implemented in both Prison and Probation Services on the platform of their respective national IT systems, which are designed to be fully compatible and connected. This will enable instant access to existing assessments when responsibility passes from one service to the other (for example, on reception into prison or upon release from prison on licence). Within the Prison Service, the OASys IT application will be a part of the Quantum suite of applications; the OASys assessment on an offender will be immediately available on screen to all eligible staff within the establishment where they are held, and to others on request. Relevant staff from either service will be able to view the OASys records of an offender currently under the responsibility of the other service, if there is a valid business reason, for example, preparation for release.
1.5.2 As well as providing instant access to an up to date record for each offender for whom a record is held, the OASys IT system will build a database from which a great variety of reports can be run for management and research purposes. This will enable, for example, accurate targeting and planning of programmes and other interventions, and detailed monitoring of performance without the need for the manual compiling of reports.
Link back to PSO 2205 Contents
Link back to Guidance Document Contents
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Chapter 2 - Principles of positive sentence management
2.1 Aims of sentence management
2.1.1 For the Prison and Probation Services:
to provide information to assist prison establishments and probation service areas to target resources more effectively, in order to ensure that prison regimes and
probation service programs more closely match the identified needs of offenders.
2.1.2 For the Public: to reduce the likelihood of re-offending by offenders by identifying areas of criminogenic need or offending related factors and providing action plans aimed at reducing that likelihood during custody and while under supervision in the community.
2.1.3 For the Offender:
to enable offenders to make constructive use of their time in prison. to provide strategies to avoid further offending and consequent further periods of imprisonment.
to provide a more structured resettlement into the community.
2.2 The ‘seamless sentence’ and continuous offender management
2.2.1 Under the Criminal Justice Act 1991, post-custody supervision became compulsory for all adults sentenced to 12 months and over and for all young offenders. This laid the foundation for what became known as the seamless sentence, in which the Prison and Probation
Services work together in partnership. It was so called because the sentence was viewed as a seamless whole, with the licence period as an integral part of the sentence - the sentence is served partly in custody and partly in the community. This approach is taken further in the
Criminal Justice Act 2003. Changes to the sentencing framework for adults sentenced to 12 months and over will be implemented in April 2005. Ordinary determinate sentences will be served half in custody and half in the community; release will be automatic at the half-way point and the licence will continue until sentence expiry. New sentences for public protection will be available to the courts for specified offences committed after April 2005; release will be determined by the Parole Board and will be followed by an extended period on licence of up to 10 years. Custody Plus, a sentence of under a year combining custody and licence in the community, will be introduced at a later date.
2.2.2 The general aims of such an integrated approach are:
to ensure that information within or received by an establishment is available for all relevant assessments and decisions
to avoid duplication of information gathering to avoid duplication of effort or work in making assessments to ensure that assessments and decisions are not made separately or in isolation from each other
to ensure continuity of decision making when offenders transfer between establishments and when offenders are discharged from custody to licence
To ensure continuity of care for offenders through clear understanding by both the Prison and Probation Services of the offender’s sentence objectives
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to ensure that decisions taken are the best possible ones, having regard to the offenders’ needs, issues of risk, operational constraints and available resources.
2.3 Respect for diversity
2.3.1 The Prison and Probation Services have policies which aim to ensure that all work with offenders is free from discrimination. This builds on active efforts by staff within both services to recognise and understand difference.
2.3.2 Discrimination may operate both within and outside custodial institutions and takes many forms. Some examples of this would be discrimination on the basis of race, gender, ethnic origin, nationality, age, sexual orientation, religious beliefs and trade union membership. Such issues affect every area of life and therefore cannot be ignored when carrying out assessments. Each individual’s experience needs to be considered and explored.
2.3.3. Staff will need to take care at every stage of the assessment process to avoid stereotyping or distorting risk assessment. It is essential that assessors are fully committed to ensuring that stereotyped and prejudiced attitudes towards any individual or group are not allowed to influence the assessment and consequent service delivery. Such attitudes must always be challenged.
OASys can contribute to non-discriminatory practice, as it requires evidence for assessments made and decisions taken. Supervisors and managers must look for such evidence when exercising their responsibilities for quality control.
2.3.4 Where an offender’s first language is not English the use of a translator would be advised.
If the offender agreed a fellow prisoner speaking the same language may be asked to assist. If this is not appropriate the services of an independent translator should be obtained. Self Assessment Questionnaires in different languages can be found on the
OASys web site.
2.3.5 When interviewing the offender and evaluating the information available assessors must take account of issues relating to cultural diversity which may affect the assessment.
For example, the sections dealing with family relationships might be affected by cultural expectations.
2.4 Public protection
2.4.1 The Prison Service Public Protection Performance Standard requires establishments to identify potentially dangerous offenders, ensure that appropriate action is taken whilst in custody to reduce the risk of serious harm posed by such individuals, and participate in planning for their controlled release into the community, sharing information with other relevant agencies and contributing to multi-agency work when appropriate.
2.4.2 OASys is designed to protect the public by the effective identification of risk and sentence planning to manage and reduce the risk. This work is underpinned by the fact that OASys is a common system to both the Prison and Probation Services, which allows each service to fully understand each other’s assessments before sentence and during custody and the licence period.
2.4.3 The OASys assessment will identify those who have committed offences against children or young persons under the age of 18. This allows for the effective implementation of child protection measures as required by IG 54/1994 (Release of Prisoners Convicted of
Offences against Children or Young Persons) and the Public Protection Manual. These are designed to minimise the risks that certain offenders, particularly those convicted of sexual offences against children, may present to children while in prison.
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2.4.4 OASys assessments will also mean that more effective and objective risk assessments are made in respect of ROTL and HDC and hence better decisions..
2.4.5 Prior to release, the Review, Transfer and Termination Plan indicates if a public protection conference has been held (section 9 in the review part of OASys Supervision and
Sentence Planning). This conference allows a multi-disciplinary team to identify any additional licence conditions to be added that will assist the Probation Service in effectively supervising the offender while on licence.
2.5 Risk assessment and risk management
Aims of risk assessment
2.5.1 Risk assessment and management are key issues for all practitioners and managers in the criminal justice system, both in prison establishments and in the community. The aims of risk assessment are:
to identify factors which can affect the risk posed by an individual to reduce risk to predict future risk to inform and guide the management of the sentence and licence to inform decisions to prioritise the use of resources.
2.5.2 Risk assessment in itself cannot reduce risk, but, through identifying the probability of harmful behaviour and who is at risk from it, strategies can be devised for addressing those factors that may reduce the risk of harm.
Methods of risk assessment
2.5.3 There are two methods of risk assessment which are commonly used:
actuarial-statistical
clinical-based on information, experience and professional judgement
2.5.4 Research has shown that both methods used in isolation are of limited value, but the best systems use both. The actuarial method is more frequently called a risk predictor. OASys provides a structured approach to combining both methods, informed by the research evidence.
The Sentence Planning Risk Predictor
2.5.5 In order to assist the risk assessment process in terms of likelihood of re-offending, a computer based risk predictor was developed for the revised system of sentence planning introduced in 1997. It is based on the principle that an individual’s behaviour can best be predicted from knowing how others responded in similar situations. It therefore defines the probability of reconviction within two years for an offender with a similar history.
2.5.6 This Risk Predictor is retained within OASys because it has been fully validated as an accurate tool. Since OASys is a new assessment tool, some years will elapse before it can be tested against actual reconviction rates and be established as a predictor of proven reliability. When it is conclusively validated, it will be possible to phase out the
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OGRS 2 (Offender Group Reconviction Score) is retained for the same reason.
2.5.7 The Risk Predictor is one part of the process of risk assessment. It should not be used in isolation but only as part of the whole OASys assessment.
2.6 Reducing re-offending – targeting interventions
2.6.1 Offenders have a variety of needs. OASys assesses those which are likely to be directly related to their offending behaviour. If these specific needs are met, the likelihood of reoffending may be reduced. OASys enables improved targeting of programmes and other interventions through improved supervision and sentence plans.
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Chapter 3 - The Offender Assessment System
3.1 Outline of OASys
3.1.1 OASys includes the following components:
Likelihood of reconviction and offending-related factors
OASys 1 – short version; OASys 2 – full version case identification offending information (Section 1); offence analysis (Section 2); offending-related factors (Sections 3-12); health and other considerations (Section 13)
Risk of serious harm, risks to the individual, and other risks screening section full risk of harm analysis harm summary section
OASys summary sheets
(one each for OASys 1 and OASys 2) scoring schedule risk of reconviction score offending-related factors summary risk of serious harm summary risks to the individual, and other risks
Supervision and sentence planning (SSP)
Outline plan, for use with PSRs only initial plan review plan, including transfer and termination if applicable
Request for information form (RFI)
Self-assessment questionnaire SAQ
This is a questionnaire to give the offender an opportunity to record their views
Information not be disclosed to the offender (INTBDTTO)
This is a confidential section where information is held which would not be disclosed to the offender but would be available to general users. Confidential information of a sensitive type must be held elsewhere and only a reference to its location entered here .
Transfer & Termination (TT)
This is completed when an offender is discharged from custody with no further supervision plan or completes a period of supervision in the community.
Request for Information (RFI)
All completed and submitted requests for information are available in this section.
RFIs automatically attach themselves to assessments on submission. Ad-Hoc
RFIs will also be located in this section.
3.2 The likelihood of re-offending assessment
3.2.1 Likelihood of reconviction and offending related factors (OASys 1 and 2)
This includes:
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case identification offending information (Section 1) offence analysis (Section 2) o o assessment of factors linked to offending accommodation (Sections 3) education, training & employability (Section 4) o o financial management & income (Section 5) relationships (Section 6) o o o o lifestyle & associates (Section 7) drug misuse (Section 8) alcohol misuse (Section 9) emotional well-being (Section 10) o o thinking & behaviour (Section 11) attitudes (Section 12) health & other considerations (Section 13) o
3.3 The risk of serious harm assessment
3.3.1 This includes:
a screening section a full analysis section a harm summary section.
3.3.2 The risks addressed are:
risk of serious harm to others risks to children risks to the individual o o suicide self-harm o o coping in custody / hostel setting vulnerability
other risks o escape/abscond o o control issues breach of trust.
3.3.3 The risk of harm summary includes management issues and the risk management plan.
3.4 Summary documents
3.4.1 There are two versions of the summary screen, one for OASys 1 and another for OASys
2. The IT system automatically calculates and displays the summary screen for the version in use.
3.4.2 The summary screen draws together key information from the assessment of the offender , and automatically calculates the likelihood of reconviction scores. It summarises:
offending-related factors
likelihood of reconviction score risk of serious harm to others current concerns about suicide, escape, etc.
3.5 Supervision/sentence plan (SSP)
3.5.1 This includes:
initial plan
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review plan
3.5.2 The plan will be drawn up on the basis of the criminogenic needs profile which has been built up in the core assessment (1-13), and the risk profile described in the risk of harm section, with reference to any Risk Management Plan at R11.12
3.5.3 If a PSR OASys has been completed, the Probation Service will have completed an outline plan. The objectives set in this plan will populate the objectives section of the initial Prison Service Supervision and Sentence Planning (SSP) document. The Assessor will review these objectives in the light of the overall assessment that they have carried out, and decide whether changes, subtractions or additions are required.
3.6 Request for information
3.6.1 The request for information document, RFI, can be used by anyone contributing to an
OASys assessment, for example:
probation supervising officer in the community contributing to an OASys assessment being completed in custody
a departmental specialist, (education, instructor, PEI etc) contributing to a sentence plan.
3.7 Self-assessment questionnaire (SAQ)
3.7.1 The purpose of the self-assessment questionnaire is to provide a more complete picture by allowing the offender the chance to comment on how they see their life. The form may identify issues that the offender has not raised in the interview or differences of opinion that can usefully be discussed. The selfassessment may be introduced as the offender’s opportunity to look at themselves and give their opinion
3.7.2 The self-assessment questionnaire will be completed on paper, and must be signed, when printed, by the offender and retained in the offender’s OASys file. The details are entered
3.7.3 onto the SAQ within the OASys system, so that it is easily accessible to those who will view the assessment in future and is available for data analysis.
It is important that the date is recorded so that any change in the offender’s views can be monitored over time.
3.7.4 A new SAQ must be completed during each subsequent review.
3.8 Information Not To Be Disclosed To The Offender
3.8.1 OASys is an open document in that the information in it will normally be shared with the offender, but there may be exceptional circumstances where information would cause harm if it were disclosed. The purpose of the section of OASys called Information Not To
Be Disclosed To The Offender (INTBDTTO) is to store information of this kind.
3.8.2 Further information about this part of OASys is given in Chapter 11.
3.9 Triggers to other assessments
3.9.1 The IT system identifies items from the OASys forms that have been established by research as suitable to trigger a further assessment, or to target for intervention. A target for intervention may refer to a single item or a configuration of items, and is used where items in OASys can directly identify suitability or exclusion criteria for a particular offender to take part in a particular intervention.
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3.9.2 The triggers currently built into the system are for:
general offending programmes sex offender assessment
violent offender assessment basic skills assessment
drug assessment alcohol assessment
mental health assessment dangerous and severe personality disorder (DSPD) assessment domestic violence
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Chapter 4 - Risk of serious harm
4.1 Risk of Harm
4.1.1 The risk of harm part of OASys is divided into three sections:
screening full risk of harm analysis harm summary.
