Evaluation of the Essential skills for offenders serving sentences in the community pilot

Main findings

• A variety of effective practices were identified in a few areas, including use of a robust assessment tool, some effective communication and rapport between trainers, offender managers and learners and some tailoring of learning. 
• There was a significant reduction in the number of learning activities commenced during the pilot, compared to the previous year.
• Some challenges to successful implementation that were identified included organisational change and discontinuities due to gaps created by re-commissioning.
• Recommendations for future provision included: involvement of offender managers in future service design; ensuring capability of trainers in work with offenders; and reviews of eligibility criteria, assessment and referral processes.

The training was delivered by work-based learning providers contracted to the Welsh Government.