In this month's edition...
Clinks is recruiting for the Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Group (RR3). We are looking for seven senior voluntary sector leaders with expertise in: employment support; education; families support; specialist support for black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people; health and wellbeing; services for people deemed high risk; and prisons and resettlement policy. The RR3 meets quarterly to advise the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS). Read our blog about the RR3’s latest work and find more information on how to apply here.
We’ve responded to a number of consultations this month:
- The Justice Committee’s ageing prison population inquiry – our response with RECOOP recommended a national strategy for the treatment of older people in contact with the criminal justice system and that voluntary sector organisations and people with lived experience be involved in its development.
- The Justice Committee’s inquiry into children and young people in custody – we responded with EQUAL and Barrow Cadbury Trust specifically on the experience and outcomes of BAME children following a consultation event with BAME organisations. We recommended targeted preventative and diversionary action to divert BAME children away from the justice system and better partnership working with BAME-led voluntary organisations in the criminal justice system.
- Arts Council England’s (ACE) consultation on shaping their 10 year strategy – we recommended in the strategy, ACE set out specific provisions so that arts reach people in contact with the criminal justice system and encourage all ACE-funded organisations to adopt a ‘ban the box’ recruitment policy.
We have also been monitoring justice announcements at the Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative party conferences. Labour announced its pledge to introduce a presumption against custodial sentences of less than six months and invest in community alternatives. The Conservatives announced their proposal for people convicted of serious violent and sexual offences not to be released until two-thirds of their sentence is completed.
Supreme Court rules prorogation of parliament unlawful The Supreme Court has ruled that the suspension of parliament, known as prorogation, in early September was unlawful. The House of Commons was instructed to resume business as usual shortly after the ruling. This means that legislation which would have fallen (or been at risk of falling) during the suspension of parliament, such as the Domestic Abuse Bill, continues to be pushed forward as planned. The Queen’s Speech is still expected to go ahead on 14th October 2019 outlining the government’s priorities and programme for the coming session.
New justice minister appointed Chris Philp MP has been appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice. The role was previously held by Edward Argar MP who has now been appointed Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social Care. Chris Philp’s responsibilities include cross-cutting criminal justice system issues, sentencing and devolution. Clinks has written to the minister to introduce the organisation and promote the role and value of the voluntary sector in criminal justice. Helen Whately MP has been appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport with responsibility for arts. We have written to her to introduce Clinks and the National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance and promote the role of arts in criminal justice.
The UK's first Domestic Abuse Commissioner announced Nicole Jacobs, former Chief Executive Officer at charity Standing Together Against Domestic Violence, has been appointed to the newly established role of Domestic Abuse Commissioner. The role is intended to provide public leadership on domestic abuse issues and drive improvements in how the UK responds to domestic abuse. The Commissioner will be responsible for mapping and monitoring the provision of services; identifying good practice; carrying out research; and raising public awareness of domestic abuse. The Commissioner will have the power to publish reports and lay them before Parliament. These reports will make recommendations to public bodies about their response to domestic abuse and it is hoped will hold local commissioners, statutory agencies and national government to account.
More offences brought under the unduly lenient sentence scheme It has been announced that the Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme will be extended to 14 new offences. The scheme gives prosecutors, victims of crime, their family and the public the power to ask the Attorney General to consider referring a sentence to the Court of Appeal for reconsideration, where it could then be potentially increased if deemed unduly lenient. The extensions related to a number of sexual offences, harassment, stalking and controlling or coercive behaviour.
Clinks publications
Notes from Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Group (RR3) meeting (PDF) At the meeting, officials gave a general update on their policy work, followed by an in-depth update on work around accommodation. HMPPS has been consulting on the development of an accommodation strategy, which will include a framework to clarify responsibilities and improve partnership working. The RR3 raised concerns about the pilots announced in the government’s Rough Sleeping Strategy. In particular, the access to support for those deemed higher risk of harm and commissioning for small organisations. If rolled out nationally, local areas should have more autonomy to decide who the pilots are aimed at and local commissioning arrangements. The group then discussed concerns about the government’s sentencing review, its process and potential outcomes.
Letter on the sentencing review (PDF) Anne Fox, Clinks Chief Executive Officer, wrote to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), in her capacity as chair of the Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Group (RR3). The letter raises concerns about the MoJ’s rapid internal review into sentencing and informs the department of the RR3’s decision to decline an invitation to participate formally in the review via a telephone interview. It was felt the review had been framed on the presumption of longer sentences, the questions posed did not adequately reflect the complexity of the issues, and that the outcome could disproportionately impact disadvantaged groups. The RR3 welcomes the opportunity to consult on sentencing issues if there is a public terms of reference and sufficient time to engage.
Labour
National Policy Forum report (PDF) Labour’s National Policy Forum (NPF) has published the report it submitted to the Labour Party conference to shape the party’s policy on criminal justice. A roundtable with voluntary sector representatives helped inform the report and the work of our members, including their concerns and recommendations for change, have been represented in it. Two of the recommendations from our own response to Labour’s consultation have been reflected in the final report: the need for a specific approach for children in contact with the criminal justice system, including a strategy on black, Asian and minority ethnic young people, and a commitment to long-term sustainable funding of women-only services. The NPF also recommended that Labour commit to a presumption against short sentences.
Women
Arresting the entry of women into the criminal justice system The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on women in the penal system has published its first report on reducing the arrests of women. In the year ending March 2018, the police arrested 100,000 women and data shows that BME (black and minority ethnic) women were more than twice as likely to be arrested than white women. Women with a history of being victims of violence and abuse are over-represented in the criminal justice system and the report argues that women with complex needs and in abusive situations should not be arrested. The estimated £1 billion a year spent on policing women could be better spent on community support services.
