ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the assessment of individual offenders, as practised by probation officers. The main issues to be considered are the purposes of pre-court assessment, the practice of pre-court assessment and the use and importance of the OASys assessment system. The views and practices discussed are taken from practitioners involved in the preparation of a formal court report prior to sentence, the Pre-Sentence Report (PSR). Whilst these come in two formats, only one is considered, namely the Standard Delivery Report (SDR). The report gave a full social and personal history and the individual was seen as low risk of harm and medium risk of re-offending, based on a clinical assessment. A proposal for a community rehabilitation order (CRO) was made in order to monitor the individual, liaise with mental health services, offer practical help and support and look at consequential thinking.
