Archive for the ‘Rehabilitation’ Category

Viva la rehabilitation revolution?

There has been a lot of talk in the criminal justice sector about a ‘rehabilitation revolution’.  This is the coalition government’s catchy phrase for its forthcoming justice reforms and many professionals are puzzling out what exactly a rehabilitation revolution might look like.  The coalition’s programme of government says:
We will [...]

June 22, 2010  Tags: ,   Posted in: Government policy, Prisons, Rehabilitation, Sentencing  No Comments

Less crime, safer communities, fewer people in prison

We have launched our new campaign, which you can find by visiting our website.  Please take two minutes to take action for the Howard League and help us put penal reform at the top of the political agenda during the general election and beyond.

March 5, 2010  Tags:   Posted in: Campaigns, Children and young people, Government policy, Howard League, Overcrowding, Prisons, Public Services, Rehabilitation, Sentencing, Victims  No Comments

Imprisoning charities

Yesterday morning I had a fascinating meeting with the Charity Commission about whether charities should manage prisons.  I went with Kevin Curley and others from NAVCA and met with Suzi Leather and her team.  We sought the meeting because we are concerned that two charities, Turning Point and Catch 22, have joined with Serco to [...]

February 3, 2010  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Government policy, Prisons, Public Services, Rehabilitation, Uncategorized  6 Comments

What it means to desist from offending

I went to a meeting of the prison policy group in the House of Lords addressed by Professor Fergus McNeill from Glasgow University.  He was talking about “why people stop”, what it means to desist from offending.  He said desistance means stopping and staying stopped.  The key question is, how do you get from being [...]

November 5, 2009   Posted in: Rehabilitation, Uncategorized  2 Comments

Fig leaves for a failing system

Tomorrow a fanfare will sound from Hounslow as Jack Straw and Boris Johnson descend onto Feltham Prison for the official opening of a 30 bed unit for children.
The unit is part of Project Daedalus, a major element of the mayor’s Time for Action programme. It promises to deliver two ‘innovations’: an enhanced resettlement regime, designed [...]

November 4, 2009   Posted in: Children and young people, Government policy, Prisons, Rehabilitation, Uncategorized  One Comment

Evidence based policy

So we have to have government policy making based on evidence, apart from when it isn’t. I do understand that politicians have to balance scientific or other independent recommendations, on drug policy or other matters, with a range of sometimes contradictory influences. Drug policy is highly charged and politically sensitive.
Whilst the government is considering the [...]

November 2, 2009  Tags:   Posted in: Government policy, Rehabilitation  One Comment

Work in prison: different European models

I was invited to Helsinki to give a presentation to the Finnish prison service about work in prisons. One day of the annual conference was held in English with simultaneous interpretation and about 140 people attended including the head of the service and the minister.
I am quite obsessed with work in prisons, so I found [...]

September 23, 2009  Tags: ,   Posted in: International, Prisons, Rehabilitation, Uncategorized  3 Comments

What happens on release matters

The two boys about to be sentenced to long terms of custody by an adult criminal court will be detained in local authority secure children’s homes.  There has been a lot of media coverage about their backgrounds and the horrible crime itself, but my concern is what is going to happen to them next. 
The case [...]

September 4, 2009  Tags: ,   Posted in: Children and young people, Rehabilitation  8 Comments

Community justice centres

The Times has a feature on research published by the Ministry of Justice showing no significant difference in re-offending rates between community courts and conventional courts.
Reader beware.  The research only deals with the first year of the community courts and says clearly that it takes time to bed new ideas into services and communities.  And [...]

July 28, 2009  Tags: ,   Posted in: Government policy, Rehabilitation, Sentencing  One Comment

Prisoners are citizens

I visited a prison in France for long term adult male prisoners last Friday. It held about 250 men mostly serving ten years to life, in rather ramshackle accommodation, but with a very secure outer perimeter that allowed for a more relaxed atmosphere inside. Two things really struck me.  Firstly, during a conversation about work [...]

February 2, 2009   Posted in: Rehabilitation  No Comments