Commissioner's Directive

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Policy Bulletin 167

Policy Bulletin 331

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• Policy Objectives
• Authorities
• Application
• Responsibilities and Procedures
• Enquiries
• Annex A - Cross-References and Definitions
• Annex B - Final Correctional Program Report

POLICY OBJECTIVES

1. To ensure offenders receive the most effective Correctional Programs at the appropriate time in their sentence to rehabilitate and prepare them for reintegration into the community.

2. To maximize the effectiveness of Correctional Programs identified in the offender's Correctional Plan and ensure integrity in program management and delivery.

3. To ensure Correctional Programs respect gender, ethnic, cultural and linguistic differences, and are responsive to the special needs of women, aboriginal offenders, offenders requiring mental health care and other groups.

AUTHORITIES

4. Corrections and Conditional Release Act  paragraphs 3(b), 4(h) and 5(b) and sections 76, 77, 79 and 80

Corrections and Conditional Release Regulations, section 102

APPLICATION

5. This Commissioner's Directive applies to all staff involved in Correctional Program management, planning, and delivery.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND PROCEDURES

6. The Assistant Commissioner, Correctional Operations and Programs, will:

1. authorize the development and delivery of Correctional Programs;
2. review and approve the Annual Program Plan;
3. authorize the development of the:
   1. National Correctional Programs Referral Guidelines,
   2. National Correctional Programs Management Guidelines, and
   3. National Standards for Correctional Programs.

7. The Director, Reintegration Programs at National Headquarters, will:

1. manage, coordinate and monitor national Correctional Program development, including program manuals and materials; and
2. oversee coordination, with the Directors of Interventions, to ensure efficient Correctional Program management and delivery and maximum program capacity, as well as report results quarterly.

8. The Regional Deputy Commissioner will:

1. ensure procedures are in place that support Correctional Program delivery;
2. ensure the Correctional Program inventory is maintained;
3. ensure that the Correctional Programs are available to offenders;
4. ensure that all Correctional Programs identified in the Regional Program Plan are national Correctional Programs; and
5. ensure the competencies of Correctional Program Facilitators are evaluated through the quality review and certification process.

9. The Assistant Deputy Commissioner, Institutional Operations, will:

1. provide a national strategic perspective for the regional planning of Correctional Programs; and
2. oversee quality and consistency in the application of Correctional Programs for all offenders across the region.

10. The Director, Interventions, will:

1. develop and submit an annual Regional Program Plan; and
2. promote and facilitate collaboration between assessment, intervention and program staff to:
   1. ensure a greater continuity in correctional planning,
   2. ensure efficient program management, and
   3. maximize program capacity.

11. The Regional Administrator, Assessment and Interventions, will:

1. review, analyze and report to the Director, Interventions, all correctional program demand, availability and results; and
2. where there are dissenting opinions regarding program referrals, be the final authority.

12. The Regional Program Manager will:

1. manage specific Correctional Program portfolios;
2. establish, organize and conduct Correctional Program training in specific Correctional Program areas;
3. complete post-training assessment reports; and
4. conduct the quality review of Correctional Program Facilitators' performance.

13. The Institutional Head/District Director will:

1. develop and submit an annual Program Plan;
2. provide a secure and appropriate environment for the delivery of Correctional Programs; and

14. The Assistant Warden, Interventions/Associate District Director will:

1. ensure the Correctional Program referrals adhere to the National Correctional Programs Referral Guidelines. They will:
   1. authorize referrals and update assignments until they are finalized,
   2. review and record decisions on referrals within 10 working days from the date of application,
   3. ensure the offender meets the referral criteria and that the Correctional Program is available prior to approving the referral,
   4. approve achievable Correctional Program referrals for each offender,
   5. ensure that variances are documented,
   6. monitor waitlists, delivery, participation and rates of Correctional Program completion,
   7. assess Correctional Program delivery against the number of offenders whose assignments are cancelled or referrals are denied, and
   8. maintain and monitor the 18-month Correctional Program schedule;
2. ensure the delivery of Correctional Programs based on the Annual Program Plan;
3. ensure that the Correctional Intervention Board is managed in compliance with policy; and
4. notify the Regional Administrator, Assessment and Interventions, where the Correctional Program schedule is delayed by more than two weeks.

