Raising standards and delivering new approaches Raising standards

Raising standards and delivering new approaches

Raising standards and delivering new approaches in resettlement Marie Orrell Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons

H. M. Inspectorate of Prisons • Provide independent scrutiny of the conditions for and treatment of prisoners and other detainees. • Also have a statutory responsiblility to inspect all immigration and removal centres along with short term holding facilities • Chief Inspector is independent of Prison Service • Research Team plus approximately 28 inspectors • 5 teams

The four tests of a healthy prison • • Safety Respect Purposeful Activity Resettlement NB Each prison receives a scored assessment against each test

Offender profile from SEU 2002 • • • At least 1 in 5 have hidden disabilities 52% of men and 71% of women have NO qualifications 67% are unemployed Compared to an 11 -year old: 80% have fewer writing skills, 65% lower numeracy skills and 50% read less well 60 -70% are using drugs 13 times more likely to have been in care 14 times more likely to have been unemployed 10 times more likely to have truanted Only 5% of children remain in the family home if the mother is sentenced to imprisonment

National Reducing Re-offending Delivery Board • Accommodation • Attitudes, Thinking and Behaviour • Children, Families and Community Support • Drugs and Alcohol • Employment, Learning and Skills • Finance, Benefit and Debt • Physical and Mental Health

Partnership • Work under pathways is delivered by public, private and voluntary sector • Must be ‘joined up’ to achieve results • Some pathways especially critical: – Employment can reduce risk of re-offending from 33 -50% – Stable housing can reduce re-offending by more than 20%

Accommodation • NFA • Services available to support prisoners on reception and preparing for release • Becoming a better tenant • Wrap- around projects- e. g. employment and accommodation • Peer advice projects • Links to Community Chaplaincy projects for vulnerable prisoners

Attitudes, thinking and behaviour • Range of accredited and non-accredited interventions available • Citizenship • Staff and mentors as ‘pro-social models’ • Empathic support- peer advisors • Active participation in sentence planning • Self value and achievement is recognised • Support through transition

Children and families • Ease of contact- phone calls and regular visits • Visits- family days, homework clubs, Storybook Dads, environment • Services for families- finance, accommodation, support on release • Family involvement with sentence planning • Family celebration of religious festivals • Awareness of special needs- links to local faith/ethnic communities

Drugs and alcohol • • Transition to relevant services Appropriate support Freedom in funding Problems with reduced funding for IDTS

Employment, learning and skills • • • Effective links with employers- local and strategic Meeting skills gaps-increasing employability Release on temporary licence Preparation for employment Maintaining learning Ongoing support for employers

Finance, benefit and debt • • • Support on reception and release Opening bank accounts- being ‘job ready’ Paying off arrears Money management Discharge packs for release

Physical and mental health • • Referral/handover to GP’s Medication on release Referral to specialist services Support- mentors/volunteers

What makes it happen? • • • Manageable population size, close enough to home Capacity to move prisoners to relevant interventions Agencies that can be flexible and respond quickly to emerging need Quality services that aren’t ‘led’ by personalities Non-judgemental approach Adequate, long term funding Strategic understanding of ‘fit’ i. e. into RRDP Projects that can move to scale quickly Ownership by strategic boards e. g. LSP’s, LAA’s Evaluation

Useful websites • www. inspectorates. justice. gov. uk/hmiprisons • www. noms. homeoffice. gov. uk • www. hmprisonservice. gov. uk