The Right to Family Life: children whose mothers are in prison The Joint Committee on Human Rights has published the report from its inquiry into children whose mothers are in prison. The Committee criticised the lack of data on the number of mothers in prison and children affected, urging mandatory data collection. To improve the sentencing stage, the Committee recommend that sentencers not pass sentence for primary carers without a pre-sentence report assessing the impact on the child. To improve support in prison, the Committee recommended that interim carers be entitled to financial and practical support; there be non-means tested financial help for children to visit their mothers; and that contact be based on a child’s right to family life, not their mother’s behaviour in prison.
Employment
More Than My Past The Forward Trust has launched a national campaign to challenge the stigma faced by people with a conviction or history of addiction. This campaign aims to raise awareness of their potential, to break down the barriers they face in finding employment and to inspire people who are going through those challenges. The campaign calls for changes in policy to support people to recover from addiction. Its two main asks are investment in local community recovery networks and a recovery wing in every prison. It also encourages businesses to support the campaign and be willing to employ people with convictions.
Probation
Service user involvement in the review and improvement of probation services (PDF) HM Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) published its latest research and analysis bulletin on the benefits of service user involvement (SUI). Both staff and service users were found to support and benefit from this work. For staff, hearing first-hand about the impact that practices were having on service users could provide the impetus for change. For service users, it helped them move away from the stigma of criminal justice and increased their self-esteem. HMIP identified a set of key enablers for the successful delivery of SUI, including maintaining a focus upon the welfare of service users involved in SUI work; dedicated funding and staff resources; and effective communication of SUI work across organisations.
The National Probation Service (NPS) Health and Social Care Strategy 2019-22 The NPS has published its Health and Social Care strategy, outlining its core commitments to improve the health and wellbeing of people in contact with the criminal justice system. The strategy emphasises the need for collaborative and multi-agency working to deliver holistic care and has seven priority areas including mental health and wellbeing, substance misuse, and physical health. To deliver these, the NPS will increase staff training on working with individuals with mental health problems and strengthen referral pathways for substance misuse treatment. It also states the NPS’ commitment to supporting people with specific physical health concerns, such as gender-related health issues and addressing disparity in health outcomes based on race or disability.
Youth justice
Youth diversion evidence and practice briefing: minimising labelling The Centre for Justice Innovation has produced a briefing on labelling theory. Labelling can stigmatise young people and have a reinforcing effect on how they – and others – see themselves and their life chances, and can increase the likelihood of further contact with the criminal justice system. In North East Lincolnshire, children are taken to a place of safety for a voluntary interview instead of being arrested and formally processed at a police station. The diversion scheme moves young people out of the youth offending service into family hubs, which is reflected in the language used – there is no talk of crime or offenders. This approach puts the child’s best interests at the forefront of interventions.
Serious Violence in Context: understanding the scale and nature of serious violence Crest Advisory has published a report examining the scale and nature of serious violence. The report explores four potential drivers of serious violence and how they interact with each other. These include: changes in the drug market with indicators suggesting supply and use of cocaine and heroin has increased; the role of technology in supported supply and avoiding enforcement; lack of front line and policing resources; and the exploitation of people in vulnerable situations, including children permanently excluded from school, looked after children and homeless children, leading to more young people becoming involved in offending.
Improving the life chances of children who offend The Youth Justice Improvement Board explores factors that can contribute to improved life chances for children who have offended. These include school inclusion; strengthening relationships; health and wellbeing; and further learning, training or work for those aged 16 and over. The report emphasises the need to prioritise interventions for those at risk of exclusion, the importance of taking a trauma and gender-informed approach that looks beyond behaviour to children’s needs, and the importance of access to sports and creative opportunities and other local community activities. However, short-term funding cycles for interventions, rules around disclosure of criminal records, and failure to meet basic needs such as housing can pose significant challenges to opportunities and improving life chances.
Youth Custody Report: July 2019 The latest official monthly statistics on the youth custody population have been published. The statistics show that 817 children were in custody which is an increase of 5 from the previous month. It also marks the third month in a row where the number of black Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) children outnumbered the number of white children in custody. The statistics show 455 children in custody were recorded as BAME, compared to 402 white children.
Change and upheaval: what’s on the horizon for criminal justice policy? Nicola Drinkwater, Policy Manager at Clinks, outlines Clinks’ policy priorities and what we’re doing to influence national policy during such a changing policy environment and time of significant political turbulence. As well as our responsive work, we continue to influence the probation review programme. Most recently we submitted a set of commissioning principles to the Ministry of Justice where we recommend greater utilisation of grants and an overarching National Probation Service commissioning strategy. We are also finalising our state of the sector work. This research provides the most detailed and robust information we have on voluntary organisations working in criminal justice and supports us to advocate on behalf of our members.
Swift changes in the direction of sentencing policy Jess Mullen, Clinks’ Head of Policy and Communications, discusses the recently announced review into sentencing policy for people who commit serious and prolific offences. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) conducted a rapid internal review on sentencing which Jess fed into through a telephone interview. Jess raised concerns with them about the lack of transparency in the review’s process and there being no formal public consultation which has limited the ability of the voluntary sector to feed into it. Jess also raised concerns during the interview about the impact of any proposed reforms on youth justice and on black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people because of the way risk is perceived by police and the courts.
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Written monthly by...
Clinks' policy officers, Will Downs and Lauren Nickolls
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