These specialist quarterly ebulletins keep you updated on relevant developments for organisations working to support women in contact with the criminal justice system. Please contact Jackie Lowthian at Jackie.lowthian@clinks.org if there is anything you would like to raise or to include items in this quarterly bulletin.
In this edition...
Meeting women’s needs: influencing the future probation model
Clinks has been involved in a consultation to ensure that the new approach to probation takes women’s specific needs into account. Jackie Lowthian participated in a meeting of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders (ABFO) which involved a roundtable discussion with Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) on the future probation model. She also contributed to a workshop run by the HMPPS Probation Programme team to consult on the design of the dynamic purchasing framework, the approach to designing specifications for women’s services and the process for competitions. Jackie has been holding individual telephone consultations with women’s sector leaders to gather their views. A summary of findings has been submitted to the HMPPS Probation Programme team and will be published soon and featured in our ebulletin Light Lunch. Manage your Clinks ebulletin subscriptions here
Review of the inspectorate’s expectations for women’s prisons
HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) is reviewing and updating its Expectations (the criteria used to inspect) for adult women prisons. Clinks has responded to the consultation, drawing on insights gained from two consultation events with voluntary organisations in August 2019. In our response, we identify a number of priorities to be reflected in the revised Expectations, including for HMIP to set out clearer expectations on how prisons work in partnership with voluntary sector service providers, particularly gender-specific services, to meet the needs of women in prison and through the resettlement process. We also recommend there should be a specific member of staff with responsibility for voluntary sector co-ordination in each prison. Clinks will publish our response. You can read the current Expectations here
New ministerial team and responsibilities at the Ministry of Justice
There have been several changes to ministers in the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in recent months. Responsibility for women in the criminal justice system now rests with Lucy Frazer QC MP, Minister of State for Justice, which means that the women’s portfolio is held by a more senior minister than previously. Lucy Frazer tweeted about a visit to HMP Send women’s prison on 12th September, noting that residents spoke positively about the Therapeutic Community, which has led them through a process of change. Her portfolio also includes prison operations, probation services and health. Other changes include: The Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP, formerly Minister of State for Justice, appointed Secretary of State for Justice. Chris Philp MP appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, with responsibility for court reform and sentencing. Responsibility for youth justice and race disparity now sits with Wendy Morton MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State. Read more
Domestic Abuse Commissioner
Nicole Jacobs has been named as the government’s first Domestic Abuse Commissioner. She will lead on driving improvements in the response to domestic abuse, championing victims and making recommendations to better protect victims and bring more offenders to justice. Following the prorogation of parliament, a number of women’s organisations signed a letter calling on the Prime Minister to deliver the Domestic Abuse Bill. Since then, the government have given assurances that the legislation won’t fall and will be taken into the next parliamentary session. Read more
Legal protection for domestic abuse survivors
The Prison Reform Trust (PRT) has been seeking legal protection for domestic abuse survivors driven to offend and is looking for supportive case examples. Trafficking victims have a legal defence when they are driven to offend, but there is no equivalent protection for domestic abuse survivors. PRT is calling for a statutory defence to be added to the Domestic Abuse Bill. The government is considering the proposal and any comments or supportive case examples would be appreciated. Please email these to the Ministry of Justice and copy in Katy at PRT. More information here
Women criminalised through non-payment of TV licence fee
Agenda and Women in Prison have recently highlighted the on-going issue of women entering the criminal justice system as a result of TV licence evasion. Nearly three quarters (72%) of people prosecuted for TV licence evasion in 2017 (137,913 in total) were women, with the crime accounting for 30% of all female prosecutions (compared to 4% of male prosecutions) – making it the most common offence for which women were prosecuted, according to government figures. In addition, a greater proportion of women (94%) than men (92%) were convicted. Read more here
Mapping of women’s services to promote diversion and community sentences
Women in Prison (WIP) is currently building a national database to map the network of women's centres and other community-based support services that provide an alternative to imprisonment. The end users for the database are magistrates, pre-sentence report writers, probation and the police. The aim is to raise awareness of alternatives to custody and to build confidence to divert women away from the pathway to prison and into community support. The database will also be a useful tool for support workers to make referrals. If you are interested in finding out more about this project or would like to be a listed support service please get in touch with WIP's Campaigns Assistant Jodie at jodie.beck@wipuk.org
Event: Women’s networking forum
Clinks, with support from Agenda, will be holding the next women’s networking forum including a guest presentation from Hannah Paterson, Senior Portfolio Manager at the National Lottery Community Fund [11th December, London, £15]. Hannah is leading a project on participatory grant making and inclusion, and her seminar will focus on embedding lived experience. Some examples of good practice from within the specialist women’s sector will be showcased. Our networking forums provide support, information and networking opportunities to those working with women in contact with the criminal justice system. We welcome your suggestions for speakers and agenda items. Find out more here
Event: Making Every Adult Matter (MEAM) focus on women
In November, MEAM in partnership with Agenda, is delivering three Learning Hubs focused on supporting women experiencing multiple disadvantage [5th November, Plymouth | 13th November, Leeds | 19th November, London | free]. The MEAM coalition includes Clinks, Homeless Link, Mind and associate member Collective Voice. Together they help local areas to design and deliver better coordinated services for people experiencing multiple disadvantage. Book your place for Plymouth, Leeds and London here
Training: Equality Act 2010
Women’s Resource Centre’s ‘Using the Equality Act to challenge discrimination’ course [24th October, London, free] will provide participants from women’s organisations with an understanding of how the Equality Act 2010 can be used as a valuable tool to assert rights and challenge discrimination. It is delivered by Rights of Women and primarily uses case examples on women's rights and tackling violence against women and girls. The course will show how the law can be applied practically. Find out more and book a place here
Training: feminist leadership
