Who we heard from

There was an almost even split between organisations whose main purpose is to work in criminal justice (53%), and organisations who had a broader purpose but had some services users who were in contact with the criminal justice system (47%).

Overall, most respondents to our survey were charities in the form of charitable companies (limited by guarantee) (68%), and charitable incorporated organisations (12%).

We also continued to see responses from organisations across the income range. The largest group of respondents had an annual income of over £1 million and up to £10 million. This means the sample skews towards larger organisations compared with the sector as a whole and may reflect the capacity of larger organisations to engage with a survey of this kind.

Analysis of Charity Commission data found over half of criminal justice charities (54%) had an income of between £10,000 and £500,000, and just over a quarter (27%) an income of under £10,000. Only 2% of criminal justice charities have an income of over £10 million.

Almost all (95%) Criminal Justice Charities operating in Wales have an income under £500,000, and 43% have an income under £10,000. The remaining 5% of Welsh Charities have an income of between £500,000 and £1 million.

Charity Commission data also provides information on staffing for organisations with an income of over £500,000. For Criminal Justice Charities, the median number of staff is 23, compared to a median of 21 for All Charities.

Our survey found criminal justice organisations tended to have small paid workforces. A majority – 61% - have 20 or fewer full-time equivalent (FTE) members of staff, and 6% of respondents no paid staff. The median number of FTE staff amongst respondents was 12.

Turning to volunteers, 83% of respondents said their organisation had volunteers, with 44% of those organisations with volunteers saying they had up to 20 registered. The most common number of registered volunteers was between one and 10, with the median number of volunteers, for organisations who had them, being 25.

Overall, the vast majority of respondents to our survey were charities in the form of charitable companies (limited by guarantee) (68%), and charitable incorporated organisations (12%).  

Voluntary organisations work with people at all stages of the criminal justice system, including both in prisons and in the community. The most common stages included:

• In prison, preparing for release (81%) 

• In the community, under probation supervision having served a custodial sentence (81%) 

• In prison, serving a sentence (74%) 

• In the community, serving a community sentence (64%) 

• In the community, with a past conviction (64%) 

• In prison, on remand (62%).  

Organisations also receive referrals to their services from a range of sources, with self-referral being the most common route (77%), followed by prisons (76%), and the Probation Service (69%).

As in previous years, organisations delivered services to a wide range of people with different backgrounds and needs, including:

• Men: aged 26 to 49 (73%), aged 18 to 25 (70%), and aged 50 and over (66%)
• Women: aged 26 to 49 (72%), aged 50 and over (68%), and aged 18 to 25 (68%)
• Health, disability, and neurodiversity: people with mental health needs (66%), people with substance misuse needs (e.g. drugs and alcohol) (64%), people with neurodivergent conditions including acquired brain injury (53%), and people with learning difficulties/disabilities (50%)
• Material deprivation: people with a particular financial need (including poverty) (54%), and people who are homeless (50%).

We also asked organisations whether they were specialists, or provided specific services to the following groups:

• Women: 24% of respondents were specialist women’s organisations, and 39% provided a specific service for women as part of a broader remit
• Racially minoritised people: 8% of respondents were specialist organisations for racially minoritised people, and 36% provided a specific service as part of a broader remit – a significant increase compared to 15% in 2022.
• Families of people in the criminal justice system: 9% of respondents were specialist families organisations, and 26% provided a specific service for families as part of a broader remit
• Older people (aged 50 and over): 9% of respondents were specialist older people’s organisations, and 31% said they provided a specific service for older people as part of a broader remit.

The questions about specialist families and older people’s organisations and services were new as part of this year’s survey, reflecting the range of specialist networks Clinks has been co-ordinating over the last financial year.