Tromode House, home of the Island’s Probation Service, is to be officially opened at an event hosted by the Minister for Home Affairs Graham Cregeen MHK on Monday 7 December 2020.
The Rehabilitation and Resettlement Centre on the outskirts of Douglas offers a range of support and interventions to help offenders address their behaviour and reintegrate into society.
In addition to housing the offices of the Probation Service, the residential facility also provides flexible and secure accommodation and a ‘stepping stone’ base for offenders released from prison on licence, subject to community sentences or on bail from the police or the courts. The facility offers supervised support, interventions to address offending behaviour, training and education as the residents prepare to transition back into the community.
Tromode House opened in October 2019 after the building, a vacant government property, was substantially upgraded and refurbished bringing together a range of services under one roof.
It is now home to the Community Supervision and Community Service teams which provide positive initiatives for those who serve their sentences in the community, and the Victim Liaison team which offers ongoing support and information to victims of crime and their families.
Tromode House will be opened in memory of the former Minister for Home Affairs the late Bill Malarkey, who championed the project during his time in office, and a plaque to mark the opening will be unveiled by his widow, Pamela Birnie Malarkey.
Minister Cregeen will welcome the Chief Minister Howard Quayle, the Prison Governor Bob McColm, members of the Manx Judiciary and representatives from third sector organisations to the opening. Guests will be invited to tour the facility, hear about the work of the Probation Service and meet staff and residents, with refreshments prepared by residents served after the ceremony.
Minister Cregeen said:
‘We are proud as a department of what has been created at Tromode House. We have a spacious, bespoke centre with modern facilities for staff and residents, where offenders can be supported to reintegrate back into the community and change their lives for the better. The new centre supports our long-term vision to protect the public and reduce re-offending by enabling offenders to reform their lives.
He added:
‘The official opening of Tromode House is a landmark event for the Prison and Probation Service. Its work supports the objectives of the Criminal Justice Strategy by ensuring offenders have an appropriate place to live while under supervision or after leaving custody, before moving on. More widely it helps ensure our Island communities are safe.’
The Minister concluded:
‘My predecessor as Minister took a strong personal interest in this project and it is right that we acknowledge that commitment at the opening. Bill would have been proud.’
The Community Service team located at Tromode House works in partnership with charities, local authorities and other agencies, organising meaningful community service work to offenders. Recent projects include the overhaul and planting of a garden at Cregneash, revival of Our Island Garden, a young persons’ Biosphere garden in St John’s, and restoration of the Port St Mary coastalpath, providing a benefit for the public while helping offenders gain life skills.
