Clinks Light Lunch | Issue 437 | 13th May 2016

[[{"fid":"864","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"type":"media","link_text":null,"attributes":{"class":"media-element file-default"}}]]

In this week's edition....

CLINKS NEWS: Communications Manager moving on

Clinks Communications Manager Joe Gardham is moving on after 10 years at the charity to run his own consultancy. Joe said: "I would like to personally thank all the inspirational people I have worked with over the last decade, who effect real change on the lives of millions of people every day. It has been an amazing journey and I have been privileged to work with some of the country’s greatest thinkers and innovators." Joe will still be working with the sector, providing practical, hands-on communications support and expertise to the smallest organisations in our sector. You can find him on LinkedIn or email joe@social-vision.org.uk

CLINKS CASE STUDY: supporting offenders with learning disabilities

This Clinks case study focuses on the support KeyRing provides for people with learning disabilities who have had contact with the Criminal Justice System (CJS). An estimated 5 to 10% of the adult offender population has a learning disability, and many more people will have 'borderline' learning disabilities; a number that is disproportionately higher than in the general population. KeyRing's aim is to improve the life chances of those they support and enable them to take control and responsibility for their lives so that they can reach their full potential. Points are illustrated throughout the case study using an interview with a KeyRing service user. Download the case study here

CLINKS CASE STUDY: services supporting women

This case study on The Nelson Trust women's centres in Gloucester and Swindon is the first in a series of in-depth case studies of services working to support women in contact with the Criminal Justice System. It explores the impact of current policy and funding arrangements on The Nelson Trust women’s centres and the women they are supporting in what Rose Mahon, who was the Women’s Services Manager, described as the “toughest year I have had yet.” Download the case study here

CLINKS BLOG: engaging with the next generation of PCCs

The latest Clinks blog written by Policy Intern Oonagh Ryder looks at engagement with the next generation of Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) that have now been elected and due to enter office on Thursday 12th May. Whether your area has a new or a re-elected PCC, this is a great time to take a step back and consider how you engage with them, both as an organisation and as part of the voluntary sector. She says, "As PCCs coming into office this week take some time to settle into their role and to put together their Police and Crime Plans, you can use our guide Engaging with Police and Crime Commissioners to begin to plan your engagement with them". Read the blog here

CLINKS EVENT: how can we improve health and care services for offenders?

Clinks and LVSC invite you to a workshop with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) [8th June, London, free] on how to share information about health and care services for offenders in London and encourage services to be ‘outstanding’. CQC would like to build contacts with user and advocacy groups supporting people in the Criminal Justice System in London to better understand the quality of care they receive. Do you have clients whose health and care needs are not being met? Are your staff or volunteers having to spend more time supporting clients with their health needs? If so, this is your chance to tell CQC about the quality of health and care services and help them identify good and poor care. Find out more and book here

CLINKS MEMBER'S NEWS: award for ex-offender employment partnership

Blue Sky, a social enterprise that reduces re-offending through employment, has won a Third Sector Business Charity Award for its partnership with Veolia, an environmental services provider helping ex-offenders to lead crime-free, purposeful lives by offering a first step on the employment ladder. Blue Sky's Kate Markey said: "This award is testimony to the hard work and dedication of Veolia’s local contract managers and Blue Sky’s frontline staff working together to make opportunity count for ex-offenders." Find out more here

CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM: consultation on assisted prison visits

Travel cost payments from the Assisted Prison Visits Unit to people on low incomes visiting family members or partners in prison will no longer be made by giro cheques from March 2017; the Unit is taking the opportunity to ask practitioners and families how the system can be improved. What is wrong and right with the current system? What could be changed? What are the pros and cons of online applications and direct bank payments? Should the scheme assist with more than visits? Please reply to Philip Creighton, the Head of the Assisted Prison Visits Unit, by 31st July at philip.creighton@noms.gsi.gov.uk

CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM: young adult offenders evidence session

Transition to Adulthood Alliance's Max Rutherford has given evidence at the Justice Select Committee's final meeting on the treatment of young adult offenders in the Criminal Justice System (CJS). Questions from the Committee focused on young adults and the management of prisons, specialist courts, brain injury and the role of probation and Community Rehabilitation Companies. Max discussed the importance of a distinct approach to young adults in the CJS, taking account of maturity and its influence on offending and rehabilitation. Read a transcript of the evidence session here

FUNDING: for health-based places of safety

Capital funding is available for local crisis care concordat groups to improve the provision, capacity and quality of health-based places of safety to better support people detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983. The grants (there are no minimum and maximum amounts) will enable organisaions, as agreed by their local concordat group, to provide new and improved health-based places of safety and mental health crisis support facilities across England. The first use of the fund will be to support those parts of the country that still had significant numbers of people being taken to police custody in 2014/15. The deadline for applications is 31st May. Find out more here

