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Probation: Vacancies

Volume 457: debated on Monday 5 March 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many vacancies for (a) probation officers and (b) probation service officers there were for each probation area on the latest date for which figures are available. (123189)

Not all probation areas in the national probation service operate a set establishment against which vacant posts can be measured. As a more representative alternative, probation areas are required to report regularly on the number of active vacancies they have. An active vacancy is one which a probation area is actively trying to fill through a recruitment process.

Figures for 31 March 2006 show that there were a total of 8,262.50 full-time equivalent probation officers in post in England and Wales. On the same date, there were 227.70 full-time equivalent vacancies that were actively being recruited to. Therefore active vacancies accounted for 2.68 per cent. of the total posts available at that time.

Additionally, the national probation service employs 6,544.28 full-time equivalent probation service officers, who also deliver front-line services to offenders. At this time, there were 347.30 full-time equivalent vacancies, equating to 5.04 per cent. of the total posts available.

The figures presented in the table show active vacancies for each area, in terms of full-time equivalent value, for the probation officer and probation service officer grades at the close of Quarter four 05/06 (1 January to 31 March 2006). We are not able to provide a breakdown for the Greater Manchester or West Midlands probation areas as they are currently unable to provide data on active vacancies. We are also not able to provide vacancy figures for Merseyside probation area as they are not actively recruiting.

Probation Officer and Probation Service officers vacancies, as at 31 March 2006

Area

Vacancies (all grades)

PO vacancies

PO vacancies (as a percentage of total PO posts1)

PSO vacancies

PSO vacancies (as a percentage of total PSO posts1)

Avon and Somerset

20.00

6.50

3.07

6.10

3.12

Bedfordshire

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

Cambridgeshire

10.42

5.60

5.64

4.60

5.27

Cheshire

5.56

0.00

0.00

2.50

1.95

Cumbria

9.69

1.00

1.30

4.00

9.60

Derbyshire

11.50

1.50

1.08

4.00

3.52

Devon and Cornwall

9.10

3.40

1.72

1.00

0.68

Dorset

5.80

3.00

3.41

0.30

0.39

Durham

15.00

15.00

10.96

0.00

0.00

Dyfed Powys

18.58

3.70

5.61

4.48

8.23

Essex

12.10

2.00

1.26

4.60

2.65

Gloucestershire

8.00

4.00

5.97

1.00

2.28

Greater Manchester2

n/k

n/k

n/k

Gwent

19.00

0.00

0.00

7.00

6.86

Hampshire

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

Hertfordshire

21.32

10.10

10.58

7.22

8.04

Humberside

17.00

7.00

3.57

3.60

2.20

Kent

11.02

3.00

1.54

4.02

2.26

Lancashire

9.00

0.00

0.00

6.00

3.84

Leicestershire

16.50

5.00

2.94

5.50

2.68

Lincolnshire

5.00

4.00

4.70

0.00

0.00

London

486.50

64.50

5.70

224.00

18.88

Merseyside3

n/k

n/k

n/k

Norfolk

2.00

0.00

0.00

2.00

1.51

North Wales

5.40

1.00

0.92

2.40

2.87

North Yorkshire

11.20

2.50

2.56

5.50

10.81

Northamptonshire

19.10

9.00

8.36

0.00

0.00

Northumbria

7.00

0.00

0.00

4.00

2.17

Nottinghamshire

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

South Wales

10.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

South Yorkshire

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

Staffordshire

30.10

11.50

6.24

6.50

6.95

Suffolk

8.44

2.90

2.87

4.54

5.62

Surrey

19.10

3.60

4.11

3.80

3.54

Sussex

5.70

1.00

0.59

1.20

0.91

Teesside

45.31

26.00

16.62

0.00

0.00

Thames Valley

41.00

15.00

6.22

8.00

3.32

Warwickshire

7.18

0.00

0.00

2.44

4.92

West Mercia

15.00

0.90

0.53

5.10

4.14

West Midlands2

n/k

n/k

West Yorkshire

10.00

1.00

0.24

7.00

2.48

Wiltshire

29.70

14.00

16.43

4.90

9.25

NPS

977.32

227.70

2.68

347.30

5.04

1 Total PO and PSO posts are ‘staff in post’ plus the number of active vacancies. 2 Greater Manchester and West Midlands probation areas are unable to provide data on active vacancies. 3 Merseyside probation area are not actively recruiting.