4.1.2 If the screening process suggests that there are indications of risk, then the relevant parts of the full risk of harm analysis will normally be completed. If it is decided this is not necessary, the reasons for not doing so must be recorded.
4.1.3 The risks addressed are:
risk of serious harm to others risks to children risks to the individual suicide self-harm coping in custody / hostel setting vulnerability other risks escape / abscond control issues breach of trust.
4.1.4 The risk of harm summary includes management issues and the risk management plan.
4.1.5 Details of how to complete the risk of harm may be found in the OASys help section on the OASys website on the Intranet.
Background
4.1.6 There is limited evidence about which factors predict the risk of serious harm. When assessing the risk of further offending, the best predictor of future behaviour is considered to be past behaviour. This is also a good starting point when considering the risk of harm.
4.1.7 Identifying risk of serious harm requires a holistic approach. The assessment must explore the offender’s situation and behaviour, as well as their criminal convictions . The current offence and the previous convictions may not, on their own, indicate risk. It is also important to remember that risks may change over time and must be kept under review.
4.2 Risk of serious harm – definitions
4.2.1 Risk of serious harm can be defined as a risk which is life-threatening and/or traumatic, and from which recovery, whether physical or psychological, can be expected to be difficult or impossible.
4.2.2 Because of the duty of care when assessing risk in relation to staff and prisoners, assessors considering the risk of harm to these two groups will be concerned with both serious harm as defined here, and harm that is less serious in impact.
4.2.3 The levels of risk of harm used in OASys are:
Low – no significant, current indicators of risk of harm.
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Medium – there are identifiable indicators of risk of harm. The offender has the potential to cause harm but is unlikely to do so unless there is a change in circumstances, for example, failure to take medication, loss of accommodation, relationship breakdown, drug or alcohol misuse.
High – there are identifiable indicators of risk of harm. The potential event could happen at any time and the impact would be serious.
Very high - there is an imminent risk of harm. The potential event is more likely than not to happen imminently and the impact would be serious.
4.2.4
In order to support risk management and public protection work in establishments, a flag has been added to LIDS to record the level of risk of harm . OASys Clerks must input the risk level on LIDS using one of the following codes:
L - Low / M - Medium / H - High / VH - Very High
4.2.5 Risk is categorised as risk to:
the public prisoners known adults children staff self.
Risk to public
4.2.6 Harm, either of a general nature or directed to a specific group, for example, a minority ethnic group, women, the elderly.
Risk to prisoners
4.2.7 Harm to other prisoners in custody.
Risk to a known adult
4.2.8 Harm to a particular individual, for example, a previous victim, partner, someone against whom the offender has a grudge.
Risks to children
4.2.9 Any kind of harm to children, including violent and sexual behaviour, emotional harm and neglect.
Risk to staff
4.2.10 Harm to those working with the individual, for example, prison or probation staff, police, other agencies, partnerships, public officials. It can include any incident in which an employee is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances arising out of the course of their employment. It includes violence committed against an employee outside the work situation, physical force, verbal abuse and threats (with or without weapon) and any sexual or racial harassment. There does not have to be a physical injury.
Risk to self
4.2.11 This includes:
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Suicide: possibility that the offender will take their own life.
Self-harm : possibility that the offender will deliberately harm himself or herself irrespective of method, intent or severity of the injury. Self-harm will include injuries ranging from a self-inflicted scratch or cigarette burn, to a potentially life- threatening act such as hanging.
4.3 Management of risk and action plans
4.3.1 For those offenders who have received a rating of very high , high or medium in relation to risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks, a management plan must be completed.
4.3.2 The management of this group of offenders must be in line with the Prison Service Public
Protection Standard.
Low risk
4.3.3 There is a need to check whether any procedures in the public protection standard apply.
Low risk of serious harm cases are unlikely to require specific risk management work to be done unless there is a change of circumstances that increases the risk.
Medium risk
4.3.4 Where a prisoner has been assessed as presenting medium risk of serious harm in custody or the community prison staff will need to check whether any procedures in the public protection standard apply. It is anticipated that these cases will be managed as part of the normal process of sentence management, but staff will need to consider whether any additional action is required.
High risk or Very high risk of serious harm
4.3.5 Where prisoners are assessed as presenting a high or very high risk in custody, and/or the community, consideration must be given to whether any action needs to be taken immediately to minimise the risk in the prison environment.
Staff will need to check whether any procedures in the public protection standard apply.
4.3.6 The risk of harm assessment must inform assessments and decisions about the management of the prisoner, for example, allocation, work allocation, re-categorisation, release on temporary licence etc. Sentence plans must be developed which work to minimise the risk.
The Prison Service Dangerous Offender Strategy may also inform the management of this group of offenders. Close and effective liaison with the supervising service will be crucial in these cases.
4.3.7 Prior-to-release cases must be referred to the multi-agency arrangements provided by
Section 67 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
Contents of the management action plan
4.3.8 The plan will include the following:
Interface with other assessments, procedures and decisions o The risk of harm assessment must inform all relevant assessments, procedures and decisions, for example:
the type of cell accommodation
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transfer decisions arrangements for escort and visits.
o In the light of the risk of harm assessment prison staff may need to invoke specific procedures, for example:
review of re-categorisation
inform managers of concerns submit a security information report.
Multi-agency arrangements (see also Chapter 15, section 15.2 on Public protection and dangerous offenders) o The plan must indicate which agencies are involved with the case. Where appropriate it must identify individuals and contact points. The role of each agency in managing the risk must be clear.
Has there been a public protection panel meeting?
Are there mental health issues which require liaison with health professionals?
4.3.9 Staff need to ensure that there are good channels of communications with the offender’s supervising officer. All information about victims must be stored in the confidential section of OASys (INTBDTTO) and regularly reviewed.
4.3.10 Offending behaviour work must focus on victim awareness if this has been highlighted as an issue.
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Chapter 5 – Supervision and sentence planning
5.1 Introduction
5.1.1 Good supervision and sentence planning is vital to ensure that the work done with the offender is appropriate and effective. By integrating supervision and sentence planning into the overall process of assessment, OASys helps the assessor by making the links between these two essential aspects of offender management.
5.1.2 OASys is designed so that the objectives for supervision by the Probation Service and sentence planning by the Prison Service are clearly targeted to the profile of risk and needs identified during the assessment stage. The supervision and sentence planning section allows progress against objectives to be monitored and this will, in turn, inform the re-assessment of risk of reconviction and serious harm.
5.1.3 The development of the framework for the supervision and sentence planning section of
OASys was based on the previous sentence planning procedures in the Prison Service that were defined in Prison Service Order 2200 (which is replaced by this PSO) and the framework for supervision of offenders required by the Probation Service National
Standards.
5.2 Prison Service sentence planning
5.2.1 The purpose and objectives of the previous sentence planning system for the Prison
Service still hold good under OASys but with an increased focus on setting objectives that reduce the risk of serious harm and reduce the risk of re-offending. The priorities are to prepare for safer release and to make best use of the offender’s time in custody.
5.2.2 These are achieved by:
identifying factors relevant to the o o rehabilitation of the offender protection of the public from harm from the offender o o prevention of further offending successful completion of the licence
preparing the prisoner for release developing, improving or increasing the offender’s employability skills making constructive use of the prisoner’s time in custody providing the focus for all work and interventions with the prisoner informing all assessments and decisions made in relation to the individual, such as release on temporary licence, HDC and parole
providing the basis of the supervision plan for the licence period
5.2.3 On completing the sentence planning section of OASys it is vital to draw on information from all previous sections, so that the plan can be clearly seen as a response to the risks and needs identified in the assessment.
5.3 Initial Plans
5.3.1 The initial plan will be made at the start of the sentence and will draw on the selfassessment and the Probation Service PSR plan, where available.
5.3.2 Details and guidance on how to complete the initial plan may be found in the OASys help section on the OASys website on the Intranet. This includes guidance on:
motivation, capacity to change and positive factors
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awareness of the impact of their offence on the victim discrimination issues
5.3.3 The supervision or sentence plan allows the assessor to set out what work will be done and how it will be monitored and reviewed. One of the principal objectives of OASys is to improve targeting of programmes and other interventions in order to reduce re-offending through improved supervision and sentence plans.
5.3.4 The priorities for setting objectives are to:
reduce the risk of serious harm - if the risk of an offender causing serious harm is medium, high or very high the assessor will need to set objectives to reduce the risk of harm
reduce the likelihood of re-offending - other areas where work needs to be done will be indicated by information and scores in sections 1 –12.
5.3.5 Once factors linked to offending have been identified, you will set objectives that address these factors. It is important to match objectives to particular needs. For example, if accommodation scored highly, the objective might be to secure stable accommodation; if employment was the issue, the target might be to obtain an NVQ.
5.3.6 Objectives must always be achievable and reflect what opportunities are actually available. The focus must be on what the assessor is trying to change. Objectives must be
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound – SMART – and directed towards a long-term impact, after the offender returns to the community.
However, in relation to an overall objective, it may be sensible to stage the work over a period of time.
This will then be reflected in the sections on how the work is to be done, and the timescales for doing it.
5.3.7 It is important to set objectives on which evidence of progress can be recorded when the plan is reviewed. The assessor must indicate the criteria or evidence they will use to judge whether the objective has been met.
Some measures will be evident from the way in which the objectives are formulated. Self-report information from the offender may be an acceptable measure. Other objectives are more difficult and may require the use of pre- and post-test measures. If someone has attended a cognitive skills programme, for example, it is not enough to say that the programme was completed, there needs to be evidence of whether there has been cognitive change.
5.4 Review plans
5.4.1 This section is to be completed at each review and guidance on how to complete it may be found in the OASys help section on the OASys website on the Intranet.
5.4.2 When the OASys is reviewed, the risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks section, and the supervision and sentence plan will need to be reviewed and updated.
5.4.3 It will not be necessary to re-score Sections 1-12 for every review, but they will need to be reconsidered at key stages, for example:
to inform parole assessments to inform key decisions within a Lifer’s progress prior to release from custody.
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5.4.4 Where OASys is reviewed, but Sections 1-12 have not been re-scored, the assessor must carry out a short review by completing item 6 of the review plan.
5.4.5 The review of previous objectives section is for the assessor to record how much progress has been achieved in meeting the specified objectives listed in the previous plan.
5.4.6 The new and ongoing objectives section is for the assessor to complete, adding any additional objectives, which follow from the review of the risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks and of Sections 1-12. Those objectives which have been partially achieved, or not achieved, may need to be carried forward into this section. Some objectives may stay exactly as they are in the initial plan.
5.5 Transfer and termination
5.5.1 Specific sections are to be completed if a case is being transferred to probation or at the termination of the sentence.
5.5.2 An ‘OASys assessment group’ is formed when the first OASys assessment is completed relating to a sentence served (including any concurrent or consecutive sentences). This
‘OASys assessment group’ must be closed by a Termination TT, completed when the offender has finished this continuous period of custody and licence or community sentence .
5.5.3 If custody is followed by a licence period for which Probation is responsible, Probation will complete the termination TT.
If there is to be no such licence on release from custody, the Prison Service must complete the termination TT.
5.5.4 There are certain categories of prisoner on whom the Prison Service does not require
OASys assessments to be carried out while in custody. These offenders may, however, have a current OASys due, for example, to a PSR OASys having been completed prior to sentence. If these prisoners are released on licence, no action is required by Prison staff, as the Probation Service will terminate the current OASys at the end of the licence period.
5.5.5
Prison Service staff must complete a termination TT for any prisoner on whom there is a current OASys if the prisoner is to be released with no ongoing licence for which
Probation is responsible, whether or not any OASys assessments have been completed while in custody.
5.5.6 Prisoners on whom OASys assessments have been completed while in custody must have a TT at the point of release from custody.
There are two types of TT.
A transfer TT must be completed if there is an ongoing licence and the OASys work will be transferred to the Probation Service.
A termination TT must be completed if there is no such ongoing licence.
5.5.7 Although the minimum OASys required is Case ID + TT, TTs are normally completed as part of the last assessment done in custody, and there will therefore normally be a Case
ID, 1-13, ROH, and SSP done as part of this assessment. If the SSP is a Review plan
(RSSP), it will be possible to tack the TT onto the assessment. However, for technical reasons, it is not possible to combine a TT with an initial plan (ISSP). This means that if the assessment contains an ISSP, it will be necessary to complete the assessment without a TT and then follow that assessment by another one containing only Case ID+TT.
This rule holds for both Termination TTs and Transfer TTs.
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5.5.8 Staff must not complete any sort of TT section for transfers between one Prison Service establishment and another.
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Chapter 6 The Scope of OASys
6.1 Offenders for whom OASys must be completed
6.1.1 Details of those for whom an OASys assessment is a requirement are given in Chapter 6 of
PSO 2205.
6.2 OASys 1 and OASys 2
6.2.1 There are two versions of OASys: OASys 1 and OASys 2.
OASys 2 has a comprehensive offence analysis section, and contains more items in
Sections 1 – 12. It contains more dynamic items, which means that it is more sensitive to change and monitoring progress.
All the OASys 1 questions are contained in OASys 2 so that an initial OASys 1 assessment can be expanded into the fuller version. The IT system automatically displays only the questions contained in the version (1 or 2) which is in use.
