Probation inspectors critical of private firm

A NORTH East organisation responsible for protecting domestic abuse victims has been slammed in a new report.

Northumbria Community Rehabilitation Company (NCRC), which is run by private firm Sodexo, works with thousands of offenders to help prevent them committing further crimes.

But inspectors have found staff are failing to “protect potential victims of those it supervises, particularly in its many domestic abuse cases”. HM Inspectorate of Probation found “insufficient attention paid to actual or potential victims” in a majority of cases, a problem it first identified with NCRC in 2017.

The report acknowledged some failings were national and “stemmed from factors not all within its control” but concluded there are “also weaknesses at local level”. However, the report singled out other aspects of the company’s work for praise and praised their experienced staff.

Set up in 2014 as part of the Government’s “Transforming Rehabilitation” agenda, the organisation works with an average of 3,500 offenders in the region at any given time.

Sodexo took over formal ownership in February 2015.

A NCRC spokesperson said: “We have already put actions in place to address many of the issues raised, to ensure protecting the public remains our priority.

“We’re pleased the inspector has acknowledged our commitment to achieving high performance, and that our staff and partners provide the right ingredients to make improvements.”