Written evidence from Women in Prison
(PB 53)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Based on our experience as a voluntary sector agency
delivering services to women in the criminal justice system, including
women subject to probation supervision, this submission focuses
on two of the eight questions asked:
Does the probation service handle women offenders
appropriately?
What role should the voluntary sector play in
the delivery of probation services?
Our submission draws on our day-to-day experience
of supporting women at all stages of the criminal justice system
and from the experiences of our clients.
Does the probation service handle women offenders
appropriately?
Despite positive developments, such as the Women's
Programme and the relationships developed with women's centres/one-stop-shops
and other women-sector support services the probation service
still fails to provide an appropriate response to sufficient numbers
of women. Particular concerns are:
— lack
of access to women-specific accredited programmes;
— lack
of women-specific support from individual probation officers,
in particular in relation to women who have experienced domestic
violence or sexual abuse and women who are mothers;
— lack
of safety in mixed gender probation offices; and
— lack
of approved premises.
What role should the voluntary sector play in
the delivery of probation services?
The voluntary sector can play an important role in
delivering specialist services to women offenders. However, this
must not come at the expense of a fully independent women's criminal
justice voluntary sector able to support women.
A model of payment by results for rehabilitation
work presents a risk to the survival of effective services where
they are specialist and women-specific and therefore presents
a risk to women. To avoid this there will need to be a specific
framework for payment by results for women in the criminal justice
system.
INTRODUCTION
1. Women in Prison works with 2,000 women each
year, as well as women currently in custody this includes women
supervised by the probation service. We do not deliver sentence
requirements and engagement with our services is never mandatory.
The following evidence is based on our experience of supporting
women supervised by probation and the direct experiences of women
supervised by probation. The experiences of the women we work
with are captured through focus groups held earlier this year,
women's conversations with their key workers and women's contributions
to Women Moving Forward (our client campaign group). Feedback
about probation from our clients is not attributed to individual
women but grouped according to common themes. Some of their experiences
are generic but many are gender based. It is these women-specific
experiences of probation that this submission focuses on.
2. The disadvantage experienced by women (ex)offenders
is well documented and does not need to be covered here in detail,
however it serves to note:
— Women are just 5% of the
prison population, and
— Women are around 13% of
the probation caseload.
As a result of being a minority women are overlooked
in the criminal justice system and services for women, including
those provided by probation, are under-resourced.
3. Women in Prison has positive working relationships
with many probation areas across the country, we deliver training
to probation staff on working with women and receive many of our
referrals from probation. We are also aware of the resource constraints
which the probation service faces. However, this does not limit
the necessity of highlighting such failings as we see as well
as sharing examples of good practice.
4. It should be noted at the outset that women
are not a homogenous group, just as probation staff are not, and
therefore not all women experience probation in the same way,
however, there is some commonality in women's experiences.
Does the probation service handle different groups
of offenders appropriately, eg women, young adults, black and
minority ethnic people, and high and medium risk offenders?
Women
5. There have been positive developments, most
notably the Women's Programme and the funding of women-specific
voluntary sector support services, however there continues to
be too little provision specifically for women. As a result the
women we work with are often negative about their experiences
of probation for the reasons explored below.
6. It has been stated in report after report
that responses to women offenders are under-resourced. Reasons
for this include women's status as a minority of the probation
caseload and the emphasis on resourcing work with the most high-risk
offenders. Whilst it is right that resources are directed at ensuring
public safety, they should also be directed at effectively reducing
reoffending.
7. Without gender-specific targets work with
women is disincentivised for probation because even a substantial
reduction in women's reoffending will not register within statistics
which are not gender disaggregated.
Policy
8. There are a number of policy documents relating
to women offenders and the probation service. In particular we
would highlight the post-Corston policy documents the Offender
Management Guide to Working with Women and the National Service
Framework. These documents evidence that there is a recognition
within NOMS centrally that there is a need to deliver women-specific
services and programmes for women offenders. However, this has
not translated into practice in every probation office across
the country.