OASys 1 will be used in the Prison Service when a new assessment is created for an offender who has not previously been assessed within OASys, for offenders serving sentences of greater than twelve months but less than four years, provided that the current index offence is not a violent or sexual offence.
OASys 2 will be used for offenders serving sentences of 4 years or more, and offenders serving life sentences, and also for offenders serving sentences of less than four years whose current index offence is a violent or sexual offence.
If an OASys 2 has been completed by either service for an offender, it is not possible to revert to an OASys 1. The reason is that to revert would cause loss of information not contained in OASys 1, which may be of importance both in custody and in planning supervision after release.
OASys 2 will be used for offenders on extended sentences who are released on licence and are later recalled, if their time in custody after recall will be one year or more.
6.3 When to complete OASys
6.3.1 Details of when to complete OASys are given in Chapter 6 of PSO 2205.
6.4 Scheduled and special reviews
6.4.1 Details of when to review OASys assessments are given in Chapter 6 of PSO 2205.
6.5 Young adult offenders
6.5.1 See Chapter 6 of PSO 2205.
6.6 Civil Prisoners
6.6.1 OASys assessments are not required for civil prisoners. Under the Criminal Justice Act
1991, such prisoners are described as serving a ‘term’ rather than a ‘sentence’.
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Chapter 7- Transitional arrangements
7.1 Transition from previous Sentence Planning system to OASys
7.1.1 See Chapter 7 of PSO 2205 for details of the mandatory requirements.
7.1.2 In interpreting the priority of public protection, the e stablishment’s OASys transition policy will take account of:
evidence of high likelihood of re-offending and/or risk of harm proximity of release date the need to inform other assessments directly related to public protection (e.g.
Parole review, Multi-Agency Public Protection Panel) specific requirements for management of Life Sentence Offenders the need to move as quickly as possible, within the constraints of available resources, to complete OASys assessments on all eligible offenders.
7.2 Communication between establishments during the implementation period
7.2.1 During the implementation period, a steadily increasing number of establishments have been able to complete assessments with the OASys IT system. In those establishments that cannot complete assessments, staff will have read-only access to the OASys records of offenders who have moved to their establishment. This information will be regarded as collateral information for other assessment purposes.
7.3 Communication between the Prison Service and Probation Service during the implementation period
7.3.1 The Probation Service first implemented OASys on paper forms in all areas and it has now rolled-out IT OASys, known as e-OASys. It will not be fully connected with the Prison
Service OASys IT system until October 2005.
7.3.2 The Probation Service will complete an OASys assessment on each offender for whom a court commissions a Pre-Sentence Report. These OASys forms will be available on paper, fax or, in some cases, by email, to the prison first receiving the convicted offender.
In accordance with Probation National Standards they must be sent, with the PSR, to the
Custody Office of the prison within two working days of sentence.
7.3.3 Until IT connectivity is established, communication between the two Services (both during the custodial part of the sentence and in the pre-release phase) will need to continue through letter, telephone, fax or in some cases email.
7.4 Handling of paper OASys forms received from Probation Offices
7.4.1 Please refer to Chapter 7 of PSO 2205 for details of the mandatory requirements.
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Chapter 8 - OASys staff roles
8.1 The OASys Assessor
8.1.1 The OASys Assessor is at the heart of the OASys process and of case management in the
Prison Service. Since OASys is the core risk and needs assessment process for the
Service, a wide range of decisions and judgments will depend on its accuracy. For that reason, the training and support of the Assessor, and work of consistent and high quality by the Assessor, are vital to prisoner management across the Service. In order to maintain the quality of OASys assessments they must be completed by prison or probation staff who have the necessary knowledge of offender behaviour and contact with offenders.
It would not appropriate for assessments to be completed by administrative staff, such as
AOs and EOs, nor by OSGs.
8.1.2 The role of the OASys Assessor encompasses the following:
The Assessor completes the Case ID, fields not completed by the Clerk or populated by LIDS, The Likelihood of Reconviction, Risk of Harm Screening,
Risk of Harm Full Analysis (if required) and the Supervision and Sentence Plan (for prisoners on whom no OASys assessment exists for the current sentence). The
Assessor updates documents as required at the review stage. The personalised task list on the Assessor’s home page shows new reviews by displaying a ‘Record
Review’ button or ongoing work by a ‘Work in Progress’ button.
The Assessor collects from the OASys Clerk, and gathers from elsewhere as necessary, the collateral information which will inform the assessment. This may include court papers and Pre- or Post-Sentence Report, and Prison Service assessments such as First Night/Cell Sharing risk assessments, ICA form, F2050 core record including current records held on residential units, and any papers contained in sentence planning files.
Additionally, the Assessor has direct access to contributions made electronically in response to Requests For Information (RFI), which have been sent by the OASys
Clerk in preparation for the current assessment.
Information used in the OASys process is normally available for the offender to see. However, in certain circumstances information can be withheld from the offender. For more information, see Chapters 8 and 9 of this PSO.
Having read this information, the Assessor interviews the offender in a place where an uninterrupted and private conversation can take place. An interview schedule is provided, to enable the Assessor to make all the notes which they will need for the assessment.
Prior to or at the interview stage, the Assessor or a member of staff knowledgeable in the OASys process must give the offender the Self Assessment
Questionnaire (SAQ). This is so that the assessor can explain the form to the offender to ensure that the offender can complete it.
After concluding the interview, the Assessor enters the assessment in the OASys IT system on the basis of all the information gathered.
Assessors must remember that access to the OASys system is enabled by their personal log-in rights, and that it is their personal responsibility to maintain the security of the system.
There is an auditable trail to record whoever has input
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Assessors can find further guidance on completing assessments in training materials and in the OASys IT Help system.
When the Assessor is satisfied that the assessment has been completed to the highest possible standard, they mark it as complete. The assessment is then routed to the Supervisor for checking and approval. If the
Supervisor does not approve it, the Assessor will make alterations in line with the
Supervisor’s comments, and resubmit the assessment.
The Assessor may initiate ad hoc assessments in exceptional circumstances when there is no Clerk available to undertake this task.
8.2 The OASys Supervisor
8.2.1 The role of the OASys Supervisor is the key to consistent and high quality in assessment and sentence planning. Managers and other staff at establishment, Area and national level will make decisions based partly or wholly on the most recent OASys assessment, and much will depend on the work of the Supervisor in ensuring that the work is thorough and accurate.
8.2.2 The Supervisor is normally at least one grade higher than the Assessor. However, qualification for the role is by competence rather than grade, and so the OASys Manager may designate any member of staff as a Supervisor if the appropriate training has been successfully completed and the Manager is satisfied that they have the necessary skills and experience. The role must, however, be underatken by prison or probation staff who have the necessary knowledge of offender behaviour and contact with offenders.
It would not appropriate for assessments to be supervised by administrative staff, such EOs.
8.2.3 Every assessment must be checked by a Supervisor , who will either approve it or return it for further work by the Assessor, adding comments to indicate where improvement is needed. The act of approval by the Supervisor makes the new OASys assessment available to all eligible users as a trustworthy basis for decision-making. The supervisor must therefore check the assessment thoroughly before approving it.
8.2.4 The Supervisor is responsible for marking assessments incomplete. This will only occur in exceptional circumstances:
The offender is to be transferred at short notice and there is insufficient time to complete the assessment
The designated assessor is not available for duty and will not return in time to complete the assessment within the required time scale
The offender escapes or absconds while the assessment is open.
8.2.5 The supervisor is responsible for marking assessments historic; this is done at the end of a sentence, as a result of the offender being deported or as a result of death in custody, for instance. Supervisors must not mark as historic a record when the Offender is being transferred to Probation when they are released on Licence as in this case the control of the
OASys will move to the Probation Service.
8.3 The OASys Clerk
8.3.1 The OASys Clerk is the key person in the efficient organisation of the OASys process.
The OASys Manager will provide guidance where needed, in accordance with local needs
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8.3.2 The responsibilities of the role include:
reviewing the task list at the beginning of each day, and initiating routine OASys reviews as prompted by the system
initiating ad hoc assessments when directed to do so, or when an event occurs which triggers the need for an OASys review
sending Requests for Information (RFI) to the relevant departments, units or external agencies
completing the relevant parts of the Case ID section of the OASys set
assigning the assessment to an Assessor as directed by a Supervisor considering and responding to requests for access to OASys records maintaining the establishment’s database of external contacts for use
with RFIs initiating the establishment’s Tasks Groups where the clerk needs to send an RFI to a group, e.g. Security, if they cannot identify a specific individual to send the request to
maintaining distribution lists for RFIs entering board comments, closing or returning assessments as directed.
8.3.3 The OASys Clerk role may be held by a number of named members of staff in an establishment.
8.4 The OASys Manager
8.4.1 The OASys Manager is the person responsible for all aspects of the use of the OASys system within the establishment. If the OASys Manager in an establishment is not a
Functional Head, a named senior manager will be identified to whom the OASys Manager reports.
8.4.2 The responsibilities of the OASys Manager include:
the appointment of OASys Assessors, Supervisors and Clerks ensuring sufficient deployment of OASys staff to meet targets co-ordinating OASys training for staff in the establishment, in liaison with the
Training Manager
monitoring the quality of OASys assessments through overseeing the work of the
Supervisors, including the detailed checking of a proportion of countersigned
assessments handling any complaints reporting to the Governor regularly on the operation of OASys reporting to the area office or HQ as required.
8.5 OASys users
8.5.1 All staff will have access to the OASys records for offenders located in their establishment.
8.5.2 Such ‘user’ access enables staff to open the OASys application directly and to read any part of the OASys assessment(s), past and current, for the offenders held in the establishment at the time. It does not enable them to enter any information into the assessment, or to change anything in it.
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8.5.3 Personal Officers are a key source of information for the Assessor. In addition to a written contribution from them, it is good practice for the Assessor to speak personally to the
Personal Officer about the offender who is to receive an OASys assessment. The
Personal Officer will, whenever possible, attend the sentence planning board if one is held.
8.5.4 Users will also be able to request to view OASys documents held by another establishment or the probation service. Any such request will require a duration and reason for request. In these circumstances it will be the establishment or area that holds the OASys record that decides if access will be granted.
8.6 SPDRs
8.6.1 SPDRs will include OASys responsibilities in the “key work to be done” section and targets will be set when appropriate. The quality as well as the quantity of performance will be reported. This applies not only to OASys Assessors and Supervisors, but to managers, personal officers, administrative staff and all who may be required to contribute to the
OASys process.
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Chapter 9 - Information to inform the OASys assessment
9.1 Previous assessments
9.1.1 Any OASys assessments previously made by the Prison Service (and, from the time that
IT connectivity is established, by the Probation Service) will be shown in the Document
List relating to the individual offender, and will be available for immediate consultation. In time, for repeat offenders, a significant number of successive assessments will accumulate in the record. Assessors will consult these previous assessments to discover what patterns, trends and changes are apparent in the offender’s history.
9.1.2 Where a previous assessment exists in the IT record and a new OASys set is created, the new set will be automatically populated from the preceding one – i.e. all the fields which have been filled in, in the previous set, will be filled in with the same data in the new one.
The assessor will need to check the date of the preceding assessment, and to review all the automatically populated fields, to verify whether the information in them is still correct.
9.1.3 The same principle applies when an Assessor is updating a current OASys set. When the update is initiated in the system, a new set is created, bearing the new date, which is automatically populated from the preceding set. The updating Assessor will need to review the information, to check that it remains accurate.
9.2 PSR OASys
9.2.1 It is a National Standard of the National Probation Service (NPS) that whenever a Pre-
Sentence Report is requested by a Court, an OASys assessment must be completed to inform that Report. When full IT connectivity between the Probation and Prison Services is achieved, the PSR OASys (or an OASys completed for any other purpose by NPS) will appear in the document list and be handled as in 9.1.
9.2.2 Until that time, PSR OASys forms will be available to Prison Service establishments in paper form. In this case, the Probation Office responsible will forward a copy of the
OASys to the relevant establishment. It will be held on the sentence planning file and the
Assessor will consult it as a part of the collateral information informing the Prison Service
OASys assessment.
9.3 Asset
9.3.1 ASSET is the risk and needs assessment tool of the Youth Justice Board. It is linked to a set of forms (the ‘T’ Forms) which record plans and objectives in a similar manner to
Prison Service sentence planning documents. ASSET and the associated T Form will have been competed and regularly updated for all juvenile offenders serving a custodial or community sentence. When an offender is transferred from juvenile custody (whether in a
Prison Service establishment or another secure institution) into a Prison Service establishment as a young offender having reached eighteen years of age (under Section
91/92 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000), it is a requirement of the
Youth Justice Board that the ASSET forms be forwarded promptly to the receiving Prison
Service establishment.
9.3.2 If an adult whose most recent sentence was a Detention and Training Order (DTO) receives a custodial sentence, the most recent ASSET assessment will be held by the
Probation or YOT Office most recently responsible for the supervision of that person.
9.4 Information from the Local Inmate Database System (LIDS)
9.4.1 Much of the factual information in the Case ID section of OASys is also held in LIDS. In order to ensure that the information in both databases matches and is correct, LIDS is the
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OASys will need to change it in LIDS; any such action will be in consultation with the establishment administration office. There are some LIDS fields, however, which though similar to OASys fields do not exactly match them; these remain independent in the two databases. Fuller details are in Annex B, and in the IT Help system.
