Position Description
Position Title: Senior Community Work Supervisor
Reports To: Service Manager
Service/Group: Community Probation & Psychological Services
Location: Community Work Centre/Service Centre
Date: December  2007

Purpose of Position
The purpose of this position is to manage offenders who are sentenced to community work and/or community detention. 

The sentence of community work provides:

• reparation to the community
• a pro social and culturally responsive environment
• an opportunity for offenders to acquire or improve work and social skills

The sentence of community detention is a punitive measure that restricts an offender’s movements.

Functional Relationships
Internal: Service Manager, Senior Probation Officers, Probation Officers, Community Work Supervisors, Administrative Staff

External: Offenders and their families, Iwi, Community Groups and Agencies, Service Providers including electronic monitoring providers, Lawyers

Key Accountabilities
Manage offenders sentenced to community detention and community work

• Induct offenders into sentence or order to ensure that they understand their responsibilities, rights and the consequences of non-compliance, including induction into agency placements
• Complete the post sentencing assessment interview on offenders as appropriate and in accordance with operational policy.
• For community work sentences assess offender’s suitability for agency or centre placement using appropriate tools.
• If the offender is subject to another sentence, liaise with other staff involved in managing that offender to confirm availability for community work and to discuss curfew conditions.
• Develop sentence plans for offenders sentenced to community detention.
• Manage sentence in accordance with operational requirements and the sentence objectives.
• Monitor progress against the plan, revising goals and activities as appropriate.
• Ensure all interview, assessment and sentence management documentation is complete and up-to-date in the offender management information system and in offender files.
• Take appropriate and timely enforcement action, including breach action, where an offender fails to comply with the requirements of the sentence as outlined in the Operations Manual.
• Consider offender serving a community work sentence for remission of hours and calculate remaining hours to be worked where remission has been approved.
• Liaise with colleagues who are also involved in the management of offenders that job holder is supervising on community work or community detention to ensure sentence and issue management is well coordinated and risks are effectively managed.

Manage work projects

• Plan and organise project requirements.
• Manage Community Work Supervisor roster, including setting CWS roster 4 weeks in advance, making arrangements to cover for periods of CWS leave and assigning offenders to work parties.
• Provide advice and support to Community Work Supervisors as issues arise at work sites, resolving conflict and enforcing rules.
• Carry out daily site checks of work parties to ensure compliance with operational policy.
• Plan project tasks.
• Record hazards on project site, and identify means of eliminating, isolating or minimising these prior to work starting.
• Organise tools, rations and equipment.
• Ensure project tasks are completed to a standard that is acceptable to the agency and within agreed constraints.
• Monitor number of hours repeated or not counted due to unsatisfactory work according to operational procedures.
• May be required to directly supervise work parties.

Monitor sentence compliance for offenders assigned to agency placements

• Conduct BWALS assessments including monitoring and recording of hours
• Monitor offender attendance:
• • Set up offender daily attendance sheet and reporting information in IOMS
  • Record hours taken for work placement assessment and induction on the daily attendance sheet and in IOMS
  • Issue first daily attendance sheet to Agency
  • Obtain daily attendance records from Agency weekly.  In rural situations where daily returns are provided fortnightly or monthly, contact the Agency weekly by phone to confirm hours
  • Record hours and performance in IOMS weekly
• File documents and complete IOMS case notes and information.
• Monitor placement in Agency by regular visits to confirm attendance and work progress.  Record details in IOMS and note in Agency file.Take action as appropriate.
• Review community work agencies to ensure that health and safety standards are appropriate prior to the placement of offenders.  Ensure that offenders are aware of the health and safety requirements of the Agency and the obligations of the offender.

Manage electronic curfews for offenders sentenced to Community Detention

• Receive and dispatch monitoring equipment
• Install monitoring equipment at approved address at the commencement of a community detention sentence
• Hook-up and unhook offenders at the beginning and end of an electronic monitoring period.
• Ensure equipment is operating correctly.
• De-install monitoring equipment at the completion of a community detention sentence.
• Move monitoring equipment as required by variation to curfew address.
• Review monitoring reports from monitoring provider and take action as appropriate, including enforcement action.

Build and sustain relationships with community work agencies for placement of individuals or work parties

• Proactively approach community groups with proposals for work projects and/or individual placements
• Maintain regular contact with agencies during the course of work projects or individual placements and ensure any issues encountered by agencies are dealt with promptly
• Assess agencies and work projects for suitability for community work in accordance with operational policy, including carrying out the initial hazard identification of any new work site.

Mentor and coach Community Work Supervisors

• Act as a mentor and role model to Community Work Supervisors in the standards of professionalism and competence in community work.
• Assist staff with practical help with the completion of tasks when new to the role, including inducting new Community Work Supervisors.
• Coach staff from a technical perspective on requirements to meet CPS standards in relation to policies and procedures.
• May be required to provide structured training to colleagues in community work, health and safety and other work-related areas.

Support other areas of community probation work

• May be required to deliver summons.

Health and Safety

• Ensure that a safe working environment is maintained for colleagues and offenders by:
• • reporting any hazards,
  • reporting any accidents or near misses that occur,
  • adhering to safety standards and processes set down by Corrections aimed at preventing harm, and
  • participating in health and safety programmes as required, including own rehabilitation should the job holder sustain a work injury.

Job Description and Scope of Duties
The job holder will be expected to perform such other duties as can reasonably be regarded as incidental to the job description, and such other duties reasonably within his or her experience and capabilities as may be from time to time be assigned.

Person Specification
Communication, supervision and relationship skills

• Communicates confidently and modifies communication style to reflect the needs of the people and situation
• Listens attentively to others
• Develops rapport and an environment of trust and respect
• Uses a range of strategies to influence and motivate people
• Manages offender behaviour issues including aggressive behaviour
• Models pro-social behaviour

Leadership and Mentoring Skills

• Share information, ideas and experiences with manager, colleagues and CWS
• Models and reinforces positive behaviour

Openness and willingness to learn

• Is motivated to continually learn and develop new skills
• Is open to and constructively deals with feedback
• Is willing to apply learned techniques to practical situations
• Knows when to seek further information/guidance or refer issues to their manager

Problem solving and judgement

• Collects sufficient information to establish the nature of the issue/problem
• Develops a range of options in order to solve problems and develops appropriate criteria against which to weigh options
• Makes decisions in accordance with organisation policy and procedures and within appropriate timeframes.

Cultural awareness

• Understands the relevance of the Treaty of Waitangi to service delivery in the Department of Corrections
• Demonstrates cultural sensitivity in all dealings with Maori, Pacific Island people and people of other ethnic groups
• Demonstrates the ability to relate effectively and in a culturally sensitive manner with iwi and community groups

Teamwork

• Works co-operatively with a range of people to achieve positive results
• Participates willingly in team situations and supports team decisions
• Is proactive at sharing information and ideas with other team members
• Supports the organisation’s values and goals.

Computer skills

• Proficient in MS Word, MS Excel and MS Outlook
• Develop proficiency in the Department’s in-house offender management information system (IOMS)

Practical Skills

• Ability to impart manual skills to offenders in a practical setting
  Personal Integrity
• Ensures that the highest standards of conduct, professionalism and integrity are demonstrated in all interactions with offenders, Community Agencies, and in all dealings when representing the Community Probation Service
• Acts consistently with the Department of Corrections Code of Conduct

Qualifications

• Community Work Supervisors are required to have a valid drivers license
• Maintain a current First Aid Certificate.

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