The Purpose of Probation/Criminal Justice Services Liaison
The Aim of the Sub-committee is to raise awareness throughout the Fellowship and to support Fellowship members who are working in this service discipline.
Each member has responsibility for liaising with several geographically adjacent AA regions to support the Liaison Officers by offering to give presentations, being available for discussion and advice and receiving reports to share best practice.
The Sub-committee produces resources for Liaison Officers which are in the Resources section.
The role of the liaison officer is to carry the message of AA and that its members are here to help to the Probation Services (in England and Wales) and the Criminal Justice Social Work Services (in Scotland) As a significant number of court cases involve alcohol abuse and many of those have a history of re-offending, it is hoped that liaison with AA will reduce re-offending.
The range of services carried out in the supervision of offenders is broadly the same in England, Scotland or Wales.
These are
- Supervision of offenders within the community.
- Assisting offenders to recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, their families, the community, and others.
- Helping with problems related to drug and alcohol abuse.
- Assisting individuals with behavioural changes required to reduce re-offending.
- Helping those released from prison resettle in the community.
- Increasing community safety by reducing and managing risk.
- Providing the Court with a range of effective alternatives to prison.
However, there are major organisational differences in offender management in Scotland and England and Wales. In England and Wales, the supervision of offenders in the community is the responsibility of the National Probation Service. In Scotland, the supervision of offenders in the community is the responsibility of the Criminal Justice Social Work Services that are provided by local authority Social Services departments.
The liaison is carried out by Intergroup and Region in all parts of the country, the only difference being the actual department the liaison officer contacts.
The Sub-committee can be contacted using the following email address: infoprobation.sc@aamail.org