15. The Manager Programs will:

1. supervise staff involved in the delivery of Correctional Programs;
2. approve program referrals, update Correctional Program assignments, and record decisions within 10 working days;
3. ensure that Correctional Program schedules include offender participation information and Correctional Program Facilitator identification;
4. ensure that the required Correctional Program performance measurement data, including any automated data collection, is collected and distributed;
5. ensure that all post-program case conferences and corresponding documentation are completed;
6. ensure that the Final Correctional Program Report, as per Annex B, is quality controlled and finalized within 10 working days of Correctional Program completion;
7. ensure that the psychometric measures from the Correctional Program are submitted for placement in the Psychology file within 10 days of Correctional Program completion; and
8. ensure that contracted Correctional Program delivery is in compliance with contractual obligations that respect policy.

16. The Parole Officer will:

1. adhere to the National Correctional Programs Referral Guidelines for Correctional Program referrals;
2. consult a Correctional Program Facilitator when program selection criteria may not be clear or there are discrepancies between offender file information and the results of a supplementary assessment; and
3. enter Correctional Program referrals in order of priority in the Correctional Plan and identify a suggested start date.

17. The Correctional Program Facilitator will:

1. ensure that the offender understands and signs the Consent to Participate in a Correctional Program (CSC/SCC 1288):
   1. where an offender understands and accepts the intent of the consent form but refuses to sign the consent form, the Correctional Program Facilitator indicates this on the form and signs it in the presence of a witness,
   2. the Correctional Program Facilitator documents in a Casework Record the reason why the offender refused to sign and what was done to ensure that informed consent was obtained,
   3. where an offender agrees to participate in the Correctional Program, but either refuses to complete the Correctional Program performance measures or does not want the information used for research purposes, the offender will not be excluded from the Correctional Program;
2. ensure that the pre-program interviews and the Correctional Program performance measures are completed no earlier than 30 working days prior to Correctional Program commencement;
3. enter pre and interim Correctional Program performance measures into the automated system within five days of their completion;
4. conduct a case conference with the Parole Officer when an offender is an unsuitable candidate for the Correctional Program and recommend cancellation of assignment to the Correctional Intervention Board;
5. review the Correctional Plan and deliver Correctional Programs as per the Correctional Program Manuals;
6. complete a Casework Record for sharing information regarding offender participation in Correctional Programs and Correctional Program maintenance;
7. complete a Casework Record within one working day when:
   1. there is an offender contact which is not a requirement of the Correctional Program,
   2. there are concerns of an escalation of risk (e.g. breach of condition, suicidal) or the offender is encountering significant difficulties,
   3. the offender has been withdrawn, excluded or suspended from the Correctional Program,
   4. the offender is absent from a Correctional Program session, and
   5. there is significant information for the Case Management Team;
8. initiate a case conference with the Case Management Team when there are concerns of an escalation of risk or the offender is encountering significant difficulties;
9. provide Correctional Program make-up sessions, if required;
10. conduct a post-program case conference with the offender and the Parole Officer to share information; and
11. complete a Final Correctional Program Report as per Annex B within 10 working days for all offenders who complete the program or whose assignment to a correctional program has ended, including maintenance programs.

