Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of HM Prison and Probation Service in Leicestershire.

We publish performance ratings regularly of the prison and probation service Leicestershire, which can be found at the following links: Prison Performance Ratings: 2023 to 2024 - GOV.UK and Community Performance Annual, update to March 2024 - GOV.UK.

This Government inherited prisons on the point of collapse and is taking action to ensure we never again run out of prison places.

The previous Government left the probation service under real strain with current caseloads far too high. We are hiring 1,300 trainee probation officers by March 2026 in addition to the 1,050 already appointed last year. We are also investing in new technology to lift the administrative burden on probation officers so they can focus on what they do best – managing and rehabilitating offenders.

Probation funding will increase by up to £700 million by the final year of the spending review – a 45% increase in the next three years. We will deliver thousands more tags, more staff, and more accommodation to ensure that offenders are tracked and monitored closely in the community.

The Probation Service in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland was recently inspected by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP). The report of the inspection can be found at the following link: An inspection of probation services in: Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland PDU.

Following the inspection, a revised Quality Improvement Plan has been drawn up, which takes account of HMIP’s recommendations. A development day has also been organised, with a focus on quality and management oversight, to ensure that all staff receive the training they need to carry out their demanding roles.