Jake Phillips
Biographic Data
| ID | 3844600 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Jake Phillips |
| GIVEN NAMES | Jake |
| FAMILY NAME | Phillips |
| SIGNATURE | PHILLIPS J |
| AFFILIATIONS | Sheffield Hallam University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7606-6423 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 33 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 25 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 31 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Probation after violence
What does AI mean for probation's future
Dirty Work in Probation: The Breadth and Depth of Taint Amongst Specialist Roles
This article presents findings from a study exploring the implementation of the Reflective Practice Supervision Standards for the National Probation Service, in England and Wales. The paper considers the concept of dirty work in relation to specialist probation workers with roles in the Magistrates Courts, Prison, Approved Premises and Victim Liaison services. This analysis expands the application of the breadth and depth of stigma for occupation…
‘You’re trying to juggle everything’: Understanding the consequences of emotional labour for senior probation officers in England and Wales
Much academic research has explored what it means to be a practitioner in the criminal justice system and a small body of research explores the roles and experiences of leaders. However, very little research has sought to understand the critical role of line managers in supporting frontline practitioners and activating the policy goals of an organisation situated – as they are – in the middle of an institution's chain of command. Good line manage…
Developing social capital in probation practice by drawing on non-criminal justice community spaces and places: A tool for strategy and practice
There has been a lot of discussion about incorporating social capital-building opportunities for people on probation. We seek to inform practice on embedding these pathways into probation services. Following a discussion of social capital and its relevance for probation work, we present a one-page social capital-building tool that can be used to identify, assess evidence, plan and commission these resources. The tool has been developed, refined a…
Making it count? Introduction to the special issue on professional registration in probation
Resignation as an act of protest: Rethinking retention in probation
Working together to help the rice grow: Reflections on probation and practice
Every Social Worker is a Criminal Justice Social Worker
Self‐Legitimacy and the Moral Authority to Inspect: A Qualitative Study of Probation Inspectors in England and Wales
This article examines how probation inspectors in England and Wales construct their self‐legitimacy; the internal belief in their moral and professional right to inspect. Drawing on qualitative interviews and Bottoms and Tankebe's dialogic model of legitimacy, it shows how inspectors justify their authority through legal mandates, professional expertise, methodological rigor, and a commitment to public service. In the absence of coercive powers, …
Balancing Legitimacies: Efficiency, Fairness and the Transformation of Parole Oral Hearings
This article examines the transformation of parole oral hearings in England and Wales following their shift to remote delivery. Drawing on qualitative interviews and hearing transcripts, it explores how remote hearings affect the legitimacy of parole, focusing on tensions between efficiency, fairness and participation. Using a framework of legitimacy underpinned by Suchman’s concept of procedural, consequential and pragmatic legitimacy, the artic…
Probation, Technical Compliance and the ‘Drowning’ of Hope
Hope and optimism are central to processes of reform. However, in the context of the dramatic restructuring and reorganizations that the probation service in England and Wales has undergone in the past decade, there are questions over the extent to which such hopes are realizable. We seek to explore the concept of hope in transforming individual’s lives away from engagement in crime. Via an analysis of interviews that were co-produced with people…
Held to account: Comparing adversarial questioning in remote and in-person parole hearings
This article analyses the use of adversarial questions in oral hearings conducted by the Parole Board of England and Wales. This is important because the Board is supposed to use an inquisitorial approach to oral hearings, so adversarial questions are examples of where Parole Board members deviate from this norm. The article outlines the work of the Parole Board, the process for carrying out oral hearings and the recent move to increased remote h…
An analysis of inspection in probation and its impact on practitioners, practice and providers
This article analyses the impact of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation on practice, providers and practitioners. Since 1936 HMI Probation has aimed to improve practice through independently inspecting probation services. However, no research has looked at its impact on those it inspects. This is important not only because the evidence on whether inspection improves delivery in other sectors is weak but also because oversight has the potentia…
The role of language in probation: A creative conversation
This discussion piece emerged out of a conversation about the words we use to describe people who are engaged in and by the criminal justice system. It is underpinned by our belief that language, including the ways we describe people, has important effects in the world. The piece consists of two parts: a brief critical introduction, and a creative dialogue which reflects upon ten key words that have been used to describe people on probation
Remote parole oral hearings: More efficient, but at what cost
The Parole Board (PB) is responsible for deciding whether some prisoners are safe to be released into the community. COVID-19 accelerated the PB’s move towards using remote oral hearings. Little is known about how this shift towards remote working has impacted the work of the PB and prisoners. In this article, we present the findings from a study that sought to understand the differences between remote and in-person hearings. Through analysis of …
Regulating criminal justice: The role of procedural justice and legitimacy in the inspection of probation in England and Wales