9.5 Requests for information
9.5.1 If no Probation OASys assessment is available, information from the Supervising Officer needs to be requested as soon as the offender is sentenced. This is returned by the
Supervising Officer and is a contribution to the custodial OASys assessment. This may be done by telephone, post, fax or email until a joint Request for Information (RFI) system is established as part of the connected Prison/Probation OASys IT systems.
9.5.2 Pre-sentence information, such as previous convictions, pre- and post-sentence reports and information from the police or court is obtained and collated
9.5.3 Requests for Information are used to gather information from specialists and departments within the establishment. They are asked to provide information about their knowledge of the offender, including information about attitude and behaviour that can be used in the risk assessment. The requests will be sent electronically wherever possible, by the OASys Clerk.
9.5.4 The OASys system also supports the use of ad hoc Requests For Information. An ad hoc
RFI can be instigated by any establishment user to provide information on an offender at any time and without waiting to be requested to provide information. The newly created
RFI will attach itself to the next created assessment if a current one is not available.
9.6 Contributions from personal officers
9.6.1 OASys assessments may be carried out by the named personal officer for the offender. In general, OASys assessors will not be the personal officer for the offender they are assessing.
9.6.2 In this case, an RFI will be sent by the OASys Clerk, or assessor, to the named personal officer. The input of the personal officer is essential to a good assessment, since they are likely to have a better knowledge of the offender, especially in terms of attitudes and actions in the everyday life of the residential unit, than many specialist staff. It is good practice, therefore, that the assessor should communicate directly with the personal officer in preparing to complete the assessment.
9.7 Other contributions
9.7.1 Reports and RFI responses from specialists and departments within the establishment, information from records and an interview with the offender, will inform the process of revising and, if necessary, updating the core assessment, risk assessment and sentence plan. It is important to recognise that risk is not assessed once and for all at the beginning of the sentence, but is reviewed in the light of available information.
9.7.2 Relevant staff and departments who might contribute to the OASys assessment include:
Other wing/residential staff
Have other staff had particular contact with the offender? o o
Seconded Probation Officer
Has there been regular contact?
Education Department
Educational assessment, attitude, behaviour?
Special Needs, language?
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Psychologist
Has there been any contact?
Workshop Manager/Tutor
Work/courses undertaken, achievement, attitude, behaviour?
PEI
Does the offender use the gym/sports facilities?
Attitude, behaviour?
Chaplaincy
Does the offender attend religious worship/activities?
Attitude, behaviour?
Groupwork Officer/Accredited programme tutor
Has the offender attended/completed any groups?
Attitude, behaviour?
CARATs team
Any history or current involvement with drugs?
Resettlement Officer (or other staff with special responsibilities)
Resettlement needs?
Voluntary and community groups providing services to prisoners
Any information on circumstances, needs, attitudes and behaviour?
Health Care
- Are there health problems/special needs?
-
-
Are these new or existing?
Are there mental health problems?
- Are there problems of substance abuse?
It is important to note that any health care information or targets are subject to medical confidentiality.
9.7.3 The written consent of the offender and the Medical Officer must be obtained before entering specific health information on the OASys documents.
9.7.4 There may be other staff in establishments who, while not supplying formal contributions, could offer advice on issues which might emerge, e.g. Race Relations Liaison Officer.
9.8 Other collateral Information
9.8.1 B efore the Assessor commences the assessment, the Clerk must collect as much relevant written information as possible from the F2050 core record, the Sentence Planning file, residential unit records, and any other sources in addition to the RFI responses.
9.8.2 Relevant written information includes, where available:
Pre-Sentence Report
Court papers – judge’s remarks, witness statements, depositions etc.
Previous sentence planning documents (ACR, DCR etc.)
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Chapter 10 - Engaging the Offender
10.1 The OASys Interview
10.1.1 OASys is a dynamic process in which the offender has a central role. OASys is an open process and the offender will be made aware of the information contained in the form and the risks and needs identified and the targets set. All staff completing OASys assessment interviews must have successfully completed the OASys interview skills training .
10.2 The Aim of the Interview
10.2.1 A completed OASys is only as good as the quality of the information on which it is based.
The OASys assessment must be completed after an interview with the offender, using both collateral and file information (see chapter 9).
10.2.2 The OASys form is not intended as a structured or semi-structured interview schedule. A short interview schedule, which covers the information needed for sections 2-12, is available in the OASys IT help system. The interview schedules are intended as a guide only. The interviewer must ask the questions in their own words and expand on these questions as the depth and nature of the answer require.
It may be necessary to change the order of questioning.
10.2.3 The purpose of the offender interview is to:
explain the OASys process to the offender obtain information about the offender’s lifestyle and offending behaviour which is not available from other sources determine the offender’s attitudes towards their offending and risk factors related
to offending sample the offender’s reasoning and inter-personal behaviour
10.3 Engaging the offender
10.3.1 Interviewing an offender does not mean simply recording their views. It is an opportunity actively to engage with the offender about their offending and their attitudes. It may be necessary to challenge them at times and enter into discussion at some length.
The offender has a responsibility to co-operate with this, although it must be recognised that not all of them will take advantage of it. But a positive and constructive approach by staff will allow offenders to make an informed choice about whether to co-operate or not.
10.3.2
If the offender declines to be interviewed this must be recorded. If possible, a disclaimer signed by the offender will record this. However, if the offender refuses to complete a disclaimer then this should be recorded using a memo signed by the offender’s wing or unit manager so that an auditable trail is maintained.
10.3.3 It is not good practice to type assessments into OASys during the interview:
the interview process itself demands full attention and a responsive approach
recording will disrupt the flow of the interview and could therefore have a detrimental effect on the gathering of information, particularly if the assessor had slow typing skills
the security of the system could be compromised by allowing an offender to see
INTBDTTO if the Assessor accidentally hit the wrong button while the offender was in the room.
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10.4 Assessing the reliability of the interview data
10.4.1 If the information provided by the offender conflicts with that obtained from reports and records, the interviewer must explore these discrepancies . When completing the form the interviewer must draw conclusions about the reliability of the sources from all the available evidence before completing the relevant sections of the documentation. Advice must be sought from line managers whenever necessary.
If it is difficult to distinguish which source is more reliable, the interviewer should use professional judgement and record reasons in the evidence boxes (at the end of each section) to back up decisions reached. This is essential so that when the OASys is reviewed, other assessors can understand how decisions relating to the assessment were made.
10.5 Interview conditions
10.5.1 The establishment must ensure that the facilities necessary to carry out the interview are made available. The interview must be carried out in private, subject to security considerations. The interviewer must ensure that they are aware of any factors that may affect the behaviour of the offender during the interview.
10.6 An open process
10.6.1 Staff who interview offenders and assess information must be aware that their written assessments will be seen by, and usually discussed with, offenders.
10.6.2 Such personal data are subject to the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998
(DPA). The DPA is built around eight principles covering the way in which personal data on individuals is processed. These are statutory requirements that such information must be:
processed fairly and lawfully processed for limited purposes adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purposes for which they are recorded
accurate and kept up to date kept no longer than is necessary processed in accordance with the data subject’s rights under the Act kept secure and protected against loss or damage adequately protected if transferred to countries outside the European
Economic Area.
10.6.3 For further information, see PSO 9020 on the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
10.6.4 It is important that the OASys assessments are factually accurate and that the conclusions drawn about individuals are reasonable in the light of the information available at the time. As set out in paragraph 8.4.1, the evidence boxes at the end of each section must be completed so that future assessors can understand how decisions were reached. Although it is important for assessments to be concise, they should be considered and full. Positive as well as negative aspects should be evidenced, including where there is a ‘no problem’ score in sections 1-12.
10.7 Access to information
10.7.1 The open nature of the process and documentation will need to be explained and discussed with the offender. Staff must be aware that much of the information in the
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OASys documentation, particularly that relating to family, health and offending behaviour, will be of a sensitive and personal nature. Information must be kept securely whether it is on paper or IT.
If offenders wish to retain a paper copy, the security of that copy becomes their responsibility. The offender may, on request, be provided with a copy of the completed assessment. Offenders must not be charged for the first copy of their OASys assessment, whether initial or review, but additional copies will be charged for (see
Section 12.5).
10.7.2 Under the DPA, individuals, or their authorized representatives, have the statutory right of
‘subject access’ to the personal data we process on them, subject to a limited number of exemptions. In practice this means non-disclosure of data processed for the prevention and detection of crime, ‘third party’ information, and material covered by legal professional privilege (this is not an exhaustive list). The right of subject access also extends to medical and psychological information where special disclosure arrangements apply.
10.8 Withholding information
10.8.1 OASys is an open document in that information in it will normally be shared with the offender. But there may be exceptional circumstances where to disclose information to the offender would cause harm. The purpose of the confidential (INTBDTTO) section of
OASys is to store information of this kind. See Chapter 11 for further information.
10.8.2 If a formal subject access request is made under the DPA, what can be withheld is prescribed solely by the Act.
10.9 Retention of OASys records following a quashed conviction
10.9.1 In most cases the correct course of action if a offender’s conviction is quashed on appeal will be for the establishment to destroy (paper copies) or request deletion of OASys
(electronic version) by a system administrator one year after the conviction was quashed.
This is consistent with the Data Protection Act, which provides that personal data shall not be kept for longer than is necessary (PSO 9020 5.2.3). If an establishment believe retention is necessary they should contact the HQ OASys team for advice.
10.9.2 Should an offender be serving two or more sentences of which only one has been quashed advice should be gained from the HQ OASys team prior to any action.
10.10 The Self-Assessment Questionnaire
10.10.1 The self-assessment may be completed either before or after the interview. The purpose of the self-assessment is to provide a more complete picture by allowing the offender the chance to comment on how they see their life. The questionnaire may identify issues that the offender had not raised in the interview or differences of opinion that can usefully be discussed. The selfassessment may be introduced as the offender’s opportunity to give their opinions. It is important that it is signed by the offender and that the date is recorded so that any change in the offender’s views can be monitored over time.
10.10.2 If the offender is able to, they should complete the assessment alone but the assessor must always ask the offender if they need help with reading or completing the form.
10.10.3 It is important that the offender is given a chance to complete the information at the top of the self-assessment, that is, their name, address, postcode, date and age. This is because the self-assessment can also be used a s a further guide to the offender’s ability to read and write and may be taken into consideration when completing the assessment of level of literacy and learning difficulties. Further advice is available from the OASys on screen help facility.
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Chapter 11 - Sensitive Information
11.1 Information not to be disclosed to the Offender
11.1.1 OASys is an open document and the information in it will normally be shared with the offender. But there will be certain types of information which will not be disclosed where to do so would cause harm. The offender must be made aware that there are exceptions to the general principle of openness.
11.1.2 A specific area of the record, called Information Not To Be Disclosed To The Offender
(INTBDTTO) has been set aside for such information.
11.1.3 This sensitive information only contains data held for the prevention and detection of crime, to apprehend offenders, and victim information.
11.1.4 It is particularly important that any information held here is reviewed regularly and kept up to date in line with the Data Protection Act (DPA) principles.
11.1.5 Procedures exist for considering requests for access to INTBDTTO data, particularly where a decision is made to withhold information.
11.1.6 Offenders have the right to make a Data Protection Act subject access request for these data. Any such request has to be treated on a case by case basis and there are no blanket exemptions.
11.2 Managing the process
11.2.1
The confidential information entry must be dated and the name of the assessor recorded.
11.2.2 If an entry is no longer applicable due to a change of circumstances, the
Super visor records the reason for marking the entry ‘Obsolete’. The original entry remains on the system with a line though it.
11.2.3 The information remains sensitive and must not be disclosed.
11.3 Information about victims - general guidance
11.3.1 Information that is not open to offenders includes victim information where disclosure would compromise the confidentiality of the victim or their family.
11.3.2
Establishments must take particular care over their handling of confidential material and must avoid inappropriate disclosure.
11.3.3 If it is necessary to include concerns about a victim in the main OASys assessment (rather than the INTBDTTO section), this should be included only if it is expressed in general terms, as the Assessor’s own judgement.
11.3.4 In most cases information expressed in broad terms may well suffice for decision-making purposes. In most cases it will be unnecessary to disclose detailed information about victims.
The test of whether or not to include a particular piece of information is whether it is necessary or relevant. If in doubt, advice should be sought from an OASys Supervisor, line manager or Seconded Probation Officer.
11.3.5 When it is necessary to convey specific or more detailed information about victims, e.g. about a change of address, caution must be exercised in including this in a RFI, which may not be as secure as the INTBDTTO document.
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11.3.6 There are several documents which contain guidance on victim issues. Staff in both the
Prison and Probation Services must be aware of their contents:
· IG 82/1994 gives information and guidance on the Victim Helpline.
· PSO 6300 Release on Temporary Licence (Appendix 3) gives guidance on the
·
·
· disclosure of information to offenders applying for temporary release
PSO 6700 Home Detention Curfew (Chapter 7) gives guidance on the disclosure of information to offenders who have been considered for early release on HDC.
PSO 6000 Parole Release and Recall Manual (Chapter 5) gives guidance on disclosure of victims’ and third party information in the parole review process.
PSO 4700 Lifer Manual (Chapter 13) gives guidance on measures to be taken in
·
·
· relation to victims in life sentence cases.
The Victims’ Charter (1996) sets out the broad principles underlying the rights of victims in the criminal justice system.
