Clinks Light Lunch | Issue 665 | 18th December 2020

Light Lunch

In this week's edition...

    CLINKS NEWS: Season’s Greetings from Clinks

    Season’s Greetings from all of us at Clinks and we wish you all a Happy New Year. This is the last edition of Light Lunch for 2020. Clinks will be closed and staff will not be working from midday 24th December until 9am 4th January. Light Lunch will resume as normal on 8th January. Watch our Season’s Greetings video here

    CLINKS NEWS: BAME consultancy support

    We are pleased to announce that we have secured funding from the Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service to offer consultancy support to black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) led and specialist organisations working with, or interested in working with, people in contact with the criminal justice system and their families. Eligible organisations can access up to five days of tailored support. As well as helping organisations identify and overcome any potential barriers to engaging with the new probation arrangements and other statutory partners, we hope this funding will also help to build the capacity of BAME led and specialist organisations in the criminal justice system. The deadline to submit an Expression of Interest is 9am on Monday 18th January. See more and express interest here

    CLINKS NEWS: extra funding available for winter support grants

    We have secured an extra £20,000 in funding for our winter support grants programme thanks to the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. This will provide up to five extra grants for voluntary organisations working in the criminal justice system with an annual income under £250,000. We are distributing the funding - £143,500 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service and £20,000 on behalf of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation – to support small and specialist organisations as the pandemic continues. The deadline for applications is Monday 4th January at 9am. Please note Clinks will be closed, and so unable to provide support with applications, from  Wednesday 23rd December. Read more about this round of the programme and how to apply here

    CLINKS NEWS: meeting for large organisations

    Members of the Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Group (RR3) invite senior leaders of voluntary sector organisations working in criminal justice with an annual income of £10m or more to a one-off meeting [10am-11.30am 4th February 2021, online, free] to discuss the opportunities and challenges currently faced by large organisations in the sector. The meeting will be led by the RR3 lead for large organisations, Laura Seebohm, Changing Lives and the RR3 Chair, Anne Fox, Clinks. The RR3 is a formal advisory group to the government and this meeting will help develop a network of organisations that can support Laura to fully reflect the views of this part of the sector when advising the Ministry of Justice, HM Prison and Probation Service and the wider government. To reserve a place please email will.downs@clinks.org

    CLINKS BLOG: national strategy for older people in prison

    The Ministry of Justice announced in November that a national strategy would be developed for older people in prison. In this guest blog, Chief Officer of Recoop, Paul Grainge, talks about the ageing prison population, Recoop’s work with older people in contact with the criminal justice system, and the many years of advocacy that finally led to this national strategy being announced. Read the blog here

    NATIONAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE ARTS ALLIANCE BLOG: how HMP Pentonville adapted music sessions for lockdown

    In the face of lockdown restrictions and cancelled group activities, the team at HMP Pentonville’s Wellbeing Centre had to look for another way to provide the human contact and interaction key to their service. In this blog for the National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance, Wellbeing Centre Manager Deborah Murphy shares how the team managed to adapt group music-making activities to the new restrictions and continue to provide opportunities for creative connection. Read the blog here

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: the impact of long sentences

    Prison Reform Trust is seeking an evaluator to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of its UK-wide Building Futures Programme. The programme will explore the impact of long sentences on prisoners, their families and wider communities. Prison Reform Trust is keen to attract a wide range of approaches, particularly interested in qualitative methods that will harvest learning and outcomes as the programme evolves. Bids should be sent by 6pm on 14th January 2021. Find out more here

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: the impact of long sentences

    RIFT Social Enterprise has a number of free places for its 12-month self-employment service, available to people who have past or current convictions, including those who are subject to community orders. The places are available to anyone residing in North London who is in receipt of benefits and who reports to a North London Job Centre. The service includes: 12 months business start-up support, website development, business cards, mobile phone, HMRC registration, monthly webinars, access to a specialist insurance broker and much more. Please email contact@riftse.co.uk for more details. Find out more by watching this explainer video here

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: supporting prisoners’ families

    Corona Kids CIC is a social enterprise on a mission to support London and Surrey prisoners’ families, children and young people through awareness training and supportive projects. It is currently running a welfare telephone support service to connect black, Asian and minority ethnic prisoners’ families to local sources of practical and emotional support during the Covid-19 crisis. Corona Kids is also running a monthly online peer support group for prisoners’ families caring for children under 18. This group meets every second Wednesday of the month from 6.30pm – 7.30pm. The next group will meet on 13th January. It is a space for parents and carers to chat, share experiences and swap tips and advice. For more information, email info@coronakids.co.uk 