9. The identification of two women-specific pathways
to reduce re-offending (pathway 8: support for women who have
been abused, raped or who have experienced domestic violence and
pathway 9: support for women who have been involved in prostitution)
was a very positive step. However, these have not been mainstreamed
into NOMS' work in the way one would hope. As described below
women continue to get inadequate support from probation due to
a lack of awareness on probation's part regarding violence against
women.
Women's Champions
10. Every Probation Trust has an appointed women's
champion leading on women for that area. This is a positive step
in helping to keep women on the agenda for probation areas. As
with all such champion or lead posts the effectiveness very much
depends on the individual and on the area's commitment to providing
distinct support for women.
Relationship with the Women's Voluntary Sector—Women's
Diversion Projects
11. The provision of funding from the Ministry
of Justice to VCS organisations to divert women from custody has
increased the number of projects working specifically with women
offenders across the country. This funding has enabled the provision
of specialist women-specific support services which probation
would be unable provide. Key to the projects has been integrated
support, responding to a woman's needs across all areas of her
life and not just in relation to her offending (because support
across all areas of a woman's life is key to addressing the root
causes of her offending).
12. The projects are now managed by NOMS at a
regional level. Whilst in many areas this has strengthened relationships
between probation and the women's criminal justice voluntary sector
relationships between the projects and NOMS vary greatly from
region to region. For example some projects are receiving referrals
and in-kind support (participation in training etc.) whilst others
have problems engaging with probation and are not receiving referrals
from them. As a national organisation the regional difference
in probation trust attitude to the women's community projects
is clear to us.
Women's Participation in Accredited Programmes
13. The lack of provision of women-specific programmes
is a serious failing. Women are in many instances given orders
to attend programmes that do not address the root causes of their
offending because they are designed for the majority male offender
population.
14. The probation service has just one accredited
programme for women: the Women's Programme a 20-30 session programme
designed specifically for women. Overall this programme gets a
positive response from the women who participate in it. It is
important that there is an accredited programme designed specifically
for women rather than adapted from a programme for a male cohort.
In some areas this programme is run in women's centres, thus facilitating
access to other services.
15. However, the programme is not run in every
probation area in the country and where it is run, because of
its group size and eligibility criteria, not all women can access
it. For example in London the programme is only delivered in Camden
and Lewisham, making it harder to access for women from other
boroughs. The programme is focussed on acquisitive crime and offending
motivated by financial gain and therefore not available to women
whose offences do not fall into these categories. We have submitted
a freedom of information request to find out how many women are
able to access the Women's Programme in the last year.
16. Unfortunately, despite the policy documents
listed above and the advent of women's champions there is a lack
of understanding within some probation trusts of the need for
separate provision for women.
Women's Experience of Probation Officers/Offender
Managers
17. In our focus groups, in women's regular conversations
with key workers and in our Women Moving Forward client campaign
group a key concern is that probation officers do not understand
women's distinct experiences and needs. As a result they are not
able to offer relevant information or support. Women reported
a lack of awareness amongst probation staff about services for
women, not just services for women offenders (sadly these are
few and far between even following the MOJ funding) but any services
directed specifically at women, for example women's employment
projects. The lack of women-specific information and guidance
covers the full range of women's experiences, from employment
advice to signposting sexual or domestic violence services.
Women Who Have Experienced Domestic Violence or
Sexual Abuse
18. Despite the recognition of domestic violence
and sexual abuse as root causes of offending behaviour by NOMS
(in the form of Pathways 8 and 9 outlined above) there is little
understanding of this by some probation officers. For example,
clients who have been sexually abused report that they feel that
probation has little or no understanding of this and its impact
on types of offending behaviour, adult relationship choices and
drug use. Just over 80% of the women we work with report that
they have experienced domestic violence or sexual abuse. Given
the shocking prevalence and the recognised impact on offending
behaviour it is unacceptable that frontline probation staff are
not equipped to respond appropriately to disclosures of violence
and abuse that women have experienced.
Safety at probation offices
19. We have serious concerns about women's safety
at mixed gender probation offices. Women report that they are
subject unpleasant, derogatory and abusive language in waiting
areas at probation offices from other probation clients. This
intimidating behaviour is also witnessed by our support staff
when accompanying women to probation appointments. When reporting
that they feel unsafe to probation staff women tell us that their
concerns are dismissed and they are told nothing can be done.
