Beyond Reason – By Farah Damji
The Treatment of Women in the English Criminal Justice System , sponsored by Baroness Uddin of Bethnall Green.
This one year call for evidence and best practise for reducing reoffending and providing a humane, rights based approach to the 4000 incarcerated women in English prisons, is a call from women prisoners, on licence in the community and others living with the effects of being somehow involved in the criminal justice system, for improvement via a judge led inquiry.
Information will be disseminated via a prison magazine with content and case studies from women who have or continue to suffer injustice called The View. This will be celebrated at am event in Parliamnet on. XX DEC 2019 at an invitation only conference of the major stakeholders and service users with lived experience.
The data mining and gathering process will draw from the experiences of women in prison and on license in the community, and women affected by all aspects of the criminal justice system, from arrest and custody, through arraignment and court proceedings, into prison and resettlement , particularly the use of Approved Premises and the Parole process with a view to identifying how these various stages are affecting women in ways more significant to men and causing greater harm . We are starting with women because of the sharp increase in the number of women being recalled that clearly shows the system is failing them. 131% more women were recalled to prison in the year 2017 to 2018, compared with 28% more men. Then they are stuck in the interminable and opaque processes of the Parole Board and it can take upto 18 months for women to be granted an oral hearing and be released. Once appropriate systems and justice reinvestment into credible mental health services and community services is established, this model can be delivered across the male estate of approx. 85 000.
It appears that no Public Sector Equality Duty Gender impact assessment was ever completed by HM Government, when former Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling’s controversial Transforming Rehabilitation reforms were implemented. Women appear to be the human collateral, because more women are being returned to prison after release, on recall as National Probation Services just can not manage them. The service was split and is due to be reintegrated, but we are asking for root and branch reform of NPS and all the other statutory agencies that are dealing with women and a proper, accountable monitoring body to regulate and investigate issues that arise on women’s prisons, which are very different from those that arise in men's prisons. Self harm is at epidemic scales, deaths of women in custody are at the highest ever recorded rates. Our babies are dying due to the lack of care and accessible, decent healthcare services The cost to the NHS and Ministry of Justice in providing health care contracts to private companies and NHS Foundation Trusts exceeds £600m, but women cannot access those services.
The outcomes for women affected by the criminal justice statutory services is alarming, Prof Graham Towl confirmed last week that those effects continue long after release from prison, women on license in the community in the community under Probation, are 3 times more likely to commit suicide. NPS is a public protection agency but simultaneously acts as a quasi social service agency, yet there is no proper complaints or regulatory system. The Prison and Probation Ombudsman described the Probation Service's own complaints process as non compliant with its own processes and protocols. Where are women supposed to go, if the prison and probation complaints systems are not fit for purpose? Access to Justice policies have been superseded with Access to Digital Evidence policies which are non compliant with the Human Rights Act in that prisoners are simply not able to have their legal cases on a functioning laptop and all information has to be vetted by the prison security department, where the police operation of the prison service also sits. This is a breach of prisoners’ Art 5 and 6 rights, they cannot properly prepare for legal cases while remanded and the express legal privilege between a client and a solicitor could be broken by this policy. We have asked Prof Nils Meltzer to look at whether the Justice Inspectorates are compliant with their OPCAT obligations and to ask for an urgent inspection by his team, as the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Inhumane Treatment.
The average life expectancy of a woman in an English jail is 54 because healthcare provision is so bad and also inaccessible. There are no age specific clinics such as menopause clinics and with an ageing population, this needs to be addressed. The prevalence if Hep C and HIv is at epidemic rates, yet there is no specialist care and the over prescription if anti depressants and anti psychotic medication is alarming and far exceeds safe levels but women cannot access mental health talking therapies, so turn to self medication.
The effects of incarceration on women heavily outweigh those felt by men, because if societal and cultural norms in that women are overwhelmingly the caregivers for any small children and less that 1% of children will stay in the family home if a mother is incarcerated. Women are more likely to be incarcerated for a minor first offence (Prison Reform Trust , here is the link.
The purpose of this year long survey is to gather information and make an economic case to HM government and related departments within it, Home Office, Health and Social Care, DCLG and MoJ , to consider a program of radical justice reinvestment and decarceration, underpinned by accessible and decent mental health provision, via diversion through the courts and making judges responsible, as in the US Drug and DV Courts for ensuring that the woman is supported and compliant with the terms of a community order imposed by the Court. By diverting even half of the money into existing and newly formed mental health centres in the community, the exorbitant costs to the public purse of repeat reoffending , about £13bn a year will be dramatically reduced. We are working with a renowned economist to make the social impact and financial case for this approach (Guy Battle of the Social Value Portal).
There are five streams for this process and evidence will be gathered in 5 meetings from Dec 2019 to Dec 2020, from women with lived experience, their families, legal advisors and supporters, children and partners of women in the criminal justice system.
Key stakeholder(all TBC)
Reece Thomas Watson Solicitors, Uprise Policy Forum, Courtenay Griffiths QC, Counsel to the committee Prof Nils Melzer, UN SR for Torture and Inhumane Treatment, new economics foundation, Big Society Capital.
