More needs to be done to help veterans in the justice system

A veterans’ charity, the Forces in Mind Trust, has called for a better deal for ex-service personnel who come into contact with the criminal justice system. In a recent policy statement, the charity makes the point that although the majority of ex-Service personnel make a successful transition into civilian life… Work with Offenders looks at work done by the Forces in Mind Trust to deal with former services people who end up in custody ...

Looked after children exploited by County Lines drug dealers

A new report published today (3 December 2020) by Crest Advisory concludes that looked are children are being exploited by County Lines drug dealers because of our broken care system. The report which is based on interviews and focus groups with police officers, child protection experts and charities, and analysis… Work with Offenders profiles a new report by Crest Advisory...

The spending review and criminal justice

Last Thursday Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak unveiled the government’s spending plans for the coming year. The Spending Review included details on public sector pay, NHS funding and money for the devolved administrations as well as setting out the extent of the damage done to the UK economy by… Work with offenders digs into the detail of the Chancellor’s statement...

Prison numbers expected to surge

Given the very difficult challenges to public finances in the wake of coronavirus (and Brexit), many people were surprised to hear Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that he was going to find £4 billion to spend on building new prisons (with 18,000 prison places) “by the mid-2020s”. It is clear that… Experts are predicting that increases in police numbers will start having an impact on prison numbers from this December. Work with Offenders examines the detail ...

Is the prison justice system unjust?

Prison discipline A new report from the Howard League for Penal Reform  (Monday 23 November) claims that the disciplinary system in prisons creates a pervasive sense of injustice, fuelling conflict and overcrowding, and should be overhauled, as figures show that the number of formal hearings has risen to a record… Work with Offenders looks at a briefing from the Howard League on problems with the prison disciplinary system...

Children and sentencing toolkit

Last week the Howard League for Penal Reform a sentencing toolkit to ensure better outcomes for children facing sentence in the criminal courts. The toolkit was developed through work with 80 young people in contact with the criminal justice system and draws on the expertise of the Howard League legal… Work with offenders profiles a new Howard League resource invaluable for our readers working in youth justice...

More than half youth justice services sub-standard says inspectorate

HM Inspectorate of Probation today (24 November) published its annual report, Inspection of Youth Offending Services 2019-20 in which it concluded that improvements are required in more than half of the 16 youth offending services inspected this year. Inspectors found inconsistences in performance remain, with assessment of risk of harm… Work with Offenders examines the probation inspectorate’s annual report on youth offending services...

Coronavirus impact on probation and youth justice services

The challenge of coronavirus Probation and youth offending services have responded well to the COVID-19 pandemic but attention must now turn to tackling backlogs and longer-term problems. That is the verdict of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMI Probation) in two separate reports published today. HMI Probation inspected the work… Work with Offenders looks at the conclusions of two new reports from the probation inspectorate...

Are the laws relating to joint enterprise being overused?

A new report, “Stories of Injustice” published today by academics at Manchester Metropolitan University casts new light on the number and experiences of women imprisoned under laws relating to  joint enterprise.  What is joint enterprise? Joint enterprise is a doctrine of criminal law which permits two or more defendants to… Work with Offenders on a new report which sheds light on joint enterprise laws...

What are witness intermediaries?

The Ministry of Justice has just updated its guidance on its Witness Intermediary Scheme. Most people haven’t heard of intermediaries, they are a hidden cog in the wheels of justice. A relatively new profession, intermediaries work with the police and courts as communication specialists to ensure adults with communication difficulties… Work with Offenders looks at the latest state of a critical service which is a hidden cog in theworkings of the justice system...