Funding for Shortened SERs Pilot
| Funding for Shortened SERs Pilot |
| Monday, 15 September 2008 | |||
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A nine month pilot scheme to investigate the effectiveness of shortened Social Enquiry Reports or SERs has been given the go-ahead with £40,000 of funding from the Scottish Government. The pilot scheme will run in Kilmarnock Sheriff Court from September this year. A Social Enquiry Report (SER) can be requested by a Sheriff or judge to give them more information to assist in sentencing offenders appropriately. If an offender is facing a custodial sentence for the first time an SER will always be requested. However the reports can take some time to prepare which can delay the final sentencing decision. This pilot project will be planned and delivered in consultation with Sheriffs and other court staff and will provide a dedicated social worker based in Kilmarnock Sheriff Court (the busiest court in the South West Scotland area) to prepare a shortened version of a Social Enquiry Report for offenders who have committed less serious offences.
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