‘Broadmoor Hospital has been told to make urgent changes after a report which highlighted the “overuse” of face-down restraints on patients. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated the high-security hospital in Berkshire “inadequate” after an inspection.’
BBC News, 16th September 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘A review of prison education to examine how it supports rehabilitation of different types of prison learners.’
Ministry of Justice, 11th September 2015
Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
‘The outcry over the new financial penalties for anyone convicted of a crime presents Michael Gove with a crucial test of his willingness to jettison flawed policies inherited from Chris Grayling, his predecessor as Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor.’
The Independent, 11th September 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘The deaths of four inmates in cells at Winchester prison in two months has prompted an investigation.’
BBC News, 10th September 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Michael Gove has taken the first steps in his plans to introduce an “earned release” scheme for prisoners in England and Wales by announcing a major review of education provisions in jails.’
The Guardian, 8th September 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Billions of pounds would be saved and crime would fall if the prison population were slashed by more than half, a penal reform charity claims.’
The Independent, 7th September 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘The below article by Philip Rule, barrister at No5 Chambers, aims to offer a new potential for those with learning disability and/or autism, their families, and the many charities and NGOs that fight for the rights of these groups, to ensure things are improved for such individuals.’
No. 5 Chambers, 2nd September 2015
Source: www.no5.com
‘Greece is not alone in suffering from budget cuts arising from the era of austerity. In the UK, local councils, libraries, museums – all public services have been cut. Criminal Justice has not escaped this cost-cutting. The consequence has been fewer police officers on the streets, less money for legal aid lawyers, and closures of Magistrates courts. Prisons too have been hit; the government has reduced the amount it spends running correctional facilities. This has meant fewer programs and services for prisoners, more austere prisons as well as more work for fewer prison officers.’
OUP Blog, 28th August 2015
Source: www.blog.oup.com
‘The number of the most dangerous male prisoners in England being held in a special “jail within a jail” system has doubled over the past decade, inspectors have revealed.’
The Guardian, 25th August 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
It is plain that across the board there is a desire for change in relation to women and criminal justice. Many examples exists of wonderful, creative, worthwhile and even evidently successful projects in relation to diverting women away from custody and improving conditions for women who lose their liberty. Research related to women and criminal justice is ongoing from a range of respected and vociferous advocates such as Women’s Breakout, The Prison Reform Trust, Women in Prison and Halsbury’s Law Exchange to name but a few – many working together to effect change. There is no doubt that evidence and recommendations from each of these respected bodies – and more alongside them – will call for real change, offering genuine educated and reasonable arguments for doing so. However arguably (at least for now), the real “power” lies with the Courts, ergo it is the Courts who need to be at the vanguard of change.
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 3rd August 2015
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
‘Research surrounding the imprisonment of women, indeed even the imprisonment of mothers, is not new. A plethora of researchers and scholars have explored the issues surrounding women and criminal justice with passion and tenacity, arguably all of whom have contributed to the evidence-laden pathway culminating in the inspirational and influential 2006 Corston Report.’
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 31st July 2015
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
‘More than 80 per cent of female prisoners have been locked up for non-violent offences such as shoplifting, new figures show, as a drive is launched to clear jails of women who pose no danger to the public.’
The Independent, 29th July 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Denying prisoners in England and Wales legal aid so they can effectively challenge the conditions under which they are held could be illegal, the court of appeal has ruled.’
The Guardian, 28th July 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘Michael Gove, the new Lord Chancellor and Minister of Justice, is settling in to his post. It has not been an easy start for him – there is an all-out strike by criminal lawyers, more Judicial Reviews lost in the High Court, strikes in other areas of his department and bad grammar on his desk already. And that is before any consideration is given to the main ‘task’ of his tenure – working out whether it is possible to scrap the Human Rights Act, and if so, what it can be replaced with.’
Halsbury’s Law Exchange, 21st July 2015
Source: www.halsburyslawexchange.co.uk
‘Banning smoking in prisons in England and Wales could make them more unstable, the Prison Governors Association (PGA) has warned.’
BBC News, 22nd July 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘As we contemplate the potential demise of the Human Rights Act 1998 in the UK (in no small part due to the decision in Hirst (No2) and its domestic application) it is worth considering what all this means for the protection of prisoners’ human rights in our domestic sphere, and the potential of either the courts or our democratic processes to recognise them.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 20th July 2015
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org/blog
‘Speech given at Prisoners Learning Alliance by Michael Gove.’
Ministry of Justice, 17th July 2015
Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice
‘Independent report reveals new details of how prison officers listened in to telephone calls between MPs and prisoners from their constituencies.’
Daily Telegraph, 17th July 2015
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
‘Education in prisons must be overhauled in order to tackle a “persistent failure to reduce re-offending”, the justice secretary is to say.’
BBC News, 17th July 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Rules restricting the number of books a prisoner can have have been overturned by Justice Secretary Michael Gove.’
BBC News, 12th June 2015
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
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