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Southview Approved Premises in York rated ‘Outstanding’ as new inspection programme launches 

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Southview Approved Premises (AP) in York has received an overall rating of ‘Outstanding’ following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation.

This is the first inspection in the Inspectorate’s new AP inspection programme, and the first time APs have been subject to independent external scrutiny.

Southview is a PIPE AP [notes to editor], meaning staff have additional training to understand the psychological and social needs of the residents. 

Chief Inspector of Probation, Martin Jones, said: “I am delighted the first report from our new Approved Premises inspection programme has given an ‘Outstanding’ rating. The team are motivated, knowledgeable, and passionate about the work they are doing, and residents praised staff and spoke about their keywork sessions highly.” 

Inspectors were impressed by the public protection work being undertaken at Southview, with referrals to both adult and child social care being made when necessary. This contrasts with the Inspectorate’s findings across Probation Delivery Units (PDUs) where deficits are often found in this area.  

The approved premises had strong links with North Yorkshire Police and effective handovers were observed between night and day staff to ensure collaborative decision making about enforcement decisions. 

Mr Jones continued, “APs play a vital, and perhaps unappreciated, role in the protection of the public by providing safe closely supervised release for some of the most complex people, in the crucial first weeks after their release from custody. This report shines a light on the invaluable work they do to keep communities safe and reintegrate prison leavers back into the community.” 

The Inspectorate’s report makes five recommendations. Three are for the Southview leadership team, including to ensure all staff are familiar with all aspects of the medication management procedures. Two recommendations are for His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, including to review the out-of-hours cover arrangements to ensure staff providing cover have sufficient respite between shifts.  

ENDS  

Notes to editor  

  1. Approved Premises (APs) are residential units which provide temporary placements in the community for high-risk and complex people on probation. They offer enhanced supervision and rehabilitative support to individuals following release from prison. 
  1. PIPEs are specifically designed environments where staff have additional training to better understand the psychological and social needs of the people they support. PIPEs focus on both the physical setting and the quality of the relationships within it, recognising how important everyday interactions are. They use daily routines as learning opportunities, helping residents to work through complex personal and social difficulties. 
  1. At the time of our inspection in July 2025, Southview had 15 male residents.  
  1. HM Inspectorate of Probation began the first inspection programme for approved premises in July 2025.  
  1. The Inspectorate uses a four-point scale: ‘Outstanding’, ‘Good’, ‘Requires improvement’ and ‘Inadequate’, rating specific aspects of each service (for APs – leadership, staffing, safety, public protection, and rehabilitation) and giving an overall rating. 
  1. The report is available on the HM Inspectorate of Probation website on 17 September 2025 at 00.01. 
  1. HM Inspectorate of Probation is the independent inspector of youth justice and probation services across England and Wales.  
  1. Fieldwork for this inspection took place in July 2025. 
  1. For media enquiries, please contact Head of Communications: media@hmiprobation.gov.uk