Probation Service National Standards outline the duties of Probation Officers with regard to victims.
Probation Circular 62/2001 (as amended by 28/2003 and 29/2003) Victim Contact
Work: Guidance for Probation A reas’ gives guidance on the Probation Service’s duty to contact the victims of certain offences.
11.4 Disclosure of victims’ views to offenders
11.4.1 The general principles with regard to disclosure of victim information are set out in detail in
Probation Circular 29/2003 which amends Section 9 of the Probation Service guidance on
Victim Contact Work (PC 62/2001). Although this is a Probation Service document the principles of disclosure apply equally to prisons. (A Prison Service Order is planned.)
Probation Circular 13/2003 also includes guidance on the sharing of information between the
Probation Service, Prison Service and the Parole Board.
Generally, the views of victims taken into account by the Parole Board or prisons about a offender’s temporary or final release arrangements will be disclosable to the offender either through full disclosure or by incorporating the victim’s concerns with those of the
Victim Contact/Supervising Officer if they are shared by them.
11.4.3 Alternatively, the Victim Contact Officer may make a written application to the governor for the victim’s views to be withheld from the offender.
11.4.4 Applications to the Governor for non-disclosure may be made on one or more of the following grounds. Briefly these are:
The interests of national security
The prevention of crime and disorder, including information relevant to the Prison
Service
To protect information which might endanger any individual’s mental or physical health
Impairment of the physical or mental health of the prisoner, or
Breaching the confidence owed to the victim or prejudicing the supply of future information.
11.4.5 Victims have four options in deciding whether or not they wish their views to be disclosed to the offender. Their information may be presented by:
Full disclosure;
Full disclosure but attributing the views to the victim contact officer;
Providing their views but applying to the governor for them to be withheld from the prisoner; or
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Not providing their views at all.
11.4.6 The following points will also be borne in mind:
Probation staff must check with each victim the detail of information that they intend to put forward to the prison as constituting the victim’s view.
Victims will be given the opportunity to see that part of the parole assessment report which represents their views, if they so wish.
11.4.7 Staff must be familiar with the responsibilities of the Service towards victims and their families.
11.4.8 Line managers must ensure that staff are aware of and understand policy, requirements and practice with regard to victim issues. When counter-signing and/or monitoring sentence plans or case records, line managers must ensure appropriate management of information about victims.
11.4.9 It is important to note that the main OASys documents are open to the offender.
Disclosure of other sentence management documents must be subject to the relevant instructions and
PSOs, such as those covering release on temporary licence.
11.4.10 The PSOs and Probation Circulars also give guidance about the management and handling of victim information, which must be handled with considerable care within these guidelines.
Third party information about victims, which might put them at risk, must not be entered on sentence planning documents which offenders are entitled to see.
11.5 Probation Service Responsibilities
11.5.1 Guidance on Probation Service responsibilities towards victims is contained in Probation
Circular 62/2001 (as amended), the Victims’ Charter (1966) and in National Standards.
11.5.2 Staff will be aware of the sensitivity of victim work and that the safety of victims and their families is paramount. However, victims and families must be informed that there are limits to the confidentiality that can be offered. In particular, they must be made aware that decisions about temporary or permanent release cannot normally be made on the basis of the victim’s concerns without those concerns being disclosed to the offender, so that he or she has the opportunity to challenge them.
11.5.3 If it is necessary to inform an establishment of concerns about a victim, this can only be included in the information on the RFI response if it is expressed in general terms, as the
Supervising Officer’s own assessment, in accordance with the general principles set out at section 9.3 above.
11.5.4 OASys managers must address the following:
disclosure of information may possibly put a victim at risk, consideration will be given to presenting the information in an edited or summarised form, which protects the anonymity of the victim. The full information will be stored in a confidential file
no third party information will be included on any sentence planning document methods for acquainting the Supervising Officer, or child protection managers, of establishment procedures for receiving and storing confidential material.
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methods of storing confidential reports which are not for disclosure, but need to be referred to when making decisions about the offender, for example information which might be needed for ROTL decisions.
11.5.5
Staff must be prepared to explain that it is usual in sexual and/or violence cases to consider additional licence conditions.
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Chapter 12 - Access to OASys Information
12.1 Access control
Access to read the record on an offender is usually limited to staff who work at the establishment where that offender is located. It can also be made available to individual staff elsewhere, on specific request to the establishment where the offender is located.
12.1.2 Designated staff at Area level also have read-only access to the records of offenders located in establishments in that Area. Designated staff in HQ Units with direct responsibility for OASys management will have access to all assessments.
12.2 Requesting Access
12.2.1 Any member of staff with any OASys log-in rights may request read-only access to the
OASys record of any specific offender. They must give the reason(s) for the request . The
IT system will route the request to an OASys Clerk in the establishment, or probation service staff in an area holding the offender. The OASys Clerk or Probation staff will make a decision, informed by general or specific guidance by the OASys Manager, OASys
Supervisor or Senior Probation Officer on whether to allow access during a specified period.
12.3 Limited Access
12.3.1 The personal details of some offenders, while not confidential (in the terms of the
Government Protective Marking Scheme), will not be readily accessible to the range of staff normally entitled access to OASys records. This may be because of public notoriety or sensitivity or particular risk factors.
12.3.2 The establishment’s Governor has authority to limit access to the OASys record of such a offender to a small number of named individuals – typically, one assessor, clerks and one supervisor. The Governor will notify th e establishment’s nominated LAO co-ordinator who will arrange the appropriate access rights
12.3.3 Once marked as Limited Access Offender (LAO) only those members of prison service staff nominated to view the assessment will have access.
12.3.4 All assessments undertaken on Limited Access Offenders within the Prison Service must be printed to paper copy for forwarding to a nominated member of Probation Service staff.
LAO Marker in the Probation Service
12.3.5 The Probation Service will not, in the initial implementation of OASys, have the facility to nominate specific Probation Service staff in the same manner that the Prison Service will.
12.3.6 Those offenders marked as LAO by the Probation Service prior to a period of custody, remand or sentenced, will not then be visible to any member of Probation Service staff until such times as the marker is removed. This activity is performed at system administrator level. All assessments on Probation Service marked LAOs will therefore be paper copies. In this instance, the most recently received assessment from the Probation
Service on an offender in custody should be entered onto OASys by the nominated assessor as soon as possible following reception.
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12.4 Printing
12.4.1 Anyone with agreed access to OASys can print any document or set of documents.
Printed copies will be required for use at Boards, for provision to offenders who request a copy of their own OASys assessment, and for storage in sentence planning files if an establishment judges this to be necessary. In prisons, printed copies of any part of an
OASys record (except for offenders’ own copies) must be locked away when not in use.
12.4.2 INTBDTTO information must never be printed.
12.5 Charging for copies of OASys
12.5.1 OASys is an open process that involves the offender and it is not appropriate that a charge be made for the offender’s own copy of the document printed from the computer.
12.5.2 All offenders who wish to have a copy of their OASys assessment, completed while they are in prison, must be provided with one copy of their full OASys assessment (not just the sentence and supervision planning part) at no charge. This also applies when the OASys is reviewed.
12.5.3 If, however, an offender wishes to have an additional copy, then that must be paid for at the current rate. Similarly, if an offender’s solicitor wishes to have a copy of an OASys assessment, and the offender gives consent, that should also be paid for at the current rate.
12.5.4 The current rates for charging for supplying information are given in PSO 7500 Finance,
Chapter 17, G17.11. There is a charge of £0.10 per page of copying, so a full OASys with
35 printed pages would cost £3.50 plus any administration fees incurred.
12.6 Disclosure of information to outside agencies
12.6.1 Information from OASys, where relevant, may be shared with appropriate outside organisations, with the offender’s consent. It will not normally be appropriate to share an entire OASys.
12.6.2 Only information relevant to the need may be disclosed. An OASys disclosure template is being developed and will be placed on the OASys intranet web site as soon as available.
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Chapter 13 - Ensuring quality
13.1 Quality Assurance and defensible decision-making
13.1.1 Both HMPS and NPS are committed to quality assurance and regular monitoring of assessments will be conducted across both services. Monitoring quality is less easy than monitoring whether systems are in place or the timeliness of contributions.
13.1.2 To ensure that the quality of assessments is maintained, only staff who have completed the required OASys training and been allocated an active OASys role may complete assessments.
Assessors and Supervisors will be required to complete the Prison Service certified training course covering interviewing skills, risk assessment, core OASys and a follow-up day.
13.2 Accountability and Countersigning
13.2.1 Assessments are completed by authorised OASys assessors and must be countersigned on completion by an OASys Supervisor, who must ensure that the document is of at least satisfactory quality and that the objectives in the sentence plan are appropriate to the assessment of risks and needs .
13.2.2 The OASys Manager must check 10% of initial assessments and reviews. .
13.2.3 The quality monitoring undertaken by OASys supervisors and managers will be fed back to assessors and action taken to raise standards of performance where required.
13.3 Audit and Inspection
13.3.1 The Performance Standard on sentence management and planning using OASys will be subject to self-audit. Standards Audit Unit will audit the ‘critical baselines’ in the Standard.
13.3.2 Sentence management and planning using OASys will be included in inspections by
HMCIP.
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Chapter 14 - Process management
14.1 Structures and communication
14.1.1 Establishments will need to structure their arrangements for Sentence Planning around the OASys roles that are described in Chapter 8 of this Order.
Management
14.1.2 Governors will determine which Functional Head is responsible for the management of the
OASys process. This person will either be the OASys Manager (as defined in Chapter 8) or will manage the OASys Manager.
14.1.3 The OASys Manager will have specific responsibility for ensuring that assessments are completed to the required timescales and meet the required quality. This includes achieving any KPTs that are set. In 2004-05, a shadow KPT has been set, for the number of initial assessments and reviews completed, based on population data, review timescales and ‘go live’ dates.
Administration
14.1.4 An effective administration system is required to ensure:
Timely gathering of information and key source documents
Requesting information (through electronic RFIs and paper contribution forms as appropriate)
Chasing up missing documents and information
Timely assignment of assessments
Storage and retrieval of paper documents (Self-assessment Questionnaire, signed printouts, all paper contribution forms etc)
Initiation of special reviews as required (Parole review, LSP Progress Report, sentence varied on appeal, significant event, etc).
14.1.5 The role of ‘OASys Clerk’ represents the administrative hub for OASys in the establishment. The role may be held by more than one person; if so, the OASys Manager is responsible for ensuring the co-ordination of their work.
14.1.6 The structure and communication lines that need to be adhered to between initiation of an assessment and completion are as follows: -
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14.1.7 If at all possible, all RFIs will be sent using the Quantum system electronically. However when, for instance, the receiver does not have access to the Quantum system, paper versions of the RFIs can be printed and sent in place of electronic requests.
14.2 Communication with partner agencies
14.2.1 Communication with the National Probation Service, and with other relevant statutory and voluntary agencies, is vital to the effectiveness of the OASys process. This is especially important in managing pre-release and public protection issues. Timely completion and communication of the pre-release update of the OASys assessment, especially where multi-agency public protection procedures apply, is essential to release planning.
14.3 Efficient use of resources
14.3.1 OASys will help the Prison Service match resources to need more efficiently. The system will ensure, for example, that access to offending behaviour programmes and educational courses are better targeted towards reducing risk and preparing offenders for resettlement into the community.
14.3.2 The ease of access to information will save time in establishments. These benefits will accrue with the introduction of fully-connected IT with probation and will grow as repeat offenders acquire a series of OASys assessments across a number of sentences. As soon as an offender comes into prison, this collateral information will be available to
Assessors.
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14.3.3 As the system will be on line there should be some saving in the use of paper, especially if
RFIs are sent using IT. Also it will normally only be necessary for the last page of a sentence plan, the one signed by the offender, to be kept in a paper format.
14.4 Management information
14.4.1 The OASys system will provide performance and audit management reports. Access to these reports depends on user levels, with the higher access levels having full use of all reports.
These reports will assist establishments in both short and long term decision making by helping to match resources to needs. This will mean, for example, that establishments can more effectively plan for the amount and mix of interventions and rehabilitative services they will need to provide, and the resources they will require to match this need.
14.4.3 Full information on the reporting facilities within the OASys application is available within the online Help system. A Computer-Based Training module will also be available to assist managers in running reports.
14.4.4 A Management Information System (MIS) independent of the core OASys database is also available to selected users in headquarters and prison areas to monitor performance. This database allows users to construct and run their own reports. Specialised training is required to use the MIS as this system is based on the Crystal Reports software package.
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Chapter 15 - OASys and offender management
15.1 Integration of decision making – offender management
15.1.1 OASys is about managing offenders – about ’offender management’. It will directly support the two aims of the Prison Service, by helping the Service to assess risk accurately, manage risk safely and reduce risk effectively, and will also support the five aims of the Probation Service. OASys pulls information together and gives staff the raw material they need to make better decisions to manage offenders safely and work with offenders effectively, by enabling them to address those needs which put them at risk of re-offending.
15.1.2 Implicit in an efficient and effective sentence management system is the concentration of records and information about offenders and the avoidance of meetings, boards and procedures taking place in parallel to each other, instead of being fully integrated. Sentence management in both the Prison and the Probation Service will take account of the following principles:
duplication will be avoided the purpose and effectiveness of meetings and boards will be kept under review only information which is really needed will be collected information about individual offenders will be kept together and be accessible to staff
when assessments have been made, they will be used assessments will be updated and built on throughout the sentence steps will be taken to ensure that decisions are the best possible ones within existing resources, having regard to the assessment of risk and the offender’s needs.
