Probation Service problems in England and Wales leaving public at risk, watchdog finds

The report found that the Probation Service has ‘too few staff’ with ‘too little experience’. Photograph: Michael Cooper/PA

The Probation Service in England and Wales “has too few staff” with “too little experience and training” and leaves members of the public at risk, an official watchdog has found.

Martin Jones, the chief inspector of probation, said in his annual report that attempts by under-pressure staff to “keep others safe” is “consistently insufficient across all our inspections”.