Women’s Resource Centre’s ‘Feminist Leadership’ course [25th October, London, from £65] will explore topics related to power, organisational cultures and structures, the relationship between leadership and empowerment, self-care and emotional intelligence. Aimed at women staff members or volunteers in the voluntary and community sectors and local authorities, the course offers an exciting mix of theory and practice. Real life experiences and examples are interwoven throughout the day, providing the participant with knowledge, skills and tools to become a feminist leader. Find out more and book a place here
Training: partnerships
Women’s Resource Centre’s ‘Partnerships, all you need to know’ course [7th November, London, free] will provide participants from women’s organisations with practical tips for creating meaningful partnerships and will provide a number of templates and tools for effective partnership work. It will help your organisation take a strategic approach to partnerships and overcome some common obstacles to effective collaboration. Find out more and book a place here
Sentencing mothers: statutory duty on children’s welfare
In its recent report Right to family life: Children whose mothers are in prison, the Joint Committee on Human Rights calls for a new statutory duty requiring children’s welfare to “be at the forefront of the judge’s mind” when sentencing. The report claims that the failure of courts to properly consider the consequences for children when sending women to prison is causing irreparable harm to tens of thousands of children. The committee also recommends that a primary carer of a child must not sentenced without a pre-sentence report available at the sentencing hearing. Other recommendations are made to help improve data collection and pregnancy and maternity services for women in contact with the criminal justice system. Read the report here
Arresting the entry of women into the criminal justice system
The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Women in the Penal System and The Howard League published the first briefing of the APPG’s inquiry into reducing the arrests of women. Informed, in part, by oral evidence sessions with senior police officers, the briefing scopes the scale of the problem and argues that arresting women is rarely necessary, appropriate or proportionate. Through this inquiry, the APPG is investigating how women with complex needs can be diverted to more appropriate services, such as women’s centres. The inquiry is linked to a three year programme by the Howard League for Penal Reform to reduce the arrests of women and stem the flow of women into the criminal justice system. Read the briefing here
New incentives policy framework
A new incentives policy framework has been issued, covering both men and women’s prisons, which is designed to provide a system of privileges that incentivise people to follow the prison rules and engage in rehabilitation, and can be taken away for poor behaviour. The new framework is intended to give Governors freedom to tailor the system to their prison, but for consistency requires a core set of incentives including higher rates of pay, additional time out of cell, and extra and improved visits. Clinks responded to the framework consultation and we are disappointed to see visit lengths and improved visit surroundings being used as incentives, especially given the recognition of the importance of family ties for women in the recent Farmer review. See the framework here
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons: Annual Report 2018–19
In their annual report, the HM Chief Inspector of Prisons raised a number of concerns over women’s prisons. Based on inspections at Low Newton, Send and Styal, the inspectorate found that standards in women’s prisons were generally better than men’s, but that serious issues persisted, including high and increasing prevalence of self-harm and growing availability of drugs. The quality of resettlement planning was poor in cases, with many women leaving prison without sustainable accommodation. Outcomes for women in purposeful activity were inconsistent, with learning and skills provision not sufficiently good at Send. The inspectorate recommended more innovative work to promote family contact for women, who are often held further from their homes and are more likely to be the primary carer. See the report here
Transforming Lives evaluation – lessons for future advocacy
This policy briefing from the Prison Reform Trust and National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) summarises learning from the first phase of the independent evaluation of the Transforming Lives programme aimed at reducing the unnecessary imprisonment of women, covering the period 2016 to 2018. The evaluation aimed to examine how the advocacy and influencing work undertaken with a range of governmental, criminal justice and third sector organisations may have contributed to changes in policy, practice or approaches to women’s justice. The briefing identifies three effective influencing strategies used by the programme and explores lessons for future advocacy. Read the briefing here
Working it out: improving employment opportunities for women with criminal convictions
Look out for the next publication from the Prison Reform Trust’s Transforming Lives programme. An update of the 2015 Working it Out briefing on women’s employment is expected this autumn. See the original here
Take action on domestic abuse
This summer, Agenda launched the #AskAndTakeAction campaign which aims for public authorities to ensure frontline staff in public services are making trained enquiries into domestic abuse. Find out more and join the campaign here
Celebrate and promote women’s centres
Women in Prison (WIP) has launched a new twitter campaign: #WomensCentreWednesday. This activity is part of its #OPENUP Women's Futures Manifesto campaign which calls for a women's centre in every local authority area. Every Wednesday the network of women's centres and friends celebrate and showcase why #WomensCentresWork, why they should be supported and how they offer solutions to reduce the women's prison population. Each month is themed around a different aspect of the successful women’s centre model. The theme is pinned on the @WIP_live feed every Wednesday and WIP asks women’s centres to share a photograph, image, case study or story related to the theme. Show your support and get involved using the hashtag #WomensCentreWednesday
HMPPS voluntary sector grants programme
HMPPS has invited applications from the voluntary sector for one-off grants to contribute to better outcomes for people in prisons, under probation service supervision, and in youth custody. Bids can be anything from £50,000 – £250,000 for 2020–2022 with a start date of 31st March 2020. Grants are available for proposals which seek to design and test out ways of achieving better outcomes and which address one or more of the following themes: improving support for families and significant others; improving outcomes for those with protected characteristics; improving health and well-being; and/or improving safer custody across the prison estate. The deadline for submissions is 10am 1st November 2019. Applications must be made via the Ministry of Justice Sourcing Portal here
Learning from women about what makes a difference
Maternal imprisonment has a devastating impact on families. In this blog, Prison Reform Trust associate Sarah Beresford reflects on the experiences shared by women at the recent ‘Transforming Lives, Empowering Women’ conference at the Supreme Court and shares a short film inspiring us all to change our perceptions. Read the blog and see the film here
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