Criminal justice institutions are held to account in a number of ways yet there is limited knowledge as to how these systems of regulation function. One primary method for regulating systems of punishment is through the use of independent inspectorates, yet very little empirical research has explored how inspectorates engage with the organisations they inspect nor how inspection is received by inspected organisations. Procedural justice theory ha…
Lifting the lid on Pandora’s box: Putting professional curiosity into practice
Professional curiosity has recently become a ‘buzzword’ in the field of probation and social work. However, little research has sought to understand what professional curiosity means definitionally, conceptually or operationally. In this article, we analyse interview data from 49 probation practitioners in England and Wales to explore what professional curiosity means in the context of probation and what the main barriers are to enacting professi…
What does professional curiosity mean to you?’: An exploration of professional curiosity in probation
This article explores the concept of professional curiosity in relation to probation practice. We synthesise existing relevant literature to develop a theoretical framework of how professional curiosity is understood, arguing that professional curiosity can be used to manage risk, develop the therapeutic alliance, and facilitate knowledge building. We then present analysis of how the concept has been used in probation policy and analyse data gene…
‘I don't like this job in my front room’: Practising probation in the Covid-19 pandemic
The Exceptional Delivery Model for probation practice in England and Wales meant that probation practitioners predominantly worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, engaging and supervising service-users remotely. This article explores the impact of the Exceptional Delivery Model on staff and their practice. We begin by considering how probation practice changed because of the implementation of the Exceptional Delivery Model and the impact …
Marketisation and Privatisation in Criminal Justice
Criminal justice used to be thought of as a field autonomous from politics and the economy, with the management of crime and punishment being seen as essentially the responsibility of government. However, in recent decades, policies have been adopted which blur the institutional boundaries and functions of the public sector with those of for-profit and civil society interests in many parts of the penal/welfare complex. The impact of these develop…
What should happen after the death of a probationer? Learning from suicide investigations in prison
In this comment piece, I explore the relevance of Tomczak’s (2019) book Prison Suicide: What Happens Afterwards for those of us working and researching in the field of probation. I argue that many of the findings from Tomczak’s research are relevant when thinking about how to enhance accountability and knowledge around the deaths of people under probation supervision
Delivering desistance-focused probation in community hubs: Five key ingredients
This article argues that probation is well placed to facilitate desistance when delivered in community hubs – community-based offices where probation services are co-located with other community-based provision. However, we highlight that hubs need to include certain key factors to maximise the potential for desistance. Using data collected through a piece of empirical research in six community hubs in England and Wales, we identify what factors …
Marketisation and Privatisation in Criminal Justice
This collection offers a comprehensive review of the origins, scale and breadth of the privatisation and marketisation revolution across the criminal justice system. Leading academics and researchers assess the consequences of market-driven criminal justice in a wide range of contexts, from prison and probation to policing, migrant detention, rehabilitation and community programmes. Using economic, sociological and criminological perspectives, il…
Conformity, conflict and negotiation in criminal justice work: Understanding practice through the lens of emotional labour
Who owns desistance? A triad of agency enabling social structures in the desistance process
Theories of desistance assert agency is a prerequisite to the process; agency which can be enabled or curtailed by social structures. We present data from six community hub sites that hosted probation services in the UK in 2019. While our analysis identifies agency enabling institutional and relational structures across the different hub governance sub-types in our sample, these were clearest in hubs run in the community by the community. This ar…
Managing emotion in probation practice: Display rules, values and the performance of emotional labour
Myopia and misrecognition: The impact of managerialism on the management of compliance
This article explores the construction of a particular form of compliance in probation practice during a period in which policy shifted from enforcement towards compliance. The article uses four concepts from Bourdieu’s field theory ( habitus, field, misrecognition and symbolic violence) to highlight the way in which the shift in policy was attuned to the subjective structure of probation practitioners’ habitus but resulted in a form of complianc…
Held to account: Comparing adversarial questioning in remote and in-person parole hearings
This article analyses the use of adversarial questions in oral hearings conducted by the Parole Board of England and Wales. This is important because the Board is supposed to use an inquisitorial approach to oral hearings, so adversarial questions are examples of where Parole Board members deviate from this norm. The article outlines the work of the Parole Board, the process for carrying out oral hearings and the recent move to increased remote h…
Remote parole oral hearings: More efficient, but at what cost
The Parole Board (PB) is responsible for deciding whether some prisoners are safe to be released into the community. COVID-19 accelerated the PB’s move towards using remote oral hearings. Little is known about how this shift towards remote working has impacted the work of the PB and prisoners. In this article, we present the findings from a study that sought to understand the differences between remote and in-person hearings. Through analysis of …
The emotions and emotional labour of criminological researchers
The emotional labour of doctoral criminological researchers
Embarking upon empirical qualitative research can be a daunting and emotional task, particularly for those who are new to research and for those who research vulnerable groups and emotive topics. Doctoral criminological researchers transect these realms, often making their research experiences acutely emotional and challenging. In addition, researchers must be able to perform emotional labour as an important part of their professional practice. B…
