The Parole Board. Working with others to protect the public.
News
21/07/2008
The Parole Board today published its Annual Report and Accounts for 2007/08, reporting on its performance against business plan targets, statistics for determinate sentence and indeterminate sentence prisoners and accounts for the year. The report records the work carried out by the Board last year to maintain its high standards of risk assessment during a year in which it faced continued changes to and increases in workload as well as a formal move of sponsorship to the Ministry of Justice.
The key statistics for 2007/08 are:
The number of cases handled during the year. This compared with 25,436 in 2006/07, up by 22%. This significant increase in overall volume is entirely down to additional recall cases referred to the Board. Resource intensive oral hearings have also risen by an extra 241 cases.
The number of oral hearings that took place during the year. This compared with 2,505 in 2006/07, up by 1%. This continues the rising trend in the number of such hearings. Although lifer cases have remained at the same level there has been a substantial increase from 74 in 2006/07 to 253 IPP cases this year considered by the Board.
The number of determinate sentence cases considered by paper panels during the year. This compared with 7,857 in 2006/07, down almost 4%. The number of DCR cases continues to fall as these sentences are phased out under the 2003 Criminal Justice Act. However, there was a rise in EPP cases to 1,269 and a further 313 deport cases.
The number of recall cases considered during the year. This compared with 14,669 in 2006/07, up 30%. Following the introduction by the Board of single member recall panels this year, 64% of these cases were considered by such panels, saving the Board £200,000.
The percentage of DCR cases where parole was granted. This has barely changed from the 35.8% release rate in 2006/07. However, it is down from 49.4% in 2005/06.
The number of determinate sentence prisoners recalled from parole during the year following an allegation of a further offence. This figure has fallen from 246 such recalls in 2006/07. Out of an average of 3,390 such prisoners on parole during the year this is a recall rate of 6.8%, which compares to a recall rate of 5.7% for 2006/07.
The percentage of life sentence cases considered by oral hearing where life licence was granted. This is unchanged from the release rate of 15% in 2006/07. The release rate for IPP prisoners is even lower at 8% compared with 7% for 2006/07. This reflects the fact that all IPP prisoners currently coming before the Board have relatively short tariffs.
The number of prisoners on life licence who were recalled during the year. This is out of a total of 1,751 life sentence prisoners under active supervision in the community during the year, or 6.5%. This is a fall from the figure for 2006/07 of 178 recalls out of 1,622 prisoners in the community, or 10.8%.
Our headline performance against business plan targets for 2007/08 is as follows:
Lifer/IPP oral hearings work We exceeded the target for sending initial notifications 130 days in advance of hearings in 90% of cases, achieving this in 98% of cases. We took steps to reduce the number of deferred oral hearings from 22% in 2006/07 to 15% in 2007/08, although this was short of the ambitious target of 10% set in the business plan
Paper panel work We fell short of the target for considering 95% of re-panelled DCR cases within 25 working days, achieving 74%. We also fell short of the target for considering 90% of recall cases within 6 days, achieving 84%. However, by the end of the year our performance had improved and we were achieving close to 100% in both these areas. We did exceed the target for reducing DCR paper panel deferrals to 10% of panels, achieving a reduction to 7%.
Smith and West oral hearings work We fell short of the target for holding 70% of oral hearings within the allotted timescale, achieving this in only 55% of cases. We took steps to reduce the number of deferred Smith and West oral hearings, achieving a reduction to 17%, although this was short of the target of 10%.
Post panel work - We exceeded the target for taking action to insert licence conditions or suspend parole within 20 working days in 95% of cases, achieving this in 100% of cases. We only just missed the target for responding to complaints from prisoners and correspondence within 20 working in 95% of cases days, achieving this in 94% of cases.
Commenting on the report, Parole Board Chairman, Sir Duncan Nichol, said:
'The past year has been one in which the long-running debate about the position, role and independence of the Parole Board has finally come to a head with some important legal judgments and a change in the sponsorship arrangements for the Board. The coming year is likely to see these changes come to full fruition.'
Parole Board Chief Executive, Christine Glenn added:
'Last year was another record one for the Board in terms of workload with a small increase in oral hearings and significant one in recall cases. The overall number of cases we handled rose overall to a staggering 31,172, up 22% from the already record figure for the previous year. This is likely to represent the high water mark in terms of the number of cases and puts into context the very hard work of all our staff, members and stakeholders.
'It is important to note that the number of lifer prisoners recalled during the year fell from 178 in 2006/07 to 114 in 2007/08. This represents a recall rate of just 6.5% compared to 10.8% the previous year and is perhaps beginning to reflect the more cautious approach by panels to recommending release reflected in the falling release rate in the last two years.'
On 9 May 2007 the Boards sponsor changed from the Home Office to the Ministry of Justice. The Boards only source of income is grant-in-aid, provided by its sponsor department. This was £7,500,000 for 2007/08 which was an increase of £859,175 (13%) on 2006/07.
The estimated unit costs (excluding notional costs) to the Board for processing each category of case are as follows:
| 2006/07 | 2007/08 | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper hearing - DCR and EPP cases | £259 per case | £276 per case |
| Oral hearings 3 member panels for the hearing of lifer, IPP and ESP cases | £1,460 per case | £1,640 per case |
| Oral hearings single-member panels for the hearing of representations against recall for DCR prisoners | £,1 132 per case | £818 per case |
| Recalls under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 | £68 per case | £55 per case |
The Parole Board is an independent body that works with its criminal justice partners to protect the public by risk assessing prisoners to decide whether they can safely be released into the community.
The Parole Board Annual Report & Accounts 2007/08 have been formally laid before Parliament today. Copies of the Report can be downloaded in PDF format from www.paroleboard.gov.uk
For further information please call Tim Morris, Head of Communications, on 020-7217 0564 during office hours, or 07725-927954 out of hours, look on the Parole Board website at www.paroleboard.gov.uk , or e-mail tim.morris5@paroleboard.gsi.gov.uk
ENDS PR/6/2008
Grenadier House, 99-105 Horseferry Road, London, SW1P 2DX
Telephone 0845 251 2220