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In this month's edition...
Working with people on probation who experience mental health problems
Clinks has published an evidence review as part of our comprehensive Evidence Library. In this publication, Professor Charlie Brooker, honorary professor at Royal Holloway, University of London and Dr Coral Sirdifield, Senior Research Associate at the University of Lincoln, look at the benefits of focusing on the mental health of people on probation, the organisation of mental health care, current initiatives, challenges to providing high-quality care, and what good quality care for people on probation looks like. Read the review here. As part of our ‘A Matter of fact: what the evidence tells us’ series, Charlie and Coral will discuss this topic in a webinar [4 March, 14:00-15:00, online, free]. Book your place here
Reducing Reoffending Third Sector Advisory Board (RR3) recruitment
Clinks is currently recruiting a number of seats, including for mental health, to the RR3, a formal advisory board to the Ministry of Justice and HM Prison and Probation Service that works closely with officials to reduce reoffending and build a more effective partnership between the government and the voluntary sector. If you are a senior leader in the voluntary sector with expertise relevant to an open seat, we want you to apply to be a part of the RR3. For the mental health seat, we are looking for people with expertise in providing mental health support to people in contact with the criminal justice system. The deadline for applications for the mental health seat is 10am on Monday 5 February. See what other seats Clinks is recruiting for and apply here. Please be aware that the applications for the different seats are staggered so do vary.
Clinks’ Families Network
Clinks is delighted to have secured funding to develop a network of voluntary organisations supporting families of, and relationships for, people in the criminal justice system. The voluntary sector plays a leading role in designing and delivering family services, which develop and main relationships, supporting adults and children affected by a family member’s involvement in the current justice system. Clinks’ Senior Development Officer, Natalie Maidment, is developing a network to provide advice, support, and share information to any voluntary organisation working with families and significant others in and around the criminal justice system. The network aims to bring together organisations both large and small to identify challenges, share good practice, and influence policy and decision making. If you would like to join our new Families Network, contact Natalie Maidment.
Clinks is recruiting a new Chair of the Board of Trustees
Clinks’ current Chair has completed two terms and will be stepping down at our AGM in November 2024. Therefore, we are currently recruiting for a new Chair. We are looking for a person who can lead the Board of Trustees well and work with the leadership team to steward a vibrant and vital voluntary sector. Our new Chair will be committed to voluntary action, our organisation, our values, and anti-racism. The Chair is pivotal in creating the conditions for overall board and individual senior leader effectiveness, both inside and outside the boardroom. We are aiming to onboard a new chair as a trustee from April 2024 to ensure efficient handover, ahead of them taking over as Chair from the AGM. We actively encourage applications from people with backgrounds under-represented on trustee boards including those with lived experience of prison or people who hold a criminal record; first-time trustees including young people; and racially minoritised people. The deadline for applications is midday on 5 February 2024. Find out more here
Clinks is recruiting trustees to its Board
Clinks is seeking two committed people to join its Board of Trustees, following one trustee who has come to the end of their term and another who has joined Clinks’ Leadership team. To ensure we have a range of experiences and skills within the Board, we are particularly interested in hearing from people with experience in prison and probation, income generation, and business development, as well as people skilled in communication, influence, and networking. One trustee will be appointed from April 2024 and will be required to take a seat on Clinks Finance and Human Resources Committee alongside the Board. The other will be appointed in November 2024 at the Clinks AGM. Find out more here
Clinks’ CEO give evidence to the Justice Committee
Clinks’ CEO, Anne Fox, gave oral evidence to the House of Commons Justice Committee as part of its inquiry into the future prison population and estate capacity. Also giving evidence with Anne were the Chief Executive of Women in Prison, Sonya Ruperal, and the Deputy Director of the Prison Reform Trust, Mark Day. In her evidence, Anne highlighted the importance of the publication of an older people in prison strategy and ensuring the needs of this cohort are being met. Amongst other things, Anne also spoke about the impact of the reduction in community resource for social care, mental health treatment, and substance use treatment, and the effect this has in driving disadvantage and inequality in prisons. Read the transcript of Anne’s evidence session and watch a recording of the meeting here
Consultation on drug prevention policies and landscapes across UK
The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) has been commissioned by the government to provide advice unto drug prevention for young people. Supporting the government’s wider 10-year National Drugs Strategy. The ACMD Preventing Standard Committee has been established to provide advice and aims to publish by Spring 2024 consisting of a whole-system response embedded with national and local measures. The call for evidence for this report, seeks insight into current government-led drug prevention measures and the prevention landscape across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Island, to support in the ACMD making recommendations regarding effective interventions and service models. The deadline for this consultation closes at 11.59pm on 13 February 2024. See further information here
Women’s health priorities for 2024
The Secretary of State for Health, Victoria Atkins, has announced a series of priorities to be tackled as part of the Women’s Health Strategy in 2024. These include menstrual problems and menopause, maternity care, and birth trauma support. The 2024 priorities were developed from responses to the government’s call for evidence. Priorities also include a focus on tackling disparities and improving health support for vulnerable women including victims of sexual abuse and violence by ensuring training and support systems are working collaboratively and efficiently. This will include creating new models within the NHS to protect its staff. There will also be a focus on improving the health of women in the criminal justice system, by implementing the recommendations of the National Women’s Prison Health and Social Care Review. Read more about the 2024 priorities here
Avoidable harm in prison healthcare
The Health & Justice Research Network (HJRN) are undertaking a project on avoidable harm in prison healthcare and are looking for lived experience input into data analysis and interpretation. Project participants will be paid, and more information can be obtained from Dr Jane Senior at the University of Manchester.
