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Cwm Taf Morgannwg Probation Delivery Unit rated as ‘Requires improvement’ following inspection

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Cwm Taf Morgannwg Probation Delivery Unit (PDU) has received an overall rating of ‘Requires improvement’ following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.

Martin Jones, Chief Inspector of Probation, said: “The visible leadership at Cwm Taf Morgannwg PDU had a strong grasp of the operational pressures and the needs of their staff, and there was a clear sense of optimism in the strategic direction of the PDU. Some areas of casework showed signs of improvement, however, service delivery aimed at keeping people safe and reducing risk of harm was found to be insufficient in most cases.”

Inspectors were disappointed to find that planning to keep other people safe was sufficient in just over a third of cases examined during this inspection. In addition, practitioners often lacked professional curiosity, with changes in risk-related factors not always identified and input from other agencies not appropriately considered.

These findings echo similar issues across the PDU inspection programme and, in response to these consistent deficiencies in public protection work, from October 2025, HM Inspectorate of Probation will be undertaking a new, six-month Dynamic Inspection of Public Protection of all 12 probation regions [see notes to editor].

Mr Jones continued: “There are reasons to be hopeful about the future of Cwm Taf Morgannwg PDU. Staff at all levels understood the importance of improving both quality and performance, especially in relation to public safety, and I trust that our recommendations will help them improve further.”

The report makes five recommendations to Cwm Taf Morgannwg, including to ensure work is undertaken with other agencies to manage domestic abuse and child safeguarding and to develop practitioners’ confidence and skills in the use of professional curiosity.

ENDS


Notes to editor

  1. Probation Delivery Units (PDUs) replaced Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) and the National Probation Service (NPS), which merged into a unified Probation Service in June 2021.
  2. The report is available at https://hmiprobation.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/ on 23 October 2025
  3. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth justice and probation services across England and Wales. 
  4. The Inspectorate uses a four-point scale: ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires improvement’ and ‘Inadequate’. The Inspectorate rates specific aspects of each service and also gives an overall rating.
  5. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in August 2025
  6. HM Inspectorate’s Dynamic Inspection of Public Protection is a new programme, starting in October 2025. The Inspectorate will be pausing its core adult programme to undertake six months of dynamic inspection activity, focusing solely on the Service’s delivery of public protection. It will inspect all twelve regions and inspections, then deliver follow-up activity with strategic leaders and managers to identify what can be done to support and guide regional leaders into improving work, increasing knowledge and confidence and providing a solid foundation for further improvement. 
  7. For media enquiries, please contact Louise Cordell, Head of Communications 07523 805224 / media@hmiprobation.gov.uk