A staffing crisis has meant the island is only offering community service one day a week when it should be operating six days.

Community service is a form of punishment handed out for low level crimes or first-time offenders as an alternative to fines of prison.

However, the Probation Service in the Isle of Man has struggled to deliver the scheme due to a lack of supervisors.

Douglas South MHK Claire Christian posed a written Tynwald question to Justice and Home Affairs Minister Jane Poole-Wilson asking what operational and staffing challenges have occurred within the probation and community services and what impact these have had on service delivery.

The Minister replied saying: ‘Community service usually operates with three community service supervisors covering six days a week, two of these days being weekends.

‘Due to staff shortages, the operation of the service is currently reduced to one day a week. I am pleased to say that one new supervisor has recently been recruited and is expected to be in place by late September. A further recruitment process is due to be underway shortly.

‘The lack of community supervisors has meant the usual Community Service work groups have not taken place throughout the week. The only day Community Service is currently offered is a Thursday, which has affected attendance.

‘The impact of this issue has been addressed in part by an increase in the number of individual placements with various charities and organisations around the Island. It is expected the Community Service groups will be back in place and running effectively from October 2024.’

Mrs Poole-Wilson has also outlined staffing issues the Probation Service has suffered more widely.

She explained: ‘The Probation Service suffered from staffing shortages in early 2023, but these issues were resolved after a successful recruitment campaign in late 2023/early 2024.

‘The service is also currently seeking to recruit two further Probation Service officers, one to be based at Tromode and one in the prison. Due to the specialised nature of Probation, it has proven challenging to recruit and retain qualified probation officers on the Island.

‘The service has a strategy in place to recruit Probation Service officers, with suitable candidates being offered the opportunity to act as trainee probation officers and undertake the necessary training to become qualified probation officers after three years.

Mrs Poole-Wilson also revealed four individuals – three males and one female - have requested the conversion of community service to a financial penalty.

She added: ‘The Probation Service work closely with Community Service clients and monitors completion of the Community Service Order to ensure that it is completed within 12 months.

‘If a client is having difficulties attending the work groups or placements, the Community Service manager would review and work with the client to find a solution.’

Ms Poole-Wilson explained that sometimes the community service work cannot be completed due to ill health or a change in circumstances and an alternative punishment can be considered.