CPS lifts compliance with parole standards

Community Probation Services has lifted compliance with parole mandatory standards to 96 percent, up from 56 percent in September 2008, Corrections Minister Judith Collins said today.

CPS achieved 96 percent of its parole mandatory standards and 88 percent of home detention mandatory standards in July 2010.

In September 2008 CPS met 56 percent of its standards for parole and 52 percent for home detention.

Ms Collins said the result was especially good because home detention results are in the first month of new mandatory standards being put in place.

"These figures show substantial improvements in how offenders on parole are managed over the last two years," Ms Collins said.

"They represent the enormous amount of work that has been done to improve the performance of CPS since the February 2009 report by the Auditor-General into the management of parole.

"I would like to congratulate CPS staff and managers for this significant improvement in compliance and their commitment to making our communities safer."

Ms Collins said mandatory standards are important criteria as they set out what staff must do with each offender.

"Measuring achievement of these standards helps demonstrate that CPS is meeting its core requirements."

The report by the Auditor-General followed the fatal shooting of Karl Kuchenbecker by Graeme Burton in January 2007.

An Expert Panel was established to investigate how the practices and procedures of CPS could be improved. As a result CPS has implemented an extensive change programme to transform its approach to service delivery and lead to more effective results.  

The Government assisted the improvements with an increased budget.

"This Government has injected an extra $256 million into the probation service and this has allowed CPS to recruit an additional 246 probation officers," Ms Collins said.

"There are now more CPS staff in place to manage and monitor offenders in the community and to help improve the safety of the public."