![Policy Briefing](/sites/default/files/emails/clinks_policy-briefing_header_1_9.png)
In this month's edition...
Clinks has sent a letter signed by 60 voluntary sector criminal justice organisations to the Rt Hon. Dominic Raab MP, Secretary of State for Justice, to raise concerns over the lack of attention in the Prisons Strategy White Paper on addressing the stark levels of disproportionality for racially minoritised people in prison. The letter was written by Khatuna Tsintsadze, Zahid Mubarek Trust and Dez Brown, Spark2Life, who hold the seats for organisations led by and focused on racially minoritised people on the Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Board (RR3), which Clinks chairs and provides the secretariat for. Show your support by sharing the letter on social media here
Clinks has also submitted our response to the Prisons Strategy White Paper which will be published in due course.
Clinks has written to the Public Accounts Committee as part of the Committee’s inquiry into outcomes for women in the criminal justice system. This follows the report from the National Audit Office (NAO) on the Female Offender Strategy, for which Clinks was interviewed. In our letter, we supported the recommendations made by the NAO, raised concerns over the government’s plan to build an additional 500 women’s prison places, and highlighted the importance of investing in community-based services and diversionary schemes.
Women’s advisory board As mentioned at the Public Account Select committee oral evidence session, Clinks has been informed that following the recent review of membership and work of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders (ABFO), the ABFO will be replaced by two groups. Firstly, the Women in the Criminal Justice System (WYJS) board, which will be made up of ministers and senior officials within the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and chaired by Victoria Atkins MP, Minister of State for Justice. Clinks will attend this board in its capacity as the recipient of the HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) infrastructure grant, alongside rotating members. A wider expert group, which Clinks will also attend, will continue to meet with officials, chaired by Claire Fielder, Director of Youth Justice and Offender Policy. Clinks is in discussion with the MoJ regarding the terms of reference for both groups, which will be published due course.
Review of Custodial Remand for Children The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has published a review of the use of custodial remand for children, including its response to the recommendations on children on remand made by the Independent Inquiry into child sexual abuse (IICSA) in 2019. The IICSA recommended that the government examines the scale and appropriateness of youth custodial remand. The government has accepted this recommendation with a commitment to identify options to reduce numbers where appropriate. The review questioned the narrative that the number of children on remand has increased significantly, and noted that ‘the reality is much more complex’, including the fact that around one fifth of remand episodes last under seven days. The review also concluded that racial disparities in remand are a known issue which needs addressing.
Ministry of Justice Statistics The Ministry of Justice published statistics covering people in the criminal justice system, safety in custody and the children and young people’s secure estate (CYPSE), and proven reoffending. There were 79,092 people in prison on 31st December 2021, and 234,827 people on probation. There were 371 deaths in custody in the year to December 2021, a 17% increase on the previous year. The number of self-harm incidents in prisons fell by 11% in the year to September 2021, but the rate of self-harm incidents per 1,000 people rose by 5% in female establishments, whilst falling 9% in male establishments. The annualised rate of self-harm per 100 children in the CYPSE rose 5% in the three months to September 2021, compared to the same quarter last year. The proven reoffending rate for the January to March 2020 cohort was 24.7%.
Youth Justice Statistics 2020-2021 The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales has published the Youth Justice Statistics for 2020 to 2021. These statistics concentrate on the flow of children (aged 10-17) through the youth justice system in England and Wales. Between April 2020 and March 2021, 15,800 children were cautioned or sentenced. Although Black children make up 4% of the 10-17 year old population (census, 2011), 12% of children cautioned or sentenced were Black. In a blog written by Chair of the Youth Justice Board, Keith Fraser, he states “The statistics show a youth justice system succeeding in fewer children coming into the system, fewer children in custody and lower reoffending rates, but categorically failing on every count to halt the overrepresentation of Black children throughout the system”.
Community based drug treatment and recovery work with people on probation The Ministry of Justice and HM Prison and Probation Service have published their thematic review action plan of community-based drug treatment and recovery work with people on probation during the Covid-19 pandemic, in response to the HM Inspectorate of Probation inspection, published in August 2021. The government agreed with eight recommendations and partly agreed with six recommendations out of the total 14. Actioned responses include the recent government Drugs Strategy, additional funding into an enhanced RECONNECT service and improving continuity of care for those leaving custody.
Probation
Electronic Monitoring HM Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) has published a report on the use of electronic monitoring (EM) in reducing reoffending and managing risk. This found that whilst there is significant political interest in EM, there is a lack of evidence about its longer-term effectiveness. It also noted there is no central, overarching policy or operational framework within which practitioners are guided on the best way to integrate EM. In addition, HMIP found whilst practitioners supported the use of EM, and could see how it could help their work, they are insufficiently trained in more recent technologies. Its recommendations included the Ministry of Justice commissioning research to better understand the impact of EM, and HM Prison and Probation Service publishing a clearly defined policy, vision, and strategy for EM.
Women
Improving outcomes for Women in the Criminal Justice System The National Audit Office has reflected many of Clinks’ concerns with the implementation of the Female Offender Strategy. Its latest report finds that the Ministry of Justice made limited progress to improve outcomes for women in the criminal justice system, because it has not prioritised investment in this work. In 2018 we raised concerns that the investment falls way short of what’s needed to affect lasting change for women. Clinks will continue to call on the government to provide adequate and sustainable funding to community-based specialist women’s services and ensure women get the support they need in the community. The National Audit Office recommends that full assessment of the funding, and specific goals and milestones for the strategy’s achievement are needed.