18. The offender is expected to participate in Correctional Programs indicated in his/her Correctional Plan.

ENQUIRIES

19. Strategic Policy Division
National Headquarters
Email: Gen-NHQPolicy-Politi@csc-scc.gc.ca

Commissioner,

Original signed by:
Don Head

ANNEX A - CROSS-REFERENCES AND DEFINITIONS

CROSS-REFERENCES

CD 700 - Correctional Interventions

CD 702 - Aboriginal Offenders

CD 705 - Intake Assessment Process and Correctional Plan Framework

CD 705-1 - Preliminary Assessments and Post-Sentence Community Assessments

CD 705-2 - Information Collection

CD 705-3 - Immediate Needs Identification and Admission Interviews

CD 705-4 - Orientation

CD 705-5 - Supplementary Intake Assessments

CD 705-6 - Correctional Planning and Criminal Profile

CD 710 - Institutional Supervision Framework

CD 710-1 - Progress against the Correctional Plan

CD 712 - Case Preparation and Pre-Release Framework

CD 715-4 - Community Assessments

CD 720 - Education Programs and Services for Offenders

CD 730 - Offender Program Assignment and Payments

CD 767 - Ethnocultural Offender Programs

DEFINITIONS

Annual Program Plan: an analysis by operational units to determine programming needs and capacity, including the related training and resource requirements.

Correctional Intervention Board: a multidisciplinary team that approves interventions and contributes to recommendations or decisions for complex cases. The Interdisciplinary Mental Health Team is considered a component of the Correctional Intervention Board.

Correctional Program: a structured intervention that addresses empirically-validated factors directly linked to offenders' criminal behaviour, in order to reduce re offending.

Informed consent: consent is considered to be informed when an individual has the capacity to understand the nature of the process and is fully apprised of:

1. the potential results and the risks associated with the process;
2. the potential effects of refusal to agree to the process; and
3. the fact that he/she has the right to withdraw from the process.

Quality review and certification: the process used to measure both Correctional Program Facilitator competency, and Correctional Program Trainer competency.

ANNEX B - FINAL CORRECTIONAL PROGRAM REPORT

ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION	Sources of Information
This section describes what the participant was like in the group, without really identifying how well they did in addressing their targets. Attendance, number of sessions attended/missed Reasons for absences, if known Make-up sessions attended Comfort level within the group Homework completed? With thought and effort? Attitude towards change and towards the program Interactions with other group members and facilitators Responsivity: Any known factors that might affect the extent to which the participant will benefit from the program	Primarily your observations Homework quality Direct observations and self-reports File information: psychological assessment, Security Intelligence Officer reports, prior program reports, etc.
ANALYSIS OF PROGRESS	Sources of Information
This section describes whether the participant’s risk has been reduced as a result of their being in the program. It answers why they needed the program and how well they did. Use the five-point structure for every target (risk factor) and associated goals. How was this risk factor a problem? Was it a factor in their crime? What does this program address that can help with this risk factor? What were the facilitator’s observations about the goals associated with the risk factor under review? Any other indicators of progress outside of the facilitator’s observations? What is the overall conclusion in terms of progress made against this risk factor and associate goals? If the program contains a relapse prevention plan, self-management plan or healing plan, include a brief overview of: the identified high-risk situations; the coping skills the participant plans to use in the future to deal with these situations; and the facilitator’s assessment of whether the plan is realistic, likely to work and whether or not the participant is capable of using the identified skills.	Pre-program testing File information: Offender Intake Assessment, Criminal Profile Report, Correctional Plan, and all psychological reports Facilitator and collateral observations Pre- and post-test results
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE PROGRAMMING	Sources of Information
This section describes what needs to happen next since the program has now ended. Refer back to your concluding line (no. 5 above) about every target to ensure you address those areas that remain weak. If future programs, including maintenance, are recommended, identify specific areas of weakness. For example, as opposed to “problem solving”, you might identify “continued practice to identify alternatives”, etc. What can the participant do by themselves to maintain the changes they have made? (for example, journaling, spirituality, relaxation exercises, etc.) What can the Case Management Team do to support the changes made by the offender or to help maintain motivation levels, etc.? What are some possible signs that the participant might be headed for a relapse? What are some of the protective factors (strong points) that the participant can draw strength from? Specify when the report was shared with the offender and the Case Management Team.	Offender Intake Assessment Personal/emotional orientation domain analysis Criminal Profile Report/offence cycle Pre-program analysis Participant’s written plan Role play observation