Work As a Tool for Social Inclusion in Adult Socio-Judicial Probation in Italy

Socio-judicial probation, also known as judicial probation, in Italy is an alternative measure to criminal trial and, in some cases, to imprisonment, which allows a person accused of a crime to avoid trial or conviction through the adoption of a rehabilitation programme. It is a measure aimed at facilitating the social reintegration of the subject and reducing the burden on the courts and prisons. It can therefore also be regarded as a form of rehabilitative penal measure, i.e. a measure that serves to re-educate those who have committed a crime, not only to prepare them for reintegration into society but also to reduce the recidivism rate once they are released from prison.

Socio-judicial probation promotes social reintegration and aims to prevent reoffending by providing the individual with an opportunity for rehabilitation and to demonstrate his or her commitment to abide by the law. It provides for the criminal trial to be suspended for a fixed period during which the defendant may be required to volunteer, work, study or participate in rehabilitation programmes.

This paper presents the experience of a few institutions that have taken in persons on probation. The analysis shows how, in the working context, the social and relational bonds, into which people on probation have been introduced, have activated processes of inclusion that have made people move away from deviant processes; not only that, the relationship that has been created between deviant people and the working context has activated a positive transformative process also for the institutions that have welcomed people on probation.