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In this month's edition...
Clinks' Health and Wellbeing Alliance work 2024-25
The Health and Wellbeing Alliance, of which Clinks is a member, has extended its current programme for a further year, to 2024-25. As such, we have been developing a new workplan for this year, that looks to further embed the work we have been doing around health into our wider work streams. If you are interested in finding out more about the plans for our work as part of the Alliance and how you can be involved, please contact our Senior Policy and Communications officer, Abi Lunn.
The Health and Justice Bulletin in 2024-25
As part of the development of our new workplan for our health work over the next year, we have made the decision to move the schedule for this Bulletin from monthly, to every other month. This change is to help us provide the most relevant and detailed information through this Bulletin. This means the next edition of the Bulletin will be sent on Tuesday 25 June 2024. We are interested in your views on this change and this Bulletin more broadly - please contact the team to share any thoughts.
NHS England Proxy Access Programme
As part of the Health and Wellbeing Alliance, Clinks attended an event exploring how a single trusted person to be able to manage the health and care actions for someone else. This would enable them to do things like book and cancel GP appointments, order repeat prescriptions, etc. Further to that event, Clinks are working with NHS England to provide some further feedback on their plans. If this area is of particular interest to you, please do share your thoughts by getting in touch with Clinks' Influence and Communications Manager, Rachel Tynan.
Updated guidance on acute respiratory illness, including flu and Covid-19 in prisons
The UK Health Security Agency updated the guidance for managing acute respiratory conditions in prison and other prescribed places of detention, and the children and young people's secure estate. These updates to the guidance follow the changes made to outbreak testing from 1 April 2024, where during a suspected outbreak of an acute respiratory infection, settings can access multiplex PCR tests through their local health protection team to help identify the infection responsible. Read the guidance here.
Nearly 100,000 drug tests carried out through the expansion of drug testing on arrest in England and Wales
The Home Office (HO) issued a press release about drug testing on arrest. This is where the behaviour of the person arrested was believed to have been driven by substance use needs. The HO said, from a sample of the total tests, over 90% of the positive tests resulted in a person being assessed by a drug support worker. Nearly half of those assessed were considered to need treatment and so were referred. The HO notes the government's commitment to expanding this scheme. Measures in the Criminal Justice Bill will enable testing for some Class B and C drugs too. It will also widen the range of offences which can trigger a test. Read the press release here.
New measures to bolster Victims' and Prisoners Bill
The government announced several further amendments it will table to the Victims and Prisoners Bill. This includes provisions to enable victims of serious crimes committed by people with mental health disorders to give a Victim Impact Statement during the Mental Health Tribunal Process. This tales place before someone is released and allows them to request release conditions. Other amendments will introduce a new statutory duty on the police and other criminal justice agencies. This duty would mean they have to deliver services in accordance with the Victims' Code, as well as informing victims of their rights under it. Compliance with this duty will be overseen by the Victims Commissioner. Read the announcement in full, along with a list of other amendments being tabled by the government, here.
Education Committee inquiry into boys' attainment and engagement in education
The Commons Education Committee has started an inquiry into boy's attainment and engagement in education. As part of this, they have opened a call for written evidence, with a deadline for submissions of 11.59pm on Friday, 17 May 2024. The Committee are inviting submissions on areas including the wider social implications of boys' underperformance and under-engagement with education, as well as what can be done to reduce the exclusion and suspension rates of boys from school, and how the progression of boys into higher education can be improved. Clinks is exploring a response to the Committee's call for evidence. If you would like to contribute to this, please email the Policy team. Read more about the Committee's inquiry here.
Who are the Connectors in your community?
The National Academy for Social Prescribing are holding a webinar [Wednesday, 1 May, 10.30am, online, free] that looks at the role of Connectors in bridging the gap between people's need for support and a lack of awareness about what is available. These Connectors are the people in our communities that simply signpost friends, families, colleagues, and strangers to the places where they can find out about support and opportunities, who play a crucial role in helping people find the information they need. In the webinar, speakers will present strategies for empowering connectors within communities to share information effectively. Find out more and book a place here.
Presumption against short sentences for children
The Alliance for Youth Justice and the Centre for Justice Innovation, are co-producing a webinar [Tuesday 7 May, 12.30pm-1.30pm, online, free] about the proposed presumption against short custodial sentences for children. This will discuss the implication of the Sentencing Bill and the wider opportunity it presents to ensure custody is used as a last resort for children. The event will be chaired by the Centre for Justice Innovation's Director, Phil Bowen, feature three experts, and include a question and answer session. Find out more about the event and register to attend here.
New Research on criminal court fines
The Centre for Justice Innovation (CJI) are launching new research into criminal court fines [16 May, 12.30pm to 2.30pm, online, free]. The research, supported by abrdn Financial Fairness Trust, looks particularly at the impact of court fines on people with low incomes. The launch will be an opportunity to hear about the main findings from the research team, and experts in the field including from people with lived experience. The CJI's Director, Phil Bowen, will chair a question and answer session to discuss the themes raised in the report. Register for the event here.