15.2 Public protection and dangerous offenders
15.2.1 Under the Prison Service performance standard on Public Protection, establishments are required to identify potentially dangerous offenders and ensure that appropriate action is taken while in custody to reduce the risk of serious harm posed by such individuals.
Establishments are also required to plan for their controlled release into the community, sharing information with other relevant agencies and contributing to multi-agency work when appropriate. Further details are given in the Public Protection Standard and the
Public Protection Manual.
15.2.2 The risk of serious harm section of OASys is central to dangerous offender procedures.
OASys provides the triggers for referrals to Multi Agency Public Protection panels
(MAPPS) and provides a structure for the management plan for such offenders.
15.2.3 OASys provides a risk assessment and management structure for all offenders who will be sentenced planned and for those offenders where an OASys has been completed at the PSR stage. It is also the vehicle for transferring information to and from the Probation
Service.
15.2.4 For those offenders who have received a rating of very high, high or medium in relation to risk of serious harm, risks to the individual and other risks, a management plan must be completed. The management of this group of offenders must be in line with the Prison
Service Public Protection Standard.
.
15.2.5 The risk of harm assessment must inform assessments and decisions about the management of the offender, for example, allocation, work allocation, re-categorisation,
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.
15.2.6 The Prison Service Dangerous Offender Strategy also informs the management of this group of offenders. Close and effective liaison with the supervising service will be crucial in these cases. Prior-to-release cases must be referred to the multi-agency arrangements provided by Section 67 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
15.3 Prevention of suicide and self harm
15.3.1 Prevention of suicide and self harm is considered urgently when an offender is first received into custody, whether on remand or on sentence. The appropriate assessment will, therefore, often have taken place before an OASys is begun and will provide collateral information for OASys. However, OASys provides important information regarding the current and previous risk of self harm and suicide posed by a offender. It will be one of the vehicles for transferring and receiving information to and from the Probation
Service regarding suicide and self-harm, along with current practices of communication between the Probation Service and court and prison staff where a risk is identified.
15.3.2 OASys records in outline a summary of past history and continuing risk factors relating to self harm and suicide, enabling the tracing of patterns of behaviour over time, and the possibility of anticipating the effects of events which might be expected to disrupt the offender’s coping strategies. It complements and informs the F2052SH form (or ACCT).
Where information has previously been gathered by OASys, it will help to inform whether it is necessary to open a F2052SH (or ACCT).
15.3.3 OASys will provide a database about the identity and characteristics of the people who self-harm or who are at risk of suicide.
15.3.4 An OASys completed at Pre-Sentence Report stage on an offender not remanded in custody will contribute to the initial assessment of the risk of suicide/self harm and will provide information for the Cell Sharing Risk Assessment. Where an OASys is completed as part of the sentence planning process it will complement existing suicide and self harm prevention procedures and provide valuable information for re-assessing risk.
15.3.5 Since the OASys assessment may contain essential risk information on these issues, it is vital that information from it is sent to the right place in a prison. The OASys Clerk must check the Risk of Harm section of OASys for any offender received into the establishment, or newly receiving an assessment. If risk to others or risk of self harm is positive in the assessment, the Clerk must immediately notify the area where the offender is located as soon as the risk is identified. The CARATs department must also be informed where self harm through misuse of drugs is indicated as a risk factor in OASys.
15.4 Order and control
15.4.1 OASys gathers information regarding any previous history of escape, abscond, breach of trust or control issues. The risk of harm section assesses the future risk in these areas.
This assessment may result in other security assessments.
15.4.2 An OASys completed at PSR stage on an offender not remanded in custody will contribute to initial assessments in relation to order and control issues, including the cell sharing risk assessment where appropriate.
15.4.3 Where an OASys is completed for sentence planning purposes, this can flag order and control issues. The Security Department and the residential unit on which the offender is located will be informed if new information has come to light in the course of the assessment.
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15.4.4 Risk factors identified in OASys assessments will be used to identify, manage and reduce the risk of disruptive or harmful behaviour. Relevant staff, including psychologists, will routinely take OASys records into account in identifying and working on risk reduction with offenders who have a pattern of such behaviour.
15.4.5 Immediate access to OASys assessments on all offenders in any establishment is available on a Quantum PC in the Gold Command Suite. Local Silver Commanders should likewise have access to OASys for offender profile information in the event of an incident within their establishment.
15.4.6 Information on persons with Protected Witness status cannot be held in any information system which is accredited at the Restricted level of the Government Protective Marking
Scheme. Therefore, IT OASys assessments must not be initiated for such persons. If managers judge that there is value in the use of OASys for such persons, the assessment must be carried out using paper forms only. These must be stored under the same conditions of security that apply to other Protected Witness records.
15.5 Healthcare
15.5.1 OASys will provide some information regarding an offender’s physical and mental health.
The confidentiality of the clinical record will be respected, and the health information contained in OASys will largely be that volunteered by the offender. However, where there are matters related to health which would be of value in considering risk and interventions, and whose disclosure does not prejudice the confidentiality of the therapeutic relationship between an offender and the Healthcare service, disclosure should be dealt with under the terms of the Data Protection Act (PSO 9020), which allows for Healthcare staff to disclose such matters with patient permission, or in specific exceptional circumstances without permission. Further information can be found in PSI
25/2002.
15.5.2 An OASys completed at PSR stage on an offender not remanded in custody could contribute and provide information to support the initial healthcare screen. OASys will also continue to provide information as health issues arise.
15.5.3 Direct access to OASys records is limited to those issued with access rights with their
Quantum log-in. For other members of Healthcare staff, sections of the OASys record covering health matters may be printed and shown to them if they need to see them.
15.5.4 Consent must be sought from the offender for health information to be shared with others outside the healthcare staff and the proposed use of the information must be explained to the offender.
15.5.5 Further details about confidential information handling can be found in the following:
Information & Practice 01/2002 "Guidance on the Protection and Use of
Confidential Health Information in Prisons and Inter-agency Information Sharing", which was issued under cover of PSI 25/2002. This document is available on the
Intranet, in the information store in both the health care and PSIs sections.
NHS Code of Practice on Confidentiality, which is available from the Department of
Health website at www.dh.gov.uk
15. 6 Life sentence prisoners
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15.6.1 OASys works in harmony with the F2181 R [2005] Life Sentence Plan (LSP). The LSP has been revised during 2004 to specifically include interfaces with OASys, to reduce duplication and to incorporate the sentence planning section. Lifers require a more detailed and in-depth analysis of risk than OASys currently provides, so lifers are subject to an integrated LSP and OASys risk management process.
15.6.2 OASys provides the generic sentence plan and risk of serious harm assessment for lifers, linked to LSP reports of reviews and progress.
15.6.3 An initial OASys assessment is undertaken on lifers, as for other prisoners, at a Local prison following conviction, in tandem with completion of LSP 1. Limited information may be available for this initial OASys assessment.
15.6.4 Following allocation and transfer to a First Stage prison, and on arrival of the full lifer collateral information contained within a lifer Confidential Summary Dossier (CSD), LSP
Section 2A Offence Analysis must be completed.
15.6.5 This provides a detailed, structured, and comprehensive analysis of the circumstances surrounding the index offence. In addition LSP sections 2C Psychiatric Assessment, 2D
Psychological Assessment and 2E Education and Training Assessment will be completed.
15.6.6 Following completion of LSP 2A, C, D and E, all OASys sections must be reviewed and updated based on the more detailed assessments in the LSP, in particular the Offence
Analysis and Risk of Harm sections.
15.6.7 The LSP 2B Risk Factor Summary can then be completed using the information provided by the updated OASys and other LSP sections. A sentence planning board must be held and the LSP 2B and updated OASys disclosed to the lifer, along with the setting of sentence planning objectives.
15.6.8 If the CSD has not arrived at the establishment twelve months after the initial OASys assessment in custody, the OASys assessment must be updated then, and in case of exceptional delays at twelve-monthly intervals thereafter until receipt of the CSD.
15.6.9
In common with other prisoners, lifers will then be subject to OASys sentence planning procedures, with a sentence planning and review board (based on an updated OASys assessment) being held at least once every 12 months. In addition to the OASys forms there will be lifer Request for Information (RFI) reports from key staff such as the Personal
Officer and Seconded Probation Officer.
15.6.10 Lifers are subject to detailed reviews of their progress in the form of LSP 3E Progress
Reports, either for allocation during custody or for Parole Board reviews. After every
OASys sentenceplanning board the Lifer Manager will review the lifer’s progress and decide whether to call for LSP 3E progress reports. During custody these will be produced in the prison and used by a Senior Operational Manager to determine if the lifer warrants re-categorisation and/or reallocation.
15.6.11 For Parole Board reviews the LSP 3E dossier will now include a fully updated OASys report to provide both Lifer Review and Recall Section caseworkers and the Parole Board with a dynamic assessment of current risk on which to base decisions for allocation, progress or release.
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15.6.12 Once fully implemented OASys will replace certain components of the LSP.
These being: Replaced by-
LSP 2F
Sentence planning Objectives
Printout from OASys. ISSP 5, RSSP 5
– future plans is inserted into the LSP
LSP 3B
Sentence Planning and Review Board report
OASys sentence planning section
Specific lifer reports from Personal
Officer,
Seconded Probation Officer and Lifer
Manager
LSP 3C
Record of progress in achieving offence related targets
Print S Print out from OASys RSSP 6.2 is inserted into the LSP
LSP 3D
Record of progress in achieving
Non-offence related targets
15.6.13 The establishment’s OASys Manager and Lifer Manager must liase closely to ensure the smooth operation of the interface and thereby ensure that the most accurate assessment of risk is produced.
15.6.14 Instructions for all lifer processes are contained within PSO 4700, the Lifer Manual and the guidance to the LSP.
15.7 Dispersal Prisons
15.7.1 OASysPlus, carried out at the beginning of an offender’s stay in the dispersal estate, has replaced the Dispersal Induction Assessment.
15.7.2 OASysPlus provides a range of more in-depth assessments, triggered by OASys and appropriate to each case, in order to inform the sentence management of long-term prisoners in the dispersal estate.
15.8 Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder (DSPD)
15.8.1 The Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder (DSPD) programme is a joint Home
Office, Prison Service and Department of Health initiative.
15.8.2 The target outcomes of the programme are to:
Ensure that the public is better protected by identifying, assessing, and reducing the risk posed by some of the most dangerous people in society;
Provide services for the individuals themselves to improve their mental health outcomes and enable them to work towards successful integration into the community;
Gain a better evidence-base for what works in the assessment, treatment and risk management of DSPD individuals
15.8.3 There are 4 high secure DSPD assessment and treatment units. These are at:
HMP Whitemoor (80 places)
HMP Frankland (80 places)
Broadmoor Hospital (70 places)
Rampton Hospital (70 places)
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15.8.4 Admission to a DSPD unit will be considered for those offenders who meet the following criteria:
A greater than 50% risk of committing a serious offence
A severe personality disorder
A functional link between the personality disorder and the risk.
15.8.4 OASys will provide an initial screening to indicate consideration of referral to a DSPD unit for further assessment .
15.8.5 More information about the DSPD programme and referrals can be found in the OASys help section on the prison service Intranet and at www.dspdprogramme.gov.uk
15.9 Prolific and other Priority Offenders
15.9.1 The Prison Service is a partner to the new Prolific and Other Priority Offender Strategy which aims to bring together inter-agency work to prevent and deter; catch and convict; and rehabilitate and resettle prolific and other priority offenders identified by local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships as causing the most harm to their local communities.
15.9.2 The Prison Service will track identified prolific and other priority offenders (PPOs) through their time in custody; ensure they receive the resettlement and other interventions they need from those available; and notify the home police force prior to their release.
15.9.4.OASys will be the main tool for assessing PPOs for interventions. An assessment will be done on all PPOs by the Probation Service at the PSR stage. Prisons must maintain and update the OASys record of all PPOs serving a year or more . Where resources permit, they must also do this in the case of prisoners serving under a year. Prolific offenders must be given due priority for appropriate interventions within prisons, and efforts must be made to avoid the movement of prolific offenders between prisons, so as not to detract from their rehabilitation.
15.9.5 Further information on PPOs is in PSO 4615 on the Prolific and other Priority Offenders
Strategy.
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Chapter 16 OASys interfaces with other processes
16.1 Categorisation and allocation
16.1.1 Categorisation and allocation are not an integral part of the sentence management process but are governed by Function 1 of the National Security Framework.
16.1.2 However, much of the risk information informing these procedures is also contained within
OASys. Where an OASys assessment exists for an offender before the initial categorisation and allocation process begins, the content of that assessment must be taken into account in carrying out the process. Where the only OASys assessment available was completed before the current sentence was imposed, or dates from a previous sentence, the person undertaking the categorisation and allocation process will need to bear in mind that risk factors may have changed significantly following sentencing.
16.1.3 The initial categorisation and allocation process will in most cases take place before the first OASys assessment. If so, the OASys assessors must notify those responsible for categorisation and allocation if they believe that the OASys risk assessment calls in question any earlier decisions on categorisation or allocation. Those responsible for categorisation and allocation must then initiate a categorisation review in accordance with
Function 1 of the National Security Framework and the supporting guidance on prisoner re-categorisation.