Building a resilient workforce- lessons learnt
Clinks are holding an event [20 February, 10:00-12:00, online, free] emphasising the importance of the prioritising wellbeing within the workplace. Speakers include Matina Marougka, Head of Regional Operations for London services at Together for Mental Wellbeing, who will be sharing some of her findings and insights from her studies in Occupational Psychology, reflecting on how wellbeing drives performance in the workplace. Dawn Harrison, Criminal Justice Service Manager at Changing Lives, will be discussing how to build resilience within a team alongside building your own personal resilience. Book your place here
The lived experience of opioid users in prison
The International Journal of Prison Health published a study undertaken in England and Scotland examining the lived experience of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) during and immediately following released from detention in prisons. Using surveys and focus groups, the research collected the experience of 207 people who use heroin and other opiates and sought OAT in prison in England and Scotland. Key finding showed that the quality and accessibility of OAT varies considerably between establishments and was reported to be harder to access in Scottish prisons. The study identifies key barriers to accessing OAT and suggests key components of more user-friendly approaches as well as recommendations on how to make service provision more effective and consistent. Read the report here. Russell Webster was involved in the study alongside other colleagues, and has written a blog post on the report.
Food Matters in Prisons: Briefing Paper
Food Matters published a briefing paper highlighting opportunities for food to play a role in prison life. It explores the role of food in shaping the identities and relationships of people in prison, and its potential to have positive impacts in prisons. Food Matters concluded food should move from being a functional aspect of prisons to becoming a focal point for various activities and improvements to prison regimes. Some of their key findings included that there are opportunities to build on existing initiatives related to food and nutrition, but limited resources and short-term funding have limited the sustainability of the long-term impact of these efforts, and that there are opportunities for HM Prison and Probation Service to adopt a strategic approach to developing food-related initiatives, integrated with a range of policy and practice. Read the briefing here
The voices of neurodiverse service users in the criminal justice system
User Voice published a report highlighting the experiences of people who are diagnosed and self-diagnosed as neurodivergent. Through interviews and a survey of neurodivergent service users, User Voice found a lack of support for people in contact with the criminal justice system: in police custody, only two people reported having adjustments made around their neurodiversity, and 15 reported adjustments being made in prison. Due to a lack of assessments and screening in prisons, it was found only a few people were receiving the support they needed. To benefit neurodivergent people in the criminal justice system, Use Voice advocate for more peer support, the employing of staff with lived experience of neurodiversity, and a commitment to more neurodiversity qualified healthcare staff. Read the full report here
Prison Medicine and Health
A new book was published this month titled Prison Medicine and Health by Emma Plugge and Jake Hard. It is a specialist handbook designed to be the definitive hands-on guide for multidisciplinary healthcare for people in prison, providing up-to-date policy and guidance alongside practical tips for practitioners working in the prison estate. Find more details here
Recoop Sale
Recoop are holding a unique New Year sale. They are offering discounts on a number of their services which are used by many prisons to socially prescribe activities which bring focus to empowering and supporting older people. Their sale includes products such as “On Track”, their virtual walking programme as well as their Mindfulness booklet, which aims to support individuals with meditation and guided imagery. The New Year Sale ends on the 31 March. Find the sale here
Funding the criminal justice voluntary sector
As a sector support organisation, providing information, advice and resources to voluntary organisations is an important part of Clinks. We have heard from many of our members about how difficult it is to identify, understand and navigate funding opportunities for the criminal justice voluntary sector, and know that this is becoming even more challenging. We have therefore published new information and guidance on our website which explores this topic and includes guides to statutory and charitable funding, fundraising support, and information on securing alternative sources of income. Have a look at our new funding and income pages here
Drug-related deaths at highest level ever
Russell Webster has written about the annual deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales: 2022 registrations, published by Office of National Statistics. Webster notes key figures from the data include that there were 84.4 deaths per million people related to drug poisoning, and the age-related mortality rate for deaths related to drug poisoning has risen every year since 2012, after remaining reasonably stable over the previous 20 years. Webster also highlights the increase in polydrug use, with a higher number of drugs being recorded on death certificates. Where the information was available, the average number of drugs has been increasing since 2010, standing at 2.0 in 2022, compared to between 1993 to 2011, where the average in each year had been either 1.4 or 1.5. Read the blog here
About Clinks Health and Justice bulletin
This regular bulletin provides Clinks members with the latest news for voluntary organisations involved in the health and care of people in the criminal justice system. To submit content please complete this form.
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