Sixth supplementary memorandum submitted
by the Ministry of Justice
£40 MILLION ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR PROBATION—WOMEN
SPECIFIC DELIVERABLES IN LOCAL PLANS
The additional funding was made available in
order to help manage the prison population, specifically to:
— facilitate the use of community orders
rather than short prison sentences where deemed appropriate by
the sentencing court; and
— iprove offender compliance with community
orders and licences thus reducing the need for breach and recall
action.
Projects and activities have therefore tended
to be developed around the business areas that would have the
biggest impact locally. There was no requirement, nor expectation
to allocate any of the funding to projects involving women offenders
specifically.
However, a number of areas have included specific
women related projects in their local plans:
WEST MIDLANDS
Delivery of intensive community orders. Additional
costs to be specified. Preliminary costing of Approved Premises
proposal is £50,000
WMPA must have an impact on sentencing in cases where
prison sentences of under 12 months are currently the norm. WMPA
has access to extensive data from the Connect Project to assist
its appreciation of the criminogenic needs of this particular
group. This impact will come via delivery of model combinations
11 (long unpaid work and curfew) and 12 (intensive control) of
requirements as originally framed with the launch of the Criminal
Justice Act 2003.
In terms of combination 11, WMPA is in partnership
with third sector providers who are able to give instruction to
offenders to report for unpaid work on 3 occasions a week. One
of these organisations specialises in working with women.
CAMBRIDGESHIRE
In preparing the plan, national and local sentencing
data has been reviewed and offender risk and need analysed in
order to identify the target group of offenders most likely to
receive a short prison sentence or to breach their supervision
and be returned to prison. We estimate that there are 92 offenders
in this target group. All the objectives in the national plan
were considered and options chosen that would maximise the impact
of increasing existing services and re-focussing our activity
to target this group. We intend to take into account the differing
needs of women, offenders from minority ethnic groups and young
adults.
HERTFORDSHIRE
Increasing Women's Safety Work provision
— Increase in-house provision by recruiting
additional women's safety workers
Partner with the third sector to provide women's
safety work
— HPA will partner with the third sector
to provide Women's safety work. This option is currently being
implemented and expected to be operational by July 2008.
GREATER MANCHESTER
Strengthen the use of community orders for female
offenders and improve compliance by:
Developing packages to divert women from custody
both at pre-sentence and sentence stages. This deliverable could
utilise and expand on a number of initiatives within the area
for female offenders.
LINCOLNSHIRE
Increase the range of interventions and penalties
available and proposed to courts in pre-sentence reports, notably
in relation to alcohol treatment, sustainable and supported accommodation,
debt and finance, with specific appropriate provision for women,
minority ethnic offenders and those whose first language is not
English
To be completed in Quarter 2:
1. Recruit and induct front line staff.
2. Deliver Specified Activities targeting ethnic
minority offenders and compliance.
3. Conference to launch Local Action with staff
and partnerships.
4. Review progress for improving provision for
women offenders and contingency for negotiating additional intervention/s.
5. Review progress for improving alcohol and
accommodation pathways and contingency for negotiating addition
treatment provision.
6. Review progress against Local Action Plan.
To be completed in Quarter 3:
1. Contingency—complete negotiation and
commence delivery of additional treatment provision to improve
alcohol pathway.
2. Contingency—complete negotiation and
commence delivery of additional provision for women offenders.
3. Review progress against Local Action Plan.
HUMBERSIDE
To reduce the proportion of women offenders
falling into breach and receiving short custodial sentences.
From June 2008:
— analyse current local/regional data
in relation to compliance issues faced by women offenders;
— facilitate user group discussions;
— enter discussions with partner agencies;
and
— develop group work/partnership options.
Reduction in women offenders receiving short
term custodial sentences by 10% from 25 to 22 in year.
NORTH YORKSHIRE
Provide a package of enhanced supervision for
targeted offenders, including women, to focus on social exclusion
issues.
Adult Attendance Centres:
— Research local provision and identify
best practice from other areas.
Research women's programmes as an alternative
to custody:
— Conduct local exercise to establish
if minority groups/women are disproportionately sentenced to custody
and devise strategy to address potential discrimination.
SOUTH YORKSHIRE
Contribute to regional review of service to
women offenders. When outcome and offender profile available explore
options for improved services to women.
WEST YORKS
Increase the use of residential requirements
as an alternative to custody at specialist APs (Ripon House for
women and Westgate Project—joint prison/probation partnership
providing for 18-25 year old men). Target 20 % of beds by March.
Action Plan with Partners to increase the number
of women at risk of a custodial sentence, who are referred to,
accepted and successfully worked with at Together Women and Evolve—plan
by June, implementation by October.
THAMES VALLEY
Implementation of findings from equality impact
research for black and minority ethnic communities, women and
young people in custody.
Fewer than 20 women offenders were sentenced to any
custody from TVP courts last year.
DEVON AND
CORNWALL
In order to target women who are at risk of
custody, or for whom there is no existing combination of requirements
which would enable a community order to be made, we will develop
proposals for an alternative model which offers facilities for
women offenders in the south west. We are already raising the
needs of women offenders through the LAA's, particularly in the
Plymouth Unitary Authority. (Deliverable 3)
To provide accommodation for hard to each offender
groups—timescale to be identified.
To develop services for targeted groups of offenders,
including women and drug misusing male offenders.
LONDON
This is an opportunity to provide more effective
provision for women offenders who are over-represented in this
group.
Undertake needs analysis in partnership with HMPS
to provide targeted services to women offenders in line with the
recommendations outlined in the Corston Report.
April 2009
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