Women offenders: after the Corston Report - United Kingdom ...
Women offenders: after the Corston Report - United Kingdom ...
Women offenders: after the Corston Report - United Kingdom ...
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Justice Committee: Evidence Ev 123women’s needs in <strong>the</strong> community makes it likely that prison will continue to be used as seemingly <strong>the</strong> onlydisposal available to <strong>the</strong> courts for vulnerable women who appear before <strong>the</strong>m and who are living rootless,chaotic lives.6.2 The expansion of <strong>the</strong> use of women’s “one stop shops” or WCPs which provide a holistic set ofrehabilitative interventions within a single safe space, have been one of <strong>the</strong> most promising achievements since<strong>the</strong> publication of <strong>the</strong> <strong>Corston</strong> <strong>Report</strong>. However, <strong>the</strong> provision is “patchy” with not everywhere having a WCP.Also sustainability is questionable with cuts in funding across all government departments—<strong>the</strong> funding is nowbuilt into <strong>the</strong> baseline budgets for Probation Trusts but this amounts to less than 3.5 million for <strong>the</strong> currentfinancial year—putting this in perspective it costs on average £56,415 per annum for a female prison place yet64% of women serving less than 12 months offend within one year 8 . The evidence is that women are morelikely to complete a community order than men with <strong>the</strong> cost of an intensive order being between£10,000–£15,000. There continues to be a great need for alternatives to custody for women who pose no riskof serious harm and <strong>the</strong> financial cost benefits are arguably strong.6.3 Surrey and Sussex Probation Trust (SSPT) undertook a piece of research involving 192 women <strong>offenders</strong>.It was validated by Leicester University and evidenced that support from Probation Officers to women whohave experienced domestic abuse and self-harm was highly valued: women <strong>offenders</strong> reported feeling more incontrol of <strong>the</strong>ir lives and able to take responsibility for <strong>the</strong>ir actions 9 . More research of this kind which explores<strong>the</strong> views of women using <strong>the</strong> Service would help in shaping <strong>the</strong> design and provision of services.6.4 There is evidence from OASys data 1 that <strong>the</strong>re is an emerging “high need, high cost” group of womenwho have <strong>the</strong> highest likelihood of re-offending, have <strong>the</strong> most complex needs—(91% with a drug misuseneed), but most worrying is that this segment is characterised by having <strong>the</strong> youngest age profile. This is <strong>the</strong>group most likely to need an alternative to custody such as <strong>Women</strong>’s Approved Premises (WAPs), The majorityof WAPs have similar problems to women’s prisons in that <strong>the</strong>y are few in number and often far from <strong>the</strong>woman’s home area. Those which are in place work hard to provide a holistic women-centered approach andmost have excellent links with <strong>the</strong> VCS and WCPs. However, <strong>the</strong> structure and regimes of WAPS were builtaround <strong>the</strong> need to provide enhanced supervision for male <strong>offenders</strong> and many are on a journey to deliver a“different and distinct” approach for women. The majority are certainly unsuitable in <strong>the</strong>ir present form forwomen who are convicted of low to medium level offending and <strong>the</strong> expectation has been that <strong>the</strong> enhancedBASS meets <strong>the</strong> needs of <strong>the</strong>se women. Interestingly, <strong>the</strong> Joint Inspectorate 3 reported some concerns about <strong>the</strong>low usage of enhanced BASS but speculated as to whe<strong>the</strong>r this was because <strong>the</strong> service was intended for lowor medium risk women who should not need to go to custody, <strong>the</strong>refore bailing <strong>the</strong>m to BASS was possiblyseen as unnecessary.6.5 PCA supports <strong>the</strong> drive to maintain a continued focus on <strong>the</strong> use of alternatives to custody which utiliseviable women specific provision including <strong>the</strong> development of alternative residential options which wouldreduce <strong>the</strong> risk of offending and offer supportive environments for a range of women with services tailored to<strong>the</strong>ir risk and need profile.7. The availability of appropriate provision for different groups of women <strong>offenders</strong> including under 18s,women with children, foreign nationals and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic women and those with mentalhealth problems7.1 While identifying common threads in <strong>the</strong> experience of girls and women in <strong>the</strong> CJS, <strong>the</strong>re are concernsthat diversity issues are inadequately addressed, such as <strong>the</strong> distinct needs of older women, pregnant womenand Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic women (BAME). While BAME groups constitute 9% of <strong>the</strong> overallpopulation of England and Wales, BAME women account for 28% of <strong>the</strong> female prison population. Inaddressing <strong>the</strong> distinct position of girls and women within <strong>the</strong> criminal justice system, any future strategy must<strong>the</strong>refore consider <strong>the</strong> way that gender intersects with o<strong>the</strong>r protected characteristics.7.2 There is still no national strategy for <strong>the</strong> 15% of <strong>the</strong> female prison population classified as non-nationals.<strong>Women</strong> with no recourse to public funds face a range of distinct challenges. There is currently only one VCSorganisation, Detention Advice Service, that is able to offer advice on immigration issues to female prisoners.September 2012References1. Cabinet Office (2009) Short Study on <strong>Women</strong> Offenders. London: Cabinet Office.2. NOMS <strong>Women</strong> and Equalities Group (2012) A Distinct Approach: A guide to working with women<strong>offenders</strong>.3. Criminal Justice Joint Inspection (2011) Thematic Inspection <strong>Report</strong>: Equal but different? An inspection of<strong>the</strong> use of alternatives to custody for women <strong>offenders</strong>.4. Gelsthorpe, L (2011). “Working with women <strong>offenders</strong> in <strong>the</strong> community: a view from England and Wales”in R Sheenan, G Mclvor and C Trotter (eds). Working With <strong>Women</strong> in <strong>the</strong> Community, Cullumpton :Willan.