Non-custodial deaths: Missing, ignored or unimportant
This article presents the findings from two separate pieces of research that were conducted by the authors on deaths that occur within the criminal justice system, but outside custodial settings. The article begins with a review of the literature on deaths both within and outside custody before going through the research findings which inform the article. The overarching argument is that deaths outside custodial settings are less understood, and …
Regulating criminal justice: The role of procedural justice and legitimacy in the inspection of probation in England and Wales
Criminal justice institutions are held to account in a number of ways yet there is limited knowledge as to how these systems of regulation function. One primary method for regulating systems of punishment is through the use of independent inspectorates, yet very little empirical research has explored how inspectorates engage with the organisations they inspect nor how inspection is received by inspected organisations. Procedural justice theory ha…
Lifting the lid on Pandora’s box: Putting professional curiosity into practice
Professional curiosity has recently become a ‘buzzword’ in the field of probation and social work. However, little research has sought to understand what professional curiosity means definitionally, conceptually or operationally. In this article, we analyse interview data from 49 probation practitioners in England and Wales to explore what professional curiosity means in the context of probation and what the main barriers are to enacting professi…
What does professional curiosity mean to you?’: An exploration of professional curiosity in probation
This article explores the concept of professional curiosity in relation to probation practice. We synthesise existing relevant literature to develop a theoretical framework of how professional curiosity is understood, arguing that professional curiosity can be used to manage risk, develop the therapeutic alliance, and facilitate knowledge building. We then present analysis of how the concept has been used in probation policy and analyse data gene…
Conformity, conflict and negotiation in criminal justice work: Understanding practice through the lens of emotional labour
Myopia and misrecognition: The impact of managerialism on the management of compliance
This article explores the construction of a particular form of compliance in probation practice during a period in which policy shifted from enforcement towards compliance. The article uses four concepts from Bourdieu’s field theory ( habitus, field, misrecognition and symbolic violence) to highlight the way in which the shift in policy was attuned to the subjective structure of probation practitioners’ habitus but resulted in a form of complianc…
Non-custodial deaths: Missing, ignored or unimportant
This article presents the findings from two separate pieces of research that were conducted by the authors on deaths that occur within the criminal justice system, but outside custodial settings. The article begins with a review of the literature on deaths both within and outside custody before going through the research findings which inform the article. The overarching argument is that deaths outside custodial settings are less understood, and …
Suicide and community justice
BACKGROUND: There has long been concern about the number of people who die in custody in England and Wales, particularly in prisons or police stations. The concern is obviously heightened when people die either at their own hand, or at the hands of others. Yet there has been selective critical gaze, and people who die whilst under probation or community supervision have been neglected (Phillips, J, Gelsthorpe, L, Padfield, N., Criminology & Crimi…
Managing emotion in probation practice: Display rules, values and the performance of emotional labour
Deaths While under Probation Supervision: What Role for Human Rights Legislation
Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that ‘everyone has the right to life’. This right is contained in all human rights treaties that developed from the UDHR, including the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Yet, as we argue, the UK government is failing to protect this right when it comes to certain groups of people under probation supervision. To date, human rights legislation has failed adequately to pr…
Marketisation and Privatisation in Criminal Justice
Criminal justice used to be thought of as a field autonomous from politics and the economy, with the management of crime and punishment being seen as essentially the responsibility of government. However, in recent decades, policies have been adopted which blur the institutional boundaries and functions of the public sector with those of for-profit and civil society interests in many parts of the penal/welfare complex. The impact of these develop…
What should happen after the death of a probationer? Learning from suicide investigations in prison
In this comment piece, I explore the relevance of Tomczak’s (2019) book Prison Suicide: What Happens Afterwards for those of us working and researching in the field of probation. I argue that many of the findings from Tomczak’s research are relevant when thinking about how to enhance accountability and knowledge around the deaths of people under probation supervision
Delivering desistance-focused probation in community hubs: Five key ingredients
This article argues that probation is well placed to facilitate desistance when delivered in community hubs – community-based offices where probation services are co-located with other community-based provision. However, we highlight that hubs need to include certain key factors to maximise the potential for desistance. Using data collected through a piece of empirical research in six community hubs in England and Wales, we identify what factors …
Marketisation and Privatisation in Criminal Justice
This collection offers a comprehensive review of the origins, scale and breadth of the privatisation and marketisation revolution across the criminal justice system. Leading academics and researchers assess the consequences of market-driven criminal justice in a wide range of contexts, from prison and probation to policing, migrant detention, rehabilitation and community programmes. Using economic, sociological and criminological perspectives, il…
Conformity, conflict and negotiation in criminal justice work: Understanding practice through the lens of emotional labour
