Before Beginning the Application

Introduction

Before beginning any application, check if the offender:

• is subject to any other community-based sentences
• has any current breach charges outstanding, or
• has any active charges pending and/or upcoming hearings.

Offenders subject to other sentences

If the offender is subject to any other community-based sentences, contact the supervising probation officer/senior community work supervisor for the other sentence(s) and discuss with them any possible effect that an application may have on the other sentence(s).

• The application should not proceed until all staff members concerned are in agreement about the course of action.
• Inability to reach an agreement should not mean a delay in taking action.
• Any disagreement should be referred immediately to the service manager for a decision to be made.

The application should include details of any other sentence(s) the offender is subject to, and information regarding the offender’s progress on these.

Note: An application to vary or cancel one sentence does not necessarily affect the other sentence(s) but an explicit decision needs to be made regarding joint sentences, and the application should reflect this. The court officer will also need to ensure the judge’s decision is explicit with respect to all sentences.

Offenders with outstanding breaches

If the offender has any outstanding breaches, the probation officer should also prepare a request for the court to schedule the breach hearing and the application hearing on the same date.

Offenders with active charges

If the offender has any active charges pending, or an upcoming hearing, this information should be included in the application. Should the offender appear in court on further charges prior to the application, the court should be advised of the pending application.