Pregnant Women in Prison Researchers from Coventry University and City, University of London, in collaboration with Birth Companions and Women in Prison have published their research on pregnant women in prison, looking at the experiences of women who have been pregnant in prison, on remand, on recall from licence conditions and on sentence. Using evidence gathered about the realities of their experience, Dr Geraldine Brown, Rona Epstein and Maria Garcia de Frutos conclude that pregnant women should not be sent to prison and other options should always be sought, including probation, suspended sentences, or deferred sentences.
Health
Making funding work for people facing multiple disadvantage The Making Every Adult Matter (MEAM) coalition has published a report outlining ways in which national funding streams for homelessness and rough sleeping, substance misuse, mental health and criminal justice, can be better coordinated to achieve long-term changes to the way that services and systems work for people facing multiple disadvantage. The report draws on the experiences of areas across the MEAM Approach and Fulfilling Lives networks, with research conducted alongside experts by experience. MEAM hopes to follow-up this report by engaging with a range of government officials to create a set of policy and practice recommendations that can help funding to have an optimal impact on people facing multiple disadvantage. Clinks is a member of MEAM, alongside Mind, Homeless Link and Collective Voice.
Parole
A Parole System fit for purpose JUSTICE has published its report on the parole system, which was prepared by a working party of experts, chaired by Nicola Padfield QC (Hon), Professor of Criminal and Penal Justice at the University of Cambridge. The report looks both at the Parole Board itself and the roles and responsibilities of the organisations upon which it depends to receive information and make decisions. Recommendations include that the Ministry of Justice should improve the provision of accommodation for individuals upon release to guarantee that nobody is released homeless, and that they should review the provision of accommodation for particular categories of prisoners, such as women, older prisoners, and those with complex health needs. They hope it will reform the government’s own review of the parole system.
Prison
Bromley Briefing The Prison Reform Trust has published the latest edition of its Bromley Briefing, collating a range of statistics on the criminal justice system in England and Wales on topics including sentencing, the state of prisons, and rehabilitation and resettlement. It also shares a “Long view” from the Sentencing Academy, on the public’s estimates of sentencing practices. Their survey found the majority of people in England and Wales significantly underestimate the severity of current sentencing practices. For example, 75% of respondents who expressed a view, said they believed the average prison sentence length over the last 25 years had become shorter, despite the average sentence for indictable offences rising from 16 months in 1993, to 21.4 months in 2019.
Voluntary Sector
The Road Ahead 2022 NCVO has published its annual analysis report of the changing operating environment for those working or volunteering the voluntary sector. It identifies and explains forces and trends that are shaping the sector and are likely to have an impact on voluntary organisations in the future. Analysis is grouped across six areas: political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal. Of particular interest is the political climate as we build towards an election and the continuation of “culture wars”, emerging inequalities and the impact this has on charity service demands, the many impacts of Covid-19 as the pandemic progresses, and the number of changes to charity law arising from the Charities Bill that is currently progressing through parliament.
Are lockdowns the solution to prison violence? Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, has written a blog arguing that Covid-era lockdowns are not the long-term solution to prison violence. Covid-19 restrictions have meant that most prisoners have been locked in their cells for 22 or more hours a day and unsurprisingly, this has resulted in a reduction in violence. However, before 2015 (pre-pandemic), violence levels were consistently lower. Recent inspections have shown that the amount of time a prisoner spends out of cell is dependent on factors such as staffing levels, Covid-19 risk tolerance and ‘above all, the ambition and quality of the governor and the senior leadership team’. He concludes that “rather than returning to more restricted regimes, violence is likely to reduce where there are enough experienced officers in post and strong leadership”.
2021 had highest number of deaths in prison ever recorded INQUEST has responded to latest statistics on deaths and self-harm in prison data published by the Ministry of Justice. In the 12 months to December 2021 there were a total of 371 deaths of people in prison, representing the highest annual number of deaths ever recorded, with more than one death a day. This is despite recent reductions in the prison population. Although 250 deaths were classed as ‘natural causes’, INQUEST casework and monitoring shows many of these deaths are premature. Deborah Coles, Director of INQUEST, said: “The pandemic alone cannot explain away this record level of deaths… these statistics represent the serious consequences of highly restrictive regimes on people’s mental and physical health”.
Youth Justice Blog series The Centre for Justice Innovation (CJI) has published a blog series providing the answers to the most frequently asked questions about youth justice. In addition to providing the latest evidence, they aim to dispel current myths with expert voices within the youth justice sector. The first two blogs include discussion on youth justice terminology, and the use of non-admissions of guilt and diversion. The CJI has also published a blog based in conversation with Sarah Limb, Criminal Justice Policy and Campaigns Officer at the Traveller Movement, about how the youth justice system can improve outcomes for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children.
Is it possible to find hope in a life sentence? Russell Webster has published a blog on a recent paper that explores the question of hope in a life sentence. The study it looks at is based on interviews with 33 people within two and a half years of their tariff expiry date, or in some cases, past that date, drawing on Snyder’s Hope Theory as a conceptual framework. Russell describes Hope Theory as having a goal, a way of achieving it and the belief that you can achieve it yourself. The authors conclude by putting these painful individual narratives in the context of government plans to increase sentence lengths further (including whole life orders) even though the UK already has the highest number of people serving life sentences in all of Europe.
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Written monthly by...
Clinks' Policy Officers Franklin Barrington and Noorjehan Piperdy
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