Who owns desistance? A triad of agency enabling social structures in the desistance process
Theories of desistance assert agency is a prerequisite to the process; agency which can be enabled or curtailed by social structures. We present data from six community hub sites that hosted probation services in the UK in 2019. While our analysis identifies agency enabling institutional and relational structures across the different hub governance sub-types in our sample, these were clearest in hubs run in the community by the community. This ar…
The emotions and emotional labour of criminological researchers
The emotional labour of doctoral criminological researchers
Embarking upon empirical qualitative research can be a daunting and emotional task, particularly for those who are new to research and for those who research vulnerable groups and emotive topics. Doctoral criminological researchers transect these realms, often making their research experiences acutely emotional and challenging. In addition, researchers must be able to perform emotional labour as an important part of their professional practice. B…
‘I don't like this job in my front room’: Practising probation in the Covid-19 pandemic
The Exceptional Delivery Model for probation practice in England and Wales meant that probation practitioners predominantly worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, engaging and supervising service-users remotely. This article explores the impact of the Exceptional Delivery Model on staff and their practice. We begin by considering how probation practice changed because of the implementation of the Exceptional Delivery Model and the impact …
Lifting the lid on Pandora’s box: Putting professional curiosity into practice
Professional curiosity has recently become a ‘buzzword’ in the field of probation and social work. However, little research has sought to understand what professional curiosity means definitionally, conceptually or operationally. In this article, we analyse interview data from 49 probation practitioners in England and Wales to explore what professional curiosity means in the context of probation and what the main barriers are to enacting professi…
What does professional curiosity mean to you?’: An exploration of professional curiosity in probation
This article explores the concept of professional curiosity in relation to probation practice. We synthesise existing relevant literature to develop a theoretical framework of how professional curiosity is understood, arguing that professional curiosity can be used to manage risk, develop the therapeutic alliance, and facilitate knowledge building. We then present analysis of how the concept has been used in probation policy and analyse data gene…
An analysis of inspection in probation and its impact on practitioners, practice and providers
This article analyses the impact of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation on practice, providers and practitioners. Since 1936 HMI Probation has aimed to improve practice through independently inspecting probation services. However, no research has looked at its impact on those it inspects. This is important not only because the evidence on whether inspection improves delivery in other sectors is weak but also because oversight has the potentia…
The role of language in probation: A creative conversation
This discussion piece emerged out of a conversation about the words we use to describe people who are engaged in and by the criminal justice system. It is underpinned by our belief that language, including the ways we describe people, has important effects in the world. The piece consists of two parts: a brief critical introduction, and a creative dialogue which reflects upon ten key words that have been used to describe people on probation
Remote parole oral hearings: More efficient, but at what cost
The Parole Board (PB) is responsible for deciding whether some prisoners are safe to be released into the community. COVID-19 accelerated the PB’s move towards using remote oral hearings. Little is known about how this shift towards remote working has impacted the work of the PB and prisoners. In this article, we present the findings from a study that sought to understand the differences between remote and in-person hearings. Through analysis of …
Regulating criminal justice: The role of procedural justice and legitimacy in the inspection of probation in England and Wales
Criminal justice institutions are held to account in a number of ways yet there is limited knowledge as to how these systems of regulation function. One primary method for regulating systems of punishment is through the use of independent inspectorates, yet very little empirical research has explored how inspectorates engage with the organisations they inspect nor how inspection is received by inspected organisations. Procedural justice theory ha…
‘You’re trying to juggle everything’: Understanding the consequences of emotional labour for senior probation officers in England and Wales
Much academic research has explored what it means to be a practitioner in the criminal justice system and a small body of research explores the roles and experiences of leaders. However, very little research has sought to understand the critical role of line managers in supporting frontline practitioners and activating the policy goals of an organisation situated – as they are – in the middle of an institution's chain of command. Good line manage…
Developing social capital in probation practice by drawing on non-criminal justice community spaces and places: A tool for strategy and practice
There has been a lot of discussion about incorporating social capital-building opportunities for people on probation. We seek to inform practice on embedding these pathways into probation services. Following a discussion of social capital and its relevance for probation work, we present a one-page social capital-building tool that can be used to identify, assess evidence, plan and commission these resources. The tool has been developed, refined a…
Making it count? Introduction to the special issue on professional registration in probation
Resignation as an act of protest: Rethinking retention in probation
Working together to help the rice grow: Reflections on probation and practice
Political science (22 works) · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis (21 works) · Psychology (21 works) · Sociology (19 works) · Law (14 works) · Criminology (13 works) · Homelessness and Social Issues (13 works) · Social Psychology (12 works) · Criminal justice (9 works) · Public relations (9 works)