Becoming A Probation Officer

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Did you ever wonder what makes someone choose a career? Or what’s involved in a career? I have, many times. There’s obviously more to it than I can be shared here, but Joyce shared with me a little bit about what’s involved with being a probation officer, which I am sharing with you with permission.

A fulfilling career in probation services

Probation officers supervise people serving prison and community sentences, most importantly supervising their rehabilitation after release. Jobs in probation services are regarded as highly fulfilling, ultimately helping people to change their lives for the better. Probation staff are absolutely critical to the success of offender rehabilitation.
Ordinarily, there are two routes to a successful career in probation services. An entry-level position as a Probation Services Officer (or PSO) will require the completion of a Level 3 Diploma in Probation Practice within the first 12 months on the job, in addition to satisfying the entry criteria. Throughout your career as a PSO, there will be further opportunities available to really hone your skills in specific areas, including work introduction, substance misuse awareness, community payback and working with victims.

Some PSOs will, however, choose to embark on further training which will allow them to apply for the position as Probation Officer (or PO). Typically, POs tend to tackle cases that are more complex and challenging than PSOs and, as you’d expect, the training and qualification necessary to apply for a PO position is different. Normally, a PO will have been working already as a PSO – POs require either an honours or graduate degree in Community Justice and a Level 5 Diploma in Probation Practice. This training generally takes place in a vocational undertaking, with the honours degree taking anywhere between three and five years to complete. The diploma takes an additional 15 months.

Part of the eligibility requirement for successfully completing training, as both a PSO and a PO, is experience working in the sector. This will allow candidates to successfully evaluate whether a job in probation is really the right career for them and prepare them for the challenges of real probation work. This can be either paid or voluntary work, as long as it deals with the kinds of challenging behaviour that probation workers are exposed to on a daily basis.

As part of the vocational training, candidates will work with low- to medium-risk offenders through some of the private sector partners. This will give candidates specialist first-hand training, in order to be fully equipped to deal with the high-risk offenders which pose a serious threat to society if they are not managed properly. This hands-on training will demonstrate the skills necessary for a successful career in probation, which includes good communication skills, a responsible attitude, excellent interpersonal skills and a passion for helping others.

Working as a PSO or PO can be a very challenging role, requiring patience and dedication, as well as a specialist set of skills. Probation vacancies are managed through the 35 probation trusts and can be viewed individually on the trust websites.