This one year call for evidence and best practise for reducing reoffending and providing a humane, rights based approach to the 4000 incarcerated women in English prisons, is a call from women prisoners, on licence in the community and others living with the effects of being somehow involved in the criminal justice system, for improvement via a judge led inquiry.
Information will be disseminated via a prison magazine with content and case studies from women who have or continue to suffer injustice called The View. This will be celebrated at am event in Parliamnet on. XX DEC 2019 at an invitation only conference of the major stakeholders and service users with lived experience.
The data mining and gathering process will draw from the experiences of women in prison and on license in the community, and women affected by all aspects of the criminal justice system, from arrest and custody, through arraignment and court proceedings, into prison and resettlement , particularly the use of Approved Premises and the Parole process with a view to identifying how these various stages are affecting women in ways more significant to men and causing greater harm . We are starting with women because of the sharp increase in the number of women being recalled that clearly shows the system is failing them. 131% more women were recalled to prison in the year 2017 to 2018, compared with 28% more men. Then they are stuck in the interminable and opaque processes of the Parole Board and it can take upto 18 months for women to be granted an oral hearing and be released. Once appropriate systems and justice reinvestment into credible mental health services and community services is established, this model can be delivered across the male estate of approx. 85 000.
It appears that no Public Sector Equality Duty Gender impact assessment was ever completed by HM Government, when former Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling’s controversial Transforming Rehabilitation reforms were implemented. Women appear to be the human collateral, because more women are being returned to prison after release, on recall as National Probation Services just can not manage them. The service was split and is due to be reintegrated, but we are asking for root and branch reform of NPS and all the other statutory agencies that are dealing with women and a proper, accountable monitoring body to regulate and investigate issues that arise on women’s prisons, which are very different from those that arise in men's prisons. Self harm is at epidemic scales, deaths of women in custody are at the highest ever recorded rates. Our babies are dying due to the lack of care and accessible, decent healthcare services The cost to the NHS and Ministry of Justice in providing health care contracts to private companies and NHS Foundation Trusts exceeds £600m, but women cannot access those services.
The outcomes for women affected by the criminal justice statutory services is alarming, Prof Graham Towl confirmed last week that those effects continue long after release from prison, women on license in the community in the community under Probation, are 3 times more likely to commit suicide. NPS is a public protection agency but simultaneously acts as a quasi social service agency, yet there is no proper complaints or regulatory system. The Prison and Probation Ombudsman described the Probation Service's own complaints process as non compliant with its own processes and protocols. Where are women supposed to go, if the prison and probation complaints systems are not fit for purpose? Access to Justice policies have been superseded with Access to Digital Evidence policies which are non compliant with the Human Rights Act in that prisoners are simply not able to have their legal cases on a functioning laptop and all information has to be vetted by the prison security department, where the police operation of the prison service also sits. This is a breach of prisoners’ Art 5 and 6 rights, they cannot properly prepare for legal cases while remanded and the express legal privilege between a client and a solicitor could be broken by this policy. We have asked Prof Nils Meltzer to look at whether the Justice Inspectorates are compliant with their OPCAT obligations and to ask for an urgent inspection by his team, as the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Inhumane Treatment.
The average life expectancy of a woman in an English jail is 54 because healthcare provision is so bad and also inaccessible. There are no age specific clinics such as menopause clinics and with an ageing population, this needs to be addressed. The prevalence if Hep C and HIv is at epidemic rates, yet there is no specialist care and the over prescription if anti depressants and anti psychotic medication is alarming and far exceeds safe levels but women cannot access mental health talking therapies, so turn to self medication.
The effects of incarceration on women heavily outweigh those felt by men, because if societal and cultural norms in that women are overwhelmingly the caregivers for any small children and less that 1% of children will stay in the family home if a mother is incarcerated. Women are more likely to be incarcerated for a minor first offence (Prison Reform Trust , here is the link.
The purpose of this year long survey is to gather information and make an economic case to HM government and related departments within it, Home Office, Health and Social Care, DCLG and MoJ , to consider a program of radical justice reinvestment and decarceration, underpinned by accessible and decent mental health provision, via diversion through the courts and making judges responsible, as in the US Drug and DV Courts for ensuring that the woman is supported and compliant with the terms of a community order imposed by the Court. By diverting even half of the money into existing and newly formed mental health centres in the community, the exorbitant costs to the public purse of repeat reoffending , about £13bn a year will be dramatically reduced. We are working with a renowned economist to make the social impact and financial case for this approach (Guy Battle of the Social Value Portal).
There are five streams for this process and evidence will be gathered in 5 meetings from Dec 2019 to Dec 2020, from women with lived experience, their families, legal advisors and supporters, children and partners of women in the criminal justice system.
- What is the process now? How is it letting women down? Is it gender informed?
- What works? Where is the evidence for it?
- What would it cost?
- What would the benefits be?
- What needs to be done? What next?
Key stakeholder(all TBC)
Reece Thomas Watson Solicitors, Uprise Policy Forum, Courtenay Griffiths QC, Counsel to the committee Prof Nils Melzer, UN SR for Torture and Inhumane Treatment, new economics foundation, Big Society Capital.
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