Probation, research and development in Europe

This article presents the findings from a year-long project commissioned by the Confederation of European Probation (CEP). The project aimed to support CEP to effectively engage with existing research on probation and to prioritise key research areas for the future. Between 2023 and 2024, we reviewed papers published in four key journals over a 10-year period and used the review to develop a typology of probation research. That typology informed the design of an online survey which was distributed to over 900 probation staff, and the survey results were then discussed in several focus groups with senior leaders in probation, with stakeholders and partners, and with frontline practitioners. In this paper, we present findings from all three activities and use them to highlight key barriers to research engagement by those working in probation, and to identify priorities for future probation research.