Partnerships reporting to CPP (Annually or by exception) - Community Justice (Mary Holt)
Argyll and Bute Council · 16 April 2025
Back to Argyll and Bute Community Planning Partnership - Management Committee — 16 April 2025 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Classification: OFFICIAL Management Committee Date: 16 April 2025 Title: Community Justice Partnership update 1.0 Purpose The purpose of this report is to update the Community Planning Partnership on the progress of activities relating to community justice statutory duties. 2.0 Recommendations The CPP Management Committee are asked to: • Note the statutory requirements and related progress • Note the final version of Argyll & Bute Community Justice Plan 2024-2027 will be scheduled for the June 2025 of the CPP • Support the Community Justice Partnership with alignment to CPP Priority Outcomes 3.0 Background 3.1 The Scottish Government introduced the Community Justice (Scotland) Act 2016 which places a statutory duty on a range of local and national bodies to improve outcomes for people within, or on the edges of the justice system with a focus on reducing/eliminating reoffending. They are: Argyll & Bute Council Argyll & Bute Health & Social Care Partnership Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Police Scotland L Division Highland Health Board Skills Development Scotland Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service (SCTS) Scottish Ministers, represented locally by: Scottish Prison Service & Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) Argyll & Bute Community Justice Partnership is chaired by the Council’s Chief Executive and has representation at a local level from all the above, apart from SCTS and COPFS. The latter has established regional forums with local representatives from Community Justice, Police Scotland and Justice Social Work. SCTS enhanced community justice engagement at a local level is being progressed nationally, however, operational engagement with relevant local partners continues through the core business model of the engagement with the courts.
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Classification: OFFICIAL 3.2 The National Strategy for Community Justice (2022) provides the following definition: Community justice is principally about organisations working together to ensure that people who have offended address the underlying causes of their behaviour and pay back to the community where appropriate. It aims to encourage rehabilitation, reduce reoffending, and protect the public, leading to fewer victims and safer communities. This requires a strong partnership working approach at each point of the justice system, from the point of arrest, through to integration into the community. Public protection remains our first priority, with robust risk management systems in place to ensure that, where appropriate, those who have committed offences can be managed safely and effectively in the community. In the long term, our ambition is to use prison only for those who pose a risk of serious harm. 3.3 This Scottish Government diagram below is the national planning context for community justice. 3.4 Community justice incorporates a wide range of services and policy areas, it’s a multi- agency systems planning and improvement framework that requires involvement of those expansive workforces, the people in services, victims and wider communities of interest. It is a complex landscape that involves focusing on people who are more likely to have a history involving multiple adverse childhood experiences and severe multiple disadvantages throughout their lives. Argyll & Bute Community Justice Partnership is committed to understanding what local evidence tells us, what do we do well and where do we need to improve. Engagement with people in the justice system is critical to this and will therefore be a high priority for improvement across Argyll & Bute from 2025-2027.
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Classification: OFFICIAL 4.0 Detail 4.1 Community Justice Statutory Duties are summarised by the Care Inspectorate’s CJ self-evaluation guide: Community Justice self-evaluation guide.pdf (careinspectorate.com) Core assurances: 1. Legal compliance 2. Leadership, engagement and partnership planning 3. Recruitment and staffing 4. Public Protection 5. Learning and development 6. Continuous Improvement The Care Inspectorate’s approach to scrutiny, assurance and improvement is informed by the European Framework for Quality Management (EFQM) model. The 2019 EFQM model incorporates three core tenets related to Direction, Execution, and Results. This form is structured around those three tenets: • Direction – the extent to which partners share a vision and strategy for community justice, and demonstrate effective leadership and direction. • Execution – the extent to which strategy is implemented through delivery of key processes. • Results – the extent to which partners are able to demonstrate improved outcomes. 4.2 Argyll & Bute Community Justice Partnership will focus on Core Assurance 1, 2 and 4, with a completion date of September 2025. The remainder will be scheduled in for completion by September 2026. This activity will inform the development of the new local Community Justice Plan post April 2027. 4.3 The geographically diverse landscape of Argyll & Bute requires a multi-faceted approach that takes cognisance of small community resources and needs. This is why the Community Justice Partnership will look to develop a place-based approach for strategic planning and improvement delivery. Enhanced and pragmatic partnership working will create an improved understanding of the requirements to develop and implement opportunities for change to reduce offending. We will also highlight what requires national action to deliver local improvements. 4.5 The diagram below provides the contextual framework, in relation to addressing complex needs within community justice, identifying the Community Justice Pathways where improvements are targeted:
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Classification: OFFICIAL 4.4 The Community Justice Partnership will also consider as part of its strategic improvement activity, how to strengthen the alignment to the CPP ABOIP Outcomes: ➢ Outcome 1: Transport Infrastructure ➢ Outcome 2: Housing ➢ Outcome 3: Community Wellbeing 5.0 Conclusions 5.1 The consultation version of our local Community Justice Plan 2024-2027 will be available online by the end of April 2025, a final version will be submitted to next CPP meeting. There are statutory reporting expectations that Community Planning Partnerships are informed and engaged with the strategic planning element of community justice. 5.2 The Community Justice Partnership seek the commitment and support of the Community Planning Partnership to establish and develop this, building on existing structures, knowledge and expertise.
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Classification: OFFICIAL 6.0 Implications Strategic Implications Activity required to strengthen. Included in CJ Plan 2024- 2027 Consultations, Previous considerations Consultation has taken place as part of scoping activity in relation to development of the draft version of the plan Resources Community justice improvements are reliant on existing services, therefore any existing pressures will impact on ability to deliver Prevention Community Justice is a preventative framework to reduce offending. Equalities Equalities & Island Assessments in progress For more information, contact Mary Holt, Community Justice Coordinator Mary.Holt@argyll-bute.gov.uk References Appendices Argyll & Bute Community Justice Annual Report 2023-2024 (for background information)