16.1.4 OASys reviews and categorisation reviews will normally take place at the same time, and the two review processes will be brought together as far as possible. One board is then able to consider both the sentence planning objectives and the security category issues, on the basis of a single review of the OASys assessment. The review cycle will start from the date of completion of the first OASys review undertaken in custody.
16.1.5 Further information on the Categorisation and Allocation processes is contained in
Function 1 of the National Security Framework and its supporting guidance.
16.2 Induction
16.2.1 Information gathering and assessment is an important part of the induction process. PSO
0550 defines policy requirements on offender induction and gives advice on good practice. Offenders covered by OASys will be given information about it as part of their induction. Where practicable, the initial OASys assessment will take place during induction. Where OASys has not been completed during the induction process, information gathered for induction purposes will inform subsequent OASys.
16.3 Short term prisoners
16.3.1 There will be cases where a Probation pre-sentence OASys has been prepared and this will be available to the Prison Service to inform offender management. OASys is suitable for use with short-term prisoners, but its use is not currently mandatory. This policy will be reviewed in preparing for the introduction of Custody Plus, under the Criminal Justice Act
2003.
16.3.2 Local initiatives have produced a number of tools for assessing urgent welfare needs and planning to address them and they are in use particularly for remand and short-term sentenced prisoners. Where information is gathered which forms part of OASys, then it must be recorded in the same way.
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16.4 Incentives and Earned Privileges
16.4.1 The link between OASys and Incentives and Earned Privileges schemes is through the sentence planning part of OASys.
16.4.2 Sentence planning and incentives schemes are inter-related elements of sentence management. The national framework for the use of incentives and earned privileges is set out in PSO 4000. Sentence planning and the incentives schemes should form an integrated part of an establishment’s regime. The purposes of the two schemes overlap and should be seen as complementary.
16.4.3 Sentence planning must be informed by i nformation about the prisoner’s behaviour and subsequent progress in relation to incentives schemes, and assessment for incentives schemes must be informed by progress in relation to sentence planning.
16.4.4 Sentence planning takes place irrespective of the level of privileges or regime in which a prisoner is placed.
16.4.5 There may be common factors. For example, a prisoner’s negative attitude and behaviour, which leads to their being on the basic regime level, may also lead to an assessment that they are not yet ready to engage meaningfully on an offending behaviour programme. An assessment that a prisoner is ready, willing and suitable to take part in an intervention will be taken into account in reviewing their IEP status. Assessment for incentives schemes must be informed by progress in achieving sentence planning objectives .
Engaging positively with sentence planning will form part of a pattern of good behaviour and performance that will merit consideration for upwards movement through privilege levels.
16.4.6 Attention needs to be given to the interface between sentence planning and incentives schemes, and the associated process issues. One option to be considered is an integrated board, i.e. one board that addresses sentence planning and incentives issues
(and also other topics such as ROTL, re-categorisation, work allocation, etc.). This has a number of potential benefits:
ensuring that related decisions about the offender are made on the same information base, in terms of written reports and contributions, and verbal contributions from those attending and that all information about risk is shared.
providing for an efficient means of information exchange between key parties and processes.
providing for common management responsibility, so reducing the possibility of overlap or conflict.
providing common monitoring.
16.4.7 However, it needs to be borne in mind that IEP processes may involve reviews at more frequent intervals than sentence planning reviews. IEP reviews can be triggered by a single serious incident or as a result of a change in behaviour.
16.5 Resettlement /Custody to Work
16.5.1 PSO 2300 provides instructions on the management and delivery of resettlement for offenders and gives guidance on good practice. At Prison Service Headquarters, strategic development on resettlement work is led by the Custody to Work Unit in Sentence
Management Group. The Unit is tasked with helping establishments deliver better
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16.5.2 Everything about OASys is geared towards effective resettlement of offenders and will provide essential information needed to prepare for the effective resettlement of offenders, in particular:
Accommodation
Education, training and employment
16.5.3 OASys will contain information required to support delivery of the Resettlement KPI for those people on whom it is available. It may also in time provide the means for a more sophisticated measure in relation to resettlement.
16.5.4 An OASys completed at PSR stage will contribute to the initial assessment of resettlement issues, especially relating to accommodation and employment.
OASys completed for sentence planning purposes will provide the overall assessment and planning framework for the resettlement of offenders
The Resettlement estate
16.5.5 Chapter 7 of PSO 2300 contains mandatory instructions and good practice for establishments which operate resettlement regimes as part of the resettlement estate and for establishments involved in the process of identifying, preparing and allocating prisoners for the resettlement estate. The primary purpose of the resettlement estate is to reduce the likelihood of re-offending following discharge from custody. Decisions on allocation into and within the resettlement estate will be based on the risk assessment and management information provided by OASys.
16.5.6 The policy on the allocation and transfer of life sentence prisoners is contained in PSO
4700. The allocation of life sentence prisoners into and within the resettlement estate will be arranged by individual establishments. Life sentence prisoners will be allocated to a resettlement estate place as a result of progress in meeting sentence planning targets and reducing risk of harm. OASys will be a core assessment tool for identifying sentence planning targets and measuring risk of harm, and will therefore directly inform the selection process for life sentence prisoners.
16.6 Intermittent custody
16.6.1 IC is a new type of custodial sentence (a type of Custody Plus) under the Criminal Justice
Act 2003, which requires an offender to spend only part of each week in custody. The non-custody days are spent on licence in the community. This enables offenders to maintain employment, education or caring commitments and to preserve family and community ties. Pilots of intermittent custody (IC) began on 26 January 2004 at Kirkham, for male offenders, and at Morton Hall, for females.
16.6.2 A sentence of IC is imposed only on the basis of a stringent risk assessment by the
Probation Service and only offenders assessed as being of lower risk to the public are suitable for IC. The Probation Service prepares a detailed OASys-led report for the court, on those clients for whom IC would be appropriate, in the event of a custodial sentence.
The responsible officer (of the supervising Probation Service) retains overall responsibility for the sentence, but staff in the IC centres take the lead on case management issues during the custodial part of the sentence. The Probation Service retains control of the
OASys document throughout an IC sentence and Prison Service staff have read-only rights. However, IC staff are able to amend or contribute to the OASys document via the responsible officer or by access request to the responsible officer. The effectiveness of
OASys arrangements will be assessed as part of the wider evaluation of the IC pilots.
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Chapter 17 OASys and decisions taken about release from custody
17.1 Home Detention Curfew
17.1.1 Information in the OASys documents, especially the Risk of Harm section, are used in making decisions about HDC. The HDC documents were designed to fit with the sentence planning process. The content of the risk assessment (HDC) can be drawn from the current
OASys assessment where one exists.
17.2 Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL)
17.2.1 Information in the OASys documents, including the Risk of Harm section, is used in making decisions about ROTL. The content of the risk assessment (ROTL) can be drawn from the current OASys assessment where one exists. ROTL is designed to be integrated with the sentence planning process and where possible ROTL boards will be tied in with sentence planning boards.
17.3 Parole
17.3.1 An OASys assessment must be reviewed in preparation for a parole review, if it has not been reviewed within the previous three months or if there has been any material change of circumstances since the most recent review. The full OASys assessment must be included in the parole dossier. Further guidance will become available in PSO 6000 on Parole, Release and Recall.
17.3.2 The Parole Board does not need to see a full OASys for licence recall offenders for the initial recall review.
17.4 Preparation for release on licence
17.4.1 One aim of the last eight weeks of the custodial part of the sentence is to achieve as much continuity as possible between the work done in prison and that on licence - the “seamless sentence”.
17.4.2 An OASys RFI contribution is used to:
inform the Supervising Officer of the planned discharge address and date; enable the Supervising Officer to comment on the suitability of the proposed release address and the offender’s suitability for Home Detention Curfew, if eligible;
obtain from the Supervising Officer reporting instructions and comments on the need for any additional licence conditions.
17.4.3 Good practice would be for the Supervising Officer to have considered this and discussed it with the Personal Officer well in advance of the receipt of this form.
17.4.4 Where offenders are eligible to be considered for HDC, the HDC governor/clerk will be consulted two months prior to the HDC eligibility date to establish whether a pre discharge
RFI contribution will be generated at that point. If HDC is refused the contribution must be requested eight weeks before the normal release date. (It should be borne in mind that
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HDC eligible offenders serving sentences of less than 12 months are not covered by sentence planning using OASys.)
17.4.5 The final OASys review in custody will then be completed, including the transfer and termination section if there is no supervision as part of the sentence. This review is used to inform the Supervising Officer of work towards meeting targets set in prison which needs to continue during the licence period. Until the connected IT system is in place, the full OASys assessment (all component parts) must be printed and sent to the Supervising Officer at least seven working days before release.
Effective communication in advance of this would allow the Supervising Officer more time to use the information in formulating a supervision plan for the licence period.
17.4.6 Form DFB 1 - Discharge/Feedback Form - produced by LIDS must also be completed and sent to the Supervising Officer at least seven working days before release.
Establishments must use the DFB1 for all offenders and YOs subject to supervision under licence on discharge.
Most of the information required on the form will already have been recorded on LIDS and will be transferred automatically into the DFB 1. Guidance on the
DFB 1 is in PSI 39/2000 - Joint Resettlement Performance Indicator – and Chapter 2 of
PSO 23000 – Resettlement, which continued the PSI in force.
17.4.7 To summarise the OASys steps for preparation for release on licence:
an OASys RFI is sent by the prison to the Supervising Officer no later than 8 weeks prior to the HDC eligibility date (for offenders not eligible for HDC it is sent no later than 8 weeks prior to the date of release)
when the RFI is returned to the prison the final SSP review is completed the full OASys assessment (all component parts) and the DFB 1 are sent to the
Supervising Officer at least seven working days before release.
17.5 Safeguarding Children
17.5.1 Where an offender has been identified as presenting a risk, or potential risk to children, action is taken to ensure appropriate measures have been put in place as provided in IG 54/94
(Release of Prisoners Convicted of Offences against Children or Young Persons) and in the
Public Protection Manual under ‘Safeguarding Children’ and ‘Child Contact’.
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Chapter 18 OASys and regime interventions
18.1 Allocation to regime interventions on the basis of risks and needs
18.1.1 OASys is a more comprehensive risk/needs tool than that provided by the previous sentence planning system and by pulling information together will provide the material needed for staff to make better decisions on allocating offenders to regime interventions which are likely to address their offending behaviour.
18.2 Effective regime interventions
18.2.1 Prison Service Order 4350 on Effective Regime Interventions provides instructions and guidance on the mana gement of regime interventions intended to change offenders’ behaviour. The term “intervention” is used to include programmes, courses and other systematic activities.
18.2.2 One of the nine criteria is selection, i.e. the target group of offenders for whom the intervention is designed, how they will be assessed and selected. OASys will provide a useful tool in selecting offenders for regime interventions within the scope of PSO 4350.
18.2.3 Regime interventions which are validated by independent external bodies will continue to be subject only to the requirements of those bodies and it will not be necessary for them also to comply with the requirements for validation set out in PSO 4350. However, OASys will also provide a useful tool in selecting offenders for these externally validated regime interventions.
18.3 Offending behaviour programmes
18.3.1 One of the purposes of OASys is to improve targeting of programmes to offenders.
18.3.2 OASys provides the triggers for referral for specialist assessments for offending behaviour programmes. These cover general offending behaviour programmes, such as
Enhanced Thinking Skills (ETS), sex offender assessment and violent offender assessment.
18.3.3 For sentence planning, OASys staff will liase closely with programme staff to ensure knowledge of programmes and mutual understanding. OASys staff may set sentence planning targets for an offender to be assessed for suitability for a programme, rather than for attendance on a programme as a target (unless there has already been an assessment by programme staff).
18.3.4 Where there are particular issues, for example those sentenced for a sex offence who deny or minimize the offence, OASys staff will discuss this with program staff, as proper assessment is still relevant. For some programs, for example ETS, denial of the offence is not an issue.
18.4 Sex offence deniers
18.4.1 Where offenders convicted of sexual offences deny their offence, it is expected that
OASys staff will work closely with Sex Offender Treatment Program (SOTP) treatment teams and may wish to consider inviting a member of the team, for example a facilitator, along when conducting the OASys interview with the offender.
18.4.2 When interviewing a sex offender, the only offending behaviour objective that will be considered is whether the offender will be assessed for their suitability to participate in a
SOTP. This is the case for all sex offenders, including deniers.
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18.4.3 When interviewing an offender who denies or minimises the sexual offence or a sexual component in an offence, it is particularly important that the OASys assessor adopts a nonconfrontational approach, so as not to reinforce the offender’s reasons for denial or minimisation. Guidance on this is available from SOTP staff, including an information leaflet. The offender can then be referred to SOTP staff or staff who know about SOTPs for further discussion prior to assessment.
18.5 Therapeutic communities
18.5.1 Democratic Therapeutic Communities are an accredited intervention for mid- to long-term prisoners. Democratic Therapeutic Communities are located in MP Grendon, HMP
Dovegate, HMP Gartree, HMP Send, HMYOI Aylesbury, and HMP Blundeston.
18.5.2 Democratic TCs provide a long term, residential, offending behaviour intervention for prisoners who present a wide range of risks and have a range of offending behaviour needs, which include emotional and psychological needs. The degree of need may prevent them from engaging fully with a shorter programme or may make shorter interventions inadequate.
