History of London Probation

London Probation has been protecting the public and rehabilitating offenders in London since 2001. Before then, five seperate organisations provided probation services in London on a regional basis;

South West London Probation Service
South East London Probation Service
North East London Probation Service
Inner London Probation Service
Middlesex Probation Service

The merger in 2001 brought together all five organisations so that London Probation now provides probation services to the whole of London.

Key Dates in the history of Probation

1907  - First Probation Officers appointed under the Probation of Offenders Act 1907.

1920s - Appointing a Probation Officer becomes a requirement of the courts.

1937   - Guy Clutton-Brock appointed London's first Principal Probation Officer.

1940s - The Probation Service in London gained its longest serving Principal Probation Officer in 1948, Seldon Charles Forrester Farmer, who led the service at a time of high caseloads & staff shortages.

1950s - Female Probation Officers began to supervise boys up to 14 and girls up to 17.

1972   - Community Service (Unpaid Work) became an alternative sentencing option to prison as part of the Criminal Justice Act 1972.

1980s - Hostels (now Approved Premises) introduced to increase public protection and supervision of dangerous offenders.

1990s - Tagging and specific requirements for drug and alcohol treatment.

2001   - Multi-agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) introduced. Involves probation, police, prisons and other agencies working together to manage dangerous offenders in the community.

2004   - National Offender Management Service (NOMS) formed by merging HM Prison Service and the National Probation Service.

2007 - The National Probation Service celebrates 100 years of service.