A Nottingham hostel for high-risk people leaving prison has received a rating of ‘requires improvement’ from HM Inspectorate of Probation.
Inspectors found staff shortages and weaknesses in key areas at Trent House Approved Premises (AP). The hostel had gone without a manager “for an extended period”.
Martin Jones, the Chief Inspector of Probation, said: “We recognise that Trent House was operating in challenging circumstances at the time of this inspection, having been without a substantive manager for an extended period”. He added that inspectors had found a committed and resilient staff group working hard to keep services running.
The inspection found some strengths in how staff managed risk, safeguarded residents and kept the environment safe. Medication management was strong, and practitioners knew the residents well.
But long-running staff shortages and unstable management had affected the quality and consistency of the service. Staffing pressures had also limited the hostel’s ability to offer enough rehabilitative work. Inspectors also identified weak spots in keywork, case recording, information sharing and the use of partnership interventions.
Mr Jones said: “The foundations for improvement at Trent House are in place”. He said leaders should now strengthen governance and restore quality assurance. Residents should receive a more consistent and purposeful rehabilitative service, he added.
The report makes nine recommendations. Seven are for the Trent House leadership team. They include making sure formal supervision and management oversight happen consistently, and strengthening quality assurance.
The other two are for His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. One calls for more effective recruitment and vetting, to cut delays in filling AP vacancies. Inspectors have noted this problem in many of their inspections of approved premises.
The findings come weeks after it emerged that staff shortages had forced the closure of nine of the 105 APs in England and Wales. At others, untrained security guards were sometimes standing in for probation staff.