20. It is unacceptable that women are harassed
in probation premises and unacceptable that they are made to continue
to attend at times and in places in which they feel unsafe. Probation
offices that fail to overcome this problem are putting women at
risk and increasing the likelihood of breach by making women attend
somewhere they feel at risk.
21. Probation areas have sought in some cases
to overcome this by offering women-only reporting times or meeting
women in other locations. For example, in some areas probation
staff will meet clients in more appropriate settings, such as
women's centres. Our support workers regularly attend probation
with clients in order to help give them the confidence to attend
and ensure that they are safe.
Approved Premises
22. Probation fail in many areas to provide appropriate,
safe approved premises for women. The last remaining women-only
approved premises in London, Kelley House, was closed last year
because it was unsafe. In focus groups carried out in 2007 one
client told us that she had scored drugs within five minutes of
entering Kelley House. A client in a different location reported
to us that women were bringing punters into the approved premises
she was in.
23. Approved premises for women need to be women-only
spaces and need to be supplemented with adequate levels of support.
It is unacceptable that women are placed at risk in premises they
are required to stay in.
Mothers
24. Women who are mothers of dependent children
experience additional problems with probation. A widespread problem
is the lack of childcare facilities at probation offices. Some
women are clear that they do not want their children in their
probation appointments. Others have been told that they are not
allowed to bring them in with them. However, many women have no
choice but to bring their children with them as there is no one
else to care for them. This causes particular stress and distress
to women given the threatening nature of mixed probation offices
as they do not want to have to expose their children to this.
An associated problem is that of giving mothers appointments at
time that means that they have to bring their children (rather
than during the school day) or appointments at times which make
dropping off or collecting children more difficult.
25. A lack of childcare facilities or consideration
for caring responsibilities should not be a barrier to women attending
probation appointments, or other requirements of their sentence.
Black and Minority Ethnic Women
26. The lack of specific programme provision
or specialist probation officers is even more acute for women
experiencing multiple discrimination, for example because of their
race and their gender. Clients report that prejudice they have
felt and the lack of understanding on the part of their probation
officers has prevented them from speaking opening or asking for
support.
What role should the private and voluntary sectors
play in the delivery of probation services?
Voluntary Sector
27. A move to commissioning more of probation's
services from the voluntary sector could lead to an increase in
much needed specialist services and better integration with a
range of support services. However, it must not come at the expense
of an independent voluntary criminal justice sector that is able
to provide the support it sees as being needed and not just the
support probation commissioners want to pay for nor at the expense
of a sector able to speak up for its clients where it sees probation
service failings.
What Women Say
28. It is essential that independent voluntary
sector support is available to women subject to probation supervision.
Focus groups with our clients (carried out in two prisons in 2010)
tell us that women in the criminal justice system value our service
because we are independent of statutory services. The women we
spoke to saw the value of having joined up voluntary and statutory
services (a common complaint from women is that they are faced
with a bewildering number of agencies to interact with). However,
they felt the divide between statutory services and the services
they choose to attend was important. Women expressed concerns
about blurring the lines between agencies that can recall them
to prison and those that can't and felt that the government should
not "pass the buck" for their responsibilities onto
the voluntary sector.
Payment by Results
29. Much has been said about the role of payment
by results in the "rehabilitation revolution" and it
is clear this is the preferred model for funding voluntary and
private sector work in this field. If this model is adopted care
must be taken to ensure that small, local and specialist services
are eligible for commissions. Moreover, a separate framework for
funding will be needed for women offenders. Without a specific
funding framework work with women will be disincentivised because
of their small numbers and once again women will be expected to
benefit from services designed for male offenders which are blind
to their distinct experiences and the different root causes of
their offending.
ORAL EVIDENCE
We would like to provide oral evidence to the Committee
as part of this inquiry. We would also like to arrange for members
of our client campaign group Women Moving Forward to give oral
evidence, enabling the Committee to hear directly from women with
experience of the probation service.
October 2010
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