- Part of an ongoing tour of prisons and probation areas to get to the heart of the daily challenges staff face
- Minister Gyimah thanks staff at Staffordshire and West Midlands Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC) for their vital work in delivering major reforms to improve safety and reduce reoffending
- The CRC provides employment and education training, housing and welfare services, and drug rehabilitation – turning offenders away from crime
Justice Minister Sam Gyimah today visited Staffordshire and West Midlands CRC to see the work probation staff are doing to reform offenders and turn their lives around.
The CRC is run by the Reducing Reoffending Partnership – a joint enterprise bringing together the best of the private and voluntary sector. They support and closely monitor offenders, working one-to-one with them to assess and address their needs including accommodation, education, training and employment, drugs and alcohol, and health.
The minister saw staff delivering employment and education training, housing and welfare services, and drug rehabilitation – teaching offenders the tools they need to turn away from crime.
He also met with the CRC CEO, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service’s senior contract manager, and the head of performance for the local National Probation Service. They discussed how probation services are being delivered in the Midlands, and the CRC’s new operating model, which has seen them go from strength to strength this year.
Speaking after the visit to the CRC, Justice Minister Sam Gyimah said:
Probation officers do a vital job in helping offenders turn their lives around and reduce reoffending.
It was great to meet the team at Staffordshire and West Midlands CRC, and the offenders they support, to see how the work they do helps them lead crime free lives. I was especially pleased to meet their impressive CEO, Chris Blackwell, who is driving forward positive changes which support our reform agenda.
We are committed to improving our probation service and are carrying out a comprehensive review to improve outcomes for offenders and communities.
The CRC provide a Through the Gate service to support prisoners in the run up to, and after, their release from custody. The CRC works closely with the St Giles Trust to train prisoners to act as role models and encourage fellow offenders to engage with all the services available to them.
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