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: Sentencing Council

    The Sentencing Council was set up over a decade ago to improve consistency in sentencing. But has the drive for consistency contributed to the trend of ever harsher sentences? Rob Allen has written a report for Transform Justice examining the role of the Council and suggesting what it could do to tackle sentence inflation, reduce the use of imprisonment, and contribute to the development of more effective sentencing law, policy, and practice. Read the full report here

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: reading pack

    Shannon Trust, which runs a reading programme in prisons across the country, has recently produced a new activity pack for lower-level readers. This pack has been written for people to work through on their own, so it could come in handy during periods of increased lockdown. You can download the pack itself and the answers document here. Learn more about Shannon Trust here

    CLINKS MEMBER’S NEWS: electronic monitoring

    HM Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) has published a new Academic Insights paper on Electronic monitoring in probation practice. For Academic Insights, HMIP commissions leading academics to present their views on specific topics, assisting with informed debate and aiding understanding of what helps and what hinders probation and youth offending services. This paper reviews current knowledge about electronic monitoring and how it works and identifies the ways in which probation staff can engage effectively with electronic monitoring and influence its use to ensure that it is deployed appropriately, ethically and to best effect. Read it here

    FUNDING: disadvantaged young people

    A small number of grants are available from The William Wates Memorial Trust to not-for-profit organisations and registered charities that engage young people through sports, arts and education. Projects should help the most disadvantaged 5-19 year olds through encouraging them to keep away from anti-social behaviour and criminal activity, enabling them to fulfil their potential. The Trust primarily supports organisations in London and the South East. Most grants are for approximately £30,000 over three years. However, at any one time the Trust will also have two to three grants for £30,000 to £50,000 per annum over three years. Find out more and apply by 1st January here

    FUNDING: violence against women and girls

    Grants are available from The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime’s Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Grassroots Fund to support the resilience of grassroots organisations in London that focus on ending violence against women and girls. For individual organisations, two-year grants of between £30,000 (£15,000 per year) and £100,000 (£50,000 per year) are available. Partnerships of up to three organisations can apply for two-year grants of up to £120,000 (£60,000 per year). The Fund will prioritise: black, Asian and minority ethnic organisations focusing on ending violence against women and girls; women's community organisations where delivery services aimed at ending VAWG is the main focus; specialist community organisations (e.g. disability rights groups providing services aimed at ending VAWG). Find out more and apply by 11th January here

    RESOURCE: Holy Mass for Christmas recording for people in prison

    A free video recording of the Holy Mass for Christmas, delivered by His Lordship, the Right Reverend Peter Brignall, Bishop of Wrexham, has been made publicly available for people in prison. During the Christmas period, HM Prison and Probation Service has encouraged prisons to ensure people have access to faith services, though face-to-face services and group worship will continue to be impacted by Covid-19 restrictions and local outbreaks. The hope is that this recording can be used in prisons where access to services is impacted. To download the MP4 file, click here, select the file called ‘Mass’ and then click the button that says ‘Download’.

    FEATURED VACANCY: Restorative Justice Development Officer

    Why me? is the national charity delivering and promoting restorative justice for everyone affected by crime and conflict. Why me? has an opportunity for a Restorative Justice Development Officer [£30,000, London, Full-time] to join its growing team. The Development Officer will be responsible for improving the use of restorative justice for people affected by crime. They will do this by building relationships with agencies such as Youth Offending Teams, police, victim and witness services, probation and voluntary organisations to inspire people to take up restorative justice, and to develop practical ways of implementing it. The postholder will need to have a really good understanding of restorative justice, and the ability to translate learning from work on the ground into policy change. Find out more and apply by 5th January 2021 here

    CLINKS MEMBERS’ VACANCIES

    London Programme Coordinator with 3Pillars Project [London], Temporary Arts Assistant with Koestler Arts [London], Trusts Fundraising Officer with Prisoners’ Education Trust [Home with travel], Fundraising Officer (Trusts and Foundations) with Prison Advice and Care Trust [Home based], Support Workers with Social Interest Group [London], Specialist Pre-Employment Trainer with Changing Lives [Stockton], Administrator and Communications Coordinator with Brighton Women’s Centre [Brighton and Hove], Education, Training and Employment Support Worker with The Footprints Project [Hampshire], Peer Support Coordinator with Together for Mental Wellbeing [London], Housing Management Worker with Nacro [Birkenhead]. For more information about these vacancies, and many more, click here

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    EXTRA INFORMATION

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