FUNDING: awards for South West charities

Bath Building Society Annual Charity Awards are now open to charities with a turnover of less than £250,000 and that operate in and deliver projects that are beneficial to residents of Bath and North East Somerset, Somerset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Bristol. Awards of up to £1,500 are available in order to make a significant difference to the winning organisations and their work. A Charity of the Year Award will also be awarded to one shortlisted charity; this charity will continue to receive funding from Bath Building Society throughout the year. The deadline for applications is 8th June. Find out more here

FUNDING: developing financial skills

Grants of between £2,000 and £15,000 are available from the Money Saving Expert Charity's Innovation fund for projects improving people's ability to manage their financial situation and developing their financial skills and knowledge. They are seeking applications that are innovative, testing out ideas that are genuinely new and do not overlap with projects funded by other funders, and are likely to be completed in one year. However, applications for up to three years will be considered. The deadline for applications is 10th June. Find out more and apply here

FUNDING: transferring assets to the voluntary sector in Wales

Capital and revenue funding of between £300,000 and £1,150,000 is available to voluntary sector organisations to support the transfer of assets, such as land and buildings, from individuals, public or private sector organisations to voluntary sector organisations to benefit communities in Wales as part of the Big Lottery Fund’s Community Asset Transfer 2 Programme. This money should be used to help community groups regenerate and reinvigorate the assets, and develop, manage and sustain them to improve their livelihoods and neighbourhoods. The deadline for stage one applications is 14th September. Find out more and apply here

CLINKS PARTNER'S EVENT: commissioning victims' services

'Hello… is it me you’re commissioning for?' will be an Academy for Justice Commissioning evening seminar [16th June, Manchester, free] to share the outcomes of a year-long cross-sector Academy learning group focussing on victim services commissioning. The group benefitted from a broad professional representation of highly skilled and experienced individuals from England, Wales and Scotland. This seminar will be of interest to commissioners, providers and others concerned with services for victims and the building of more resilient communities. Find out more and book here

CLINKS MEMBER'S TRAINING: engaging disengaged young people

Do you work with young people who are disengaged from education or intervention provision, marginalised or at risk of offending? Reflex's 'Engaging the disengaged' training [22nd June, Halesowen, £25] will provide participants with an introduction to a number of communication and engagement techniques through interactive exercises, case studies and tried and tested techniques. The day will include material on understanding a young person's journey through the criminal justice and care systems, becoming a reflective practitioner, managing power and control imbalances, active listening skills, the cycle of change, motivational interviewing, Socratic questioning, and dealing with resistance. Find out more and book here

CLINKS MEMBER'S EVENT: speaking out about domestic abuse and violence

'Professional African women speak out on Domestic Abuse and Violence' will be a Criminology in the Millennium conference [24th June, London, £50] to encourage a frank and open exchange of views on black women's experiences of domestic violence. Speakers will include forensic psychiatrists, divorce recovery experts and personal development coaches, discussing 'The truth about domestic violence - a survivor's story', 'Why she stays: a look at complex reasons why women stay in abusive relationships', and 'How to rise from oppressive experience and move forward'. Find out more and book here

NON-MEMBERS' EVENTS

  • Offender Management | 24th May, London, from £250+VAT |Details
  • Annual Probation Practitioner Conference | 8th June, Sheffield, from £55+VAT | Details

BLOG: voting for people with multiple needs

Systems Broker at Voices of Stoke, Ruth Wallbank, has written a blog for MEAM reflecting on voting and what it means – both for her, and for the people she works with experiencing multiple needs. She says "Our vote is one of the few things in life that is truly our own, it’s a freedom we all deserve. We can discuss it with people, argue about it, tweet about it, take selfies as we skip to the polling station, but ultimately when you stand in that booth no one can tell you where to put the X." Read the blog here

CLINKS MEMBERS' VACANCIES

Job vacancies this week include: a Family Resettlement Worker with Pact [London], a Head of Fundraising and Communications at Switchback [London], a Women’s Safety Officer with Ormiston Families [Cambridgeshire] and a Support Worker – Young Person’s Drug and Alcohol Service with Lifeline Project [HMYOI Feltham, London]. Clinks members can post their vacancies on the job board for free. For more information about these vacancies, and many more, click here

TIPS OF THE WEEK

  • Tip of the week I: Stay at this 18th-century 4-star Cotswolds hotel for £149, previously £265. Deal includes meals and spa treatment. Details
  • Tip of the week II: Get Saturday Wimbledon tickets with a reserved seat on No. 1 Court and a 4-star hotel stay, with transfers to and from the venue, for £159pp. Details
  • Tip of the week III: Get a 'free' £7 with a £30 Amazon gift card purchase. Details 

EXTRA INFORMATION

Get involved Donate | Become a Member | Follow Clinks on Twitter | Join Mailing List

Contact Us www.clinks.org | info@clinks.org | 020 7383 0966

 

About Clinks Light Lunch

This edition of Light Lunch has been sent to the inbox of 10,073 people working (or with an interest) in the Criminal Justice System of England & Wales. Who are they?

To submit content, read the Notes for Contributors here

To unsubscribe, email ben.watson@clinks.org

[Disclaimer]

 

Designed, composed and circulated every Friday by...

Ben Watson

Clinks