North of England criminal justice forum
This forum [Tuesday 21 May, 10am-11.30am, online, free] has been organised to bring together partners working across the criminal justice system in the North of England. It will provide an opportunity for people to hear about current and future developments and discuss policy and practice affecting their day-to-day work. This quarterly forum is open to cross-sector organisations based or working in the North West, Greater Manchester, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the North East. The confirmed speakers include Helen Linsell from Dance United Yorkshire and Tina Young from NEPACS. Book your place here.
Fifth International Social Prescribing Conference
The National Academy for Social Prescribing and the Social Prescribing Network are holding the Fifth International Social Prescribing Conference [19 and 20 June 2024, University of Westminster, London, NW1, £120 to £180 plus VAT, with discounts available for students and voluntary organisations]. This year's conference will focus on innovation in social prescribing, with panel talks, workshops, breakout sessions, and networking opportunities across themes including innovation in social prescribing including arts, nature, heritage, and digital; social prescribing for children and young people; health inequalities and major conditions; and the future of social prescribing. Find out more and buy tickets here.
Exploring the experiences of accessing support for alcohol issues and suicidal ideation
The Samaritans, with their partners in the Suicide Prevention Consortium, published a report. This explores experiences of accessing support for alcohol issues and suicidal ideation. It is based on a survey and interviews of people with relevant lived experience. The report identifies five key themes where improvement is needed to address the barriers preventing more people from accessing the help they need. These themes include that peer support networks and voluntary sector services form a vital part of the support pathway. Also, the 'no wrong door approach' is much needed. This is because people are too often turned away when healthcare professionals think someone is under the remit of another part of the system. Read the report here.
Drug and alcohol treatments for victims and suspects of homicide
The Office for Health Improvements and Disparities and the Home Office published a Better Outcomes through Linked Data report looking at the use of substance misuse treatment services by victims and suspects of homicide in England. It links records from the Homicide Index database (HI) between April 2019 and March 2021 with records from the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS). It found 3% of victims and 11% of suspects of homicide had a treatment record in the NDTMS, with 10% of all homicide incidents including a victim or suspect with at least one treatment record for either drugs or alcohol. Most suspects (68% of those with a treatment record) had a treatment record only after the homicide, most of which were for treatment in prison. Almost two-thirds (62% of those with a treatment record) of all suspects in the HI were involved with a homicide that was recorded as drug-related. Read the report in full here.
How is youth diversion working for children with special educational needs and disabilities?
The Centre for Justice Innovation published a report exploring how diversion processes are working for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and what can be done to ensure they have the appropriate access to diversion. Drawing on the experience of practitioners from the police and youth justice services, as well as children with SEND, it concludes many parts of the youth diversion process are not fit for purpose for children with SEND. It goes on to make a number of recommendations for change, such as the National Police Chiefs Council should ensure the policing of children is responding appropriately to the needs of children with SEND, and that legal regulatory bodies should ensure children with SEND are receiving adequate and accessible legal advice. Read the report here.
Number of recalls for people serving determinate sentences
The Ministry of Justice published an ad hoc set of statistics looking at the number of fixed-term and standard recalls of people serving determinate sentences between January 2017 and September 2023. This found fixed-term recalls had fallen as a proportion of all recalls between 2017 and January to September 2023, down 20 percentage points. Conversely, standard term recalls had risen in both volume and proportion, making up 75% of recalls from January to September 2023, compared to 55% in 2017. There had also been an even greater increase in the proportion of standard term recalls for people serving sentences of less than 12 months over the same time period. Between September 2017 and September 2023, the recall population nearly doubled, reaching 12,031. Read the statistics in full here.
Lived experience in policymaking guide
The Civil Service Policy Lab published a guide to lived experience in policy making, which takes specific lessons from the Changing Futures project, particularly the work National Expert Citizen Group co-ordinated and supported by Revolving Doors. This guide aims to make explicit some of the underlying principles policy makers might consider to carry out effective and empathetic lived experience work. The guide sets out seven principles for lived experience work, including giving people time to prepare, reminding people they are valued, and providing opportunities for people to see the impact of their contribution. It also gives some practical consideration around things, including considering commissioning a professional lived experience group, ensuring people are thanked for their time, and reimbursing them so there are no practical barriers to entry. Read the guide here.
It's good that boys are being moved out of Cookham Wood, but we should not stop there
Following the government's announcement about Cookham Wood, the Howard League for Penal Reform's Chief Executive, Andrea Coomber, has written a blog arguing that this move should be the first step towards closing all prisons holding children. Read the blog here.
Exploring suicide and stigma with different communities
The Samaritans, with their partners in the Suicide Prevention Consortium, have explored suicide and stigma with different communities. This included Roma people, Showmen, Gypsy people, and New Travellers. Working with people from these communities, they shared what was important to them for policy makers to know about suicide and stigma in their communities. This resulted in a series of blogs about what they said. Read the blogs here.
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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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