THE probation service in Wiltshire is overloaded and among the worst performing in the country, according to a report by an independent watchdog.

Figures issued by the Inspectorate of Proba-tion, show that the county's service is ranked 36 out of 42.

This finding is in stark contrast to the Wiltshire service's own assessment of its performance. The service claimed it was one of the best two in England and Wales.

Professor Rod Morgan, head of the inspectorate, said the service's opinion of itself had to be treated with scepticism.

He pointed to recent improvements in Wilt-shire and said nationwide the probation service was afflicted by a number of problems.

He characterised it as showing signs of strain and said: "The service is overloaded just as much as the prison system is overcrowded."

Professor Morgan said too many low-risk offenders were being put into the probation system and that it couldn't cope.

He said the result was some high-risk criminals, including sexual and violent offenders, wer not being properly supervised.

Professor Morgan called on magistrates to make greater use of their power to impose fines.

He also called for measures to stop convicts on benefits from skipping paying their fines.

The report suggested that privatisation of low-risk probation monitoring could ease the situation, freeing probation officers to focus on more important work.

Chief officer of Wilt-shire Probation Service Diana Fulbrook, said: "To put things in context, there is a real concern nationally about the overloading of the service, with the service having to cater for too many low-risk offenders.

"In Wiltshire, in common with services around the country, offenders who used to get fines are now being placed on community schemes. The types of offenders we used to work with are increasingly being put in jail.

"We are working with the courts to try to ensure that custodial sentences are reserved for high-risk offenders only.

"I would not agree with the comments that high-risk criminals are not being properly watched because of the overloading.

"We take all necessary steps to ensure that these people are well supervised," she said.

The Wiltshire chief said that the latest report did not reflect the work being done across the service in Wiltshire

"It is worth noting a full report by the Inspectorate of Pro- bation placed the service as one of the top five in the country. The latest league table is not very helpful for staff morale. Our staff are very dedicated and are working flat out to improve the service," she said.