Case Transfer – policy framework and digital solution
Background
High quality practice in relation to case transfers is important. To support probation practitioners fully in this crucial and sometimes challenging area of work we are committed to providing the right resources, systems and processes.
The new Case Transfers Policy Framework (PF) was relaunched in March 2022. In October – exact date to be confirmed – two new NSIs will launch to support you with case transfers and temporary moves.
Who needs to know?
Practitioners, SPOs and Case Administrators
What’s happening
In October two new NSIs will launch to support you with case transfers and temporary moves.
A case transfer is defined as where a person on probation is moving to a different geographical boundary that is covered by a different team
A small change in practice, they will improve your ability to safely transfer and manage cases of people on probation.
Key features include a slimmed down transfer form and ‘Action List’ attached to the NSI
You will also have access to a National PDU locator to identify the team or contact you should transfer the NSI to.
Benefits to you, your person on probation and your region
The new digital solution will provide:
- correct, sufficient, and consistent information
- clear lines of responsibility and the ability to locate a single point of contact
- visibility for all involved
- time savings
It does not replace the need to conversation and best practice
Using an NSI will also help on a regional level to identify and monitor patterns of issues such as continual delays in returning police checks in a particular area.
What’s changing (and what’s not changing) for…
Practitioners (Transferring)
To support a timely and safe transfer process within the required 20 working days, transferring practitioners will be responsible for raising an NSI when they want to:
- transfer a case
- request support from another PDU or region when a PoP will be temporarily residing in their area
The NSI includes a new, shorter transfer form and ‘Action List’ to better support:
- the capture of all relevant risks of serious harm
- up to date assessments
- a single view of all activity related to the transfer
You will also have access to a National PDU locator to identify the team or contact you should transfer the NSI to.
You can track the transfer by looking at the NSI status and utilising the MIS report and tracker
Where your person on probation needs to reside for a short period at an address other than their home address, you will need to notify the local PDU team of a Temporary Move by raising an NSI. Whilst the team in the person on probation’s temporary location can support, you will remain responsible for that case.
If you are concerned about the progress of a case transfer, you should escalate the issues reflected in the NSI to your SPO.
In-flight cases
Your region will communicate the process you should use to track and manage any case transfers that are ‘in flight’ at go-live. It will either include:
- adding an NSI retrospectively
- continuing to manage them on our existing tracker until their completion.
Practitioners (Receiving)
Receiving practitioners will receive transferred cases or cases on a temporary move, via the NSI.
For case transfers, following receipt of the NSI, your SPO will allocate the case to you and you must review and complete an address assessment within 10 working days. The address assessment should be completed on line with the Home Visit PF and could be a home visit or a desktop assessment depending on:
- the type of accommodation or more likely who else lives in the property
- any restrictions in place or level or risk which an NSI raised for home visits.
You will also receive a completed, nationally standardised transfer form and be prompted via an Action List to review the case and make the usual checks including;
- attending a three-way hand over session arranged by the practitioner responsible for the transfer
- support the practitioner responsible for the transfer, with any police checks if required
It is assumed that you will accept the case and it is your responsibility to raise any challenges to the transfer pertaining to risk. The transferring practitioner can enforce, or recall should the person on probation present a danger to themselves or the public.
You can track the transfer by looking at the NSI status. If you receive an email from another area or region informing you of an incoming case transfer, you should request the practitioner raise the required NSI and follow the process.
A person on probation may be released or allowed to live for a short period at an address other than their home address. You would expect to be notified by the practitioner of a temporary move via an NSI, which may be allocated to you. You will need to support both the responsible practitioner and the person on probation with appointments to ensure the sentence or license requirements are still met, however you will not be responsible for the management of the case. The case should be reviewed when the person on probation returns to their original address.
If a person on probation is released and wishes to reside in the receiving area this is a Case transfer. It is only a temporary move if the accommodation made available post release in temporary
SPOs
You will be required to provide management oversight for all cases transferring in and out, in line with the Touch Point Model. For cases transferring in you will need to allocate the PoP and NSI to a PP for review and address assessment. The address assessment must be completed within the first 10 days of receiving the NSI.
The NSI includes a new, slimmed down Transfer Form and an Action List detailing the usual, required activity your practitioner and team need to complete.
You will be the escalation point should your practitioner have any concerns over the transfer.
Case Administrators
Your region will confirm which areas of the process you are responsible for
There is likely to be very little change to your practice, and you will continue to support the process by chasing required documentation or requesting police and safeguarding checks.
Case Transfer Policy Framework Recap
Staff should continue to follow the Case Transfer process outlined in the Case Transfer Policy Framework relaunched in March 2022.
All staff involved in deciding case transfers must base decisions on the following principles:
There should be a presumption towards agreeing case transfer – Permission to move is a requirement and should be given unless the move would bring with it specific and heightened risks, which could not reasonably be managed at the proposed address.
There should be a presumption towards agreeing case transfer where supervised individuals submit such requests and they are consistent with the terms of this framework – Permission to move is a requirement and should be given unless the move would bring with it specific and heightened risks, which could not reasonably be managed at the proposed address.
Information should be gathered by the transferring area for assessment from all relevant sources and made available to the receiving area at the earliest opportunity – It is critical to ensure the assessments supporting case transfer captures all relevant risks of serious harm, are accurate and up to date
Collaboration should underpin the approach to case transfer – All parties should to work together for the best outcome for the public, victims and the supervised individual
When a case transfer is being made to a nearby PDU, the transferring officer should consider the benefits and feasibility of finishing any partially completed intervention in the transferring area after the transfer has taken place. If such arrangements are made the case record must clearly detail how information about the supervised individual’s progress will be exchanged between the Responsible Officer and key stakeholders in the transferring area and the Responsible Officer and key stakeholders in the receiving division. (NB – this does not apply to risk escalation arrangements).
Refusal of a case transfer should only be made where there is evidence that the risk of harm would increase in the receiving area and could not be managed in the new address– Consideration may be given to sentence outcomes being potentially undermined by the absence of specified sentence, licence interventions or services in the receiving area. However, important as they are, issues such as no local connection, partner organisation objection with no evidenced rationale pertinent to risk, or temporary accommodation are not enough by themselves to refuse transfer.
Case transfer is considered complete when the management responsibility for a case passes from the transferring area to the receiving area – It is formalised through the allocation process that records the transferred status with a named Responsible Officer. However, a collaborative approach may continue to be required, between the transferring and receiving area, even after the responsibility has initially transferred.