18.5.3 Prisoners are expected to stay for at least 18 months in a Democratic Therapeutic
Community to give sufficient time to learn from the experience and be able to embed new skills through practice.
18.5.5 OASys is a key element in the assessment of prisoners for therapeutic communities.
18.6 Drug treatment
18.6.1 Section 8 of OASys has been specifically designed to gather sufficient information needed to inform a referral to the CARATs (Counselling, Advice, Referral, Assessment and
Through care service), and provide information regarding the nature and extent of an offender’s drug misuse, their behaviour associated with their drug misuse and their motivation to address these issues. There are triggers within OASys for CARATs referral.
18.6.2 Referrals from OASys will be to the CARATs team for an assessment and not directly to a drugs programme. OASys will complement CARATs procedures and provide information to support the CARATs Care-planning framework.
18.6.3 CARATs provide services to all prisoners, including remands and adults serving under 12 months; these groups are not subject to sentence planning or OASys. OASys assessments might, however, still be available for these offenders if done by probation staff at the PSR stage.
18.6.4 An OASys completed at PSR stage may inform and contribute to the initial assessment of drug and alcohol misuse; it will provide additional information from a community perspective. This PSR OASys will trigger a CARATs referral, which may occur through the
CJIP team.
18.6.5 With the consent of the offender, CARATs workers will feed into the OASys assessment and sentence planning process. Where CJIP is in operation, CARATs workers must ensure that CJIP teams are kept informed of any resettlement needs/plans that flow from the sentence management process .
18.6.6 There may be some duplication between CARATs and OASys assessment forms , due to the different stages at which both assessments are to be completed. The CARATs practice manual provides guidance on referral from, and input to, OASys and sentence planning.
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18.6.7 OASys will trigger further drug assessments where necessary . If the offender has a weighted score of 7 or above in Section 8 (drug misuse) of OASys 1 or 2, or if any specified items apply, a further assessment will be appropriate.
18.7 Education
18.7.1 Education departments contribute to the OASys assessment and sentence planning processes through the Request for Information (RFI) form.
18.7.2 Section 4 of the OASys assessment covers education, training and employability and will be completed by the OASys assessor. If Basic Skills Screening has not been completed,
OASys can identify the need for it. Basic Skills Screening is offered to all offenders and completed during the first two weeks after sentence. This will therefore often be completed before OASys. If an OASys completed by the Probation Service at the presentence report stage is available, it could help inform the initial Basic Skills Screening or make it unnecessary.
18.7.3 Education departments may not have access to a Quantum terminal and OASys.
18.8 Work
18.8.1 OASys will provide useful information to help assess offenders for work. Section 4 of
OASys focuses on the skills the offender may have, their attitude to work and previous experience of work. The risk of harm section will highlight any control issues, which may need to be considered when allocating an offender to work. Allocation to work should take account of the offender’s need to acquire or develop skills that may secure employment in their discharge area on release.
18.8.2 An OASys completed at PSR stage would contribute to the initial employment assessment. Both PSR and sentence planning OASys can trigger further assessment and interventions regarding work. Performance at work, including the acquisition of skills and qualifications, will feed into further OASys assessment and sentence planning processes.
18.9 Physical education (PE)
18.9.1 The link between OASys and PE departments is through the sentence planning part of
OASys.
18.9.2 Physical Education (PE) is provided to improve physical fitness. It may reduce the likelihood of re-offending by addressing deficits in basic education, key skills and vocational competencies. It can also provide an opportunity for offenders to gain sporting awards in performance, coaching, officiating and vocationally related courses linked to educational accreditations.
18.9.3 Physical education will support the work of offending behaviour programmes that include tackling drugs through physical education.
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ANNEX A.
OASys and the Local Inmate Database System (LIDS)
1. LIDS (Local Inmate Database System) is the authoritative source of general information about individual offenders. For any information which is held both in the LIDS record and in the OASys record for a offender, LIDS is the ‘master’ data source.
2. All changes to LIDS, relating to offenders with current OASys assessments, will be automatically changed in the corresponding fields of the OASys record. This updating occurs approximately every half hour; so that, for example, the information in OASys about the establishment in which a offender is held will be accurate for a time not more than about half an hour before the time at which the OASys record is being viewed.
3. Information which is held in an identical format in both systems may not be altered in OASys.
The relevant OASys fields are ‘greyed out’, so that the information is visible but not changeable.
The OASys field in question is automatically populated from LIDS. For example, if an OASys assessor discovers that a piece of information brought in from LIDS in this way is inaccurate, they must correct the information in LIDS (or ensure that it is so corrected, if they do not have direct access to the relevant LIDS field). The correction will then automatically be made in the next
OASys assessment that is initiated. To update an open assessment the Clerk or Assessor must click on the ‘Refresh LIDS’ button once the alteration to the LIDS information has been made.
4. There are a few fields in OASys which are not identical to apparently corresponding fields in
LIDS. For example, the categories of ethnic background in OASys (those used in the 1991 and
2001 Censuses) differ in detail from those in LIDS, which were based on earlier Census models.
It is important that the categories in OASys are those in current Government use, and are compatible with those used by Probation. It is not therefore possible for this field to be populated automatically from LIDS, and manual entry is necessary. Further details are available in the
OASys Manual and the IT Help system
5. The present LIDS system will be updated as part of the Quantum programme. Full compatibility between OASys and a new offender database replacing LIDS will be assured by the integrated structure of the Quantum development programme.
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ANNEX B
Guidance for completing the Actuarial Sentence Planning Risk Predictor (SPP) on LIDS
This annex gives guidance on completing the sentence planning risk predictor (SPP) which is available on LIDS.
Details from the risk predictor need to be added to the OASys assessment at sections 1.17 to
1.19 and the risk predictor scores need to be added at sections 1.21 to 1.23.
When entering the “Calculate Risk Prediction” screen on LIDS you will notice that there is a small screen within a screen.
The smaller screen at the top also contains the information normally related to inmate information.
It is important to check this information against the offender’s warrants, etc. If any information is incorrect, it must be amended prior to beginning the risk predictor. It cannot be amended after the printout, since the readings on the printout will be incorrect. (If a mistake is made, the risk predictor should be run again and the correct printout attached.)
You will notice that you are asked a series of questions in response to which an input is required.
1. Age at first conviction
Enter the offender’s age at which he/she received their first conviction (whether or not it attracted a custodial sentence).
2. Age at current conviction
Enter the offender’s age when sentenced for the current offence (this may not be the same as the current age of the offender as displayed in the smaller screen at the top).
3.
4.
Number of previous custodial sentences while under 21
Number of previous custodial sentences while 21 or over
These two fields record the total number of court appearances (while under 21 and while 21 or over) at which the offender received a custodial sentence, not the total number of previous custodial sentences.
For example, if an offender received six custodial sentences at a single court appearance this must be entered as just one custodial sentence . However, if an offender has been sentenced to custody at, for instance, three different court appearances then this counts as three previous custodial sentences.
What counts as a previous custodial sentence? a) Not the current sentence b) Any other custodial sentence received e.g.:
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imprisonment borstal training detention centre training youth custody
Her Majesty’s Pleasure
Secure Training Order
Detention and Training Order sentence of a juvenile under Section 53(1) or Section 53(2) being sent to an approved school partly suspended sentence
Note that a suspended sentence that was not activated does not count as a custodial sentence.
Note also that for older offenders, or those from other jurisdictions, there may be other examples
(e.g. training schools in Northern Ireland).
5. Is any current conviction for:
a violent offence?
a sexual offence?
an other offence?
Reference must be made to the Offence Type Categories list available on the OASys help system . It is important to remember that ‘an other offence’ relates to all non-violent and nonsexual offences, not just to those classified as ‘Other’ on the Offence Type Categories list.
Generally, attempting, conspiring, inciting, aiding and abetting, causing or permitting a crime is classified under the heading of the crime itself, although in certain cases it is shown separately.
Note that if the offender’s current offences are not recorded on the Offence Type Categories list, for the purpose of this calculation, all these fields must be coded ‘No’.
These questions are included because sometimes the principal offence can hide an important offence. For example, if the principal offence is a violent offence, but the offender was convicted at the same time for a sexual offence, this must be recorded .
Typical example:
At the court appearance when the current prison sentence was imposed the offender was dealt with as follows:
GBH
Indecent assault
4 years
18 months concurrent
You must answer YES to ‘Is any current conviction for a violent offence?’ 1.
You must answer YES to ‘Is any current conviction for a sexual offence?
’ 2.
You must answer NO to ‘Is any current conviction for an other offence?’ 3.
6. Number of previous court appearances at which convicted
for violent offences for sexual offences for other offences
Reference must be made to the annotated Offence Type Categories list available on the OASys help system.
It is important to remember that ‘other offences’ relate to all non-violent and non-
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Categories list, for the purpose of this calculation, all these fields must be coded ‘No’.
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When counting previous court appearances at which convicted you must:
1. Exclude the current offence(s).
2. For violent offences, sexual offences and other offences, count the number of separate occasions (i.e. different dates) when the offender has been convicted for each offence group.
3. For violent offences, sexual offences and other offences, if the offender has been convicted of more than one such offence on the same occasion, count it as one previous court appearance.
Example:
A offender was convicted on 26 th September 1998 of:
GBH and ABH and one indecent assault.
This does not mean that two previous court appearances should be counted for violence. In this example one previous court appearance must be counted for violence and one previous court appearance must be counted for the sexual offence.
The rule is that no matter how many convictions an offender receives on the same court appearance date, for the same type of offence (e.g. violence) only one previous court appearance for this type of offence must be counted.
However, if the offender has a number of convictions for violence, sexual, and other offences all on the same court appearance date then this counts as one previous court appearance for violence, one for sexual and one for other offences.
7. Total number of previous court appearances at which convicted
This refers to the number of times a person has been to court and been convicted of at least one offence. This is sometimes abbreviated to ‘previous court appearances’, although obviously there must have been a finding of guilt at the court appearance.
If a offender only has a history of offences that are not on the Standard List, i.e the Offence
Categories list available on the OASys help system, for the purposes of this calculation she/he has no previous court appearances.
This figure may be less than that arrived at by adding up the number of previous violent, sexual and other offences.
For example, a offender may have one previous court appearance at which they were convicted of two separate charges of rape and assault. These convictions could relate to: a. the same offence, i.e. rape and assault of the same person on the same occasion, or; b. c. different offences, i.e. assault on one person and a rape of another, or; of the same person on different occasions.
In all of these instances all the predictor needs to know is that the offender has one previous conviction for a sexual offence AND one for a violent offence. However, the total number of previous court appearances is only one.
In the above example, an offender with only one previous court appearance has been considered. In many cases though the offender will have a number of previous court appearances. For example:
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A offender was convicted on 1.1.80 of:
Three violence offences;
Two sexual offences;
One burglary.
The same offender was convicted on 2.2.89 of:
Two violence offences;
Two burglaries
On 3.3.92 the same offender was convicted of:
One violent offence;
One sexual offence;
One offence of criminal damage.
For this case the offender has: a. 3 previous court appearances for violence; b. c.
2 previous court appearances for sexual offences and;
3 previous court appearances for other offences.
The total number of court appearances at which convicted is 3 (i.e. three separate occasions at which the offender was convicted) and NOT the sum of the previous court appearances for violent, sexual and ‘other’ offences.
8. Calculate scores
Having entered all the required information, press F10 and receive a printout. The risk predictor scores must then be recorded at sections 1.20 to 1.23 of OASys.
9. Questions and answers on common queries on using the risk predictor
Q: Why are only standard list offences used?
A: The risk predictor is based on a large sample of offenders sent enced for ‘standard list’ offences. Standard list offences are used because the database on which the sample was drawn (The Home Office Offenders Index) only records standard list offences. Standard list offences are also generally the more serious types of offence (i.e. all indictable and serious summary offences).
Q: Can non-standard list offences be used?
A: No. The risk predictor was only designed for standard list offences. The inclusion of nonstandard list offences will undermine the careful calculations that lie behind the predictor.
The predictor will produce inaccurate results.
Q: A number of new offences have been introduced since the risk predictor was
A: introduced. Should these new offences be included in calculations?
No. The risk predictor is accurate only if it is used for the purpose for which it was designed. The risk predictor is designed to be used on offences that were on the standard list in 1993. Offences that joined the standard list after this date should not be included because this will undermine the accuracy of the prediction. Furthermore, it would prevent accurate comparison being made between offenders assessed in different years. This is because new offences have joined the standard list since 1993 (e.g. dangerous driving offences joined the standard list 1 January 1996). If these new offences were counted then an offender assessed in 1999 would have a higher risk score than someone assessed before 1993 simply because there are more offences to count as previous and current convictions.
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Q: How accurate is the risk predictor?
A: The risk predictor is what is known as an actuarial or statistical risk assessment tool. The risk predictor has been extensively tested and it has been found to be very reliable.
Research on similar tools also suggests that they are at least as accurate as clinical judgements. It should, however, be borne in mind that a score on the scale defines the probability that an offender in general with that history of offending will be reconvicted. It does not define the probability that the specific individual offender will be reconvicted. The scale can only be an aid to judgement and one aspect of risk assessment. Other factors also have to be taken into account when assessing the risk posed by a particular offender.
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