Comment
23 July 2023

The Casey review called for the MPS to improve the protection it offers to women and children, “re-invest in and reprioritise frontline policing”, move rapidly to end discrimination in internal processes, radically enhance vetting and disciplinary procedures, and improve its leadership and accountability.

Comment
20 July 2023

It held my attention for some minutes, and set in train a memory of an emotionally charged supervisory experience during my time as a probation officer.

When I first met Candice (not her real name) she was in a distressed state. It soon became apparent that she was facing sentence at the Crown Court for importation of cannabis (at the time a class c drug).

Comment
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17 July 2023

While the police have a range of skills for identifying crime and apprehending suspects, they are clearly not the most appropriate arm of the state for managing complex social problems which disproportionately affect marginalised communities.

‘Defunding’ the police is about investing in agencies and communities that can expertly respond to social issues, and in the longer term, preventing many of the crises that might presently require a blue light response.

Comment
14 July 2023

“All money is dirty”, he replied, by way of an answer. “The question is, how much dirt are you comfortable with?”.

I was reminded of this exchange when, earlier this week, the Lankelly Chase Foundation – one of the UK’s larger grant-giving bodies – announced plans to abolish itself.

Comment
30 June 2023

On the first Wednesday of the month, starting this coming October, I will be chewing over the previous month’s developments in criminal justice with an expert panel of practitioners, policy experts and campaigners.

Comment
22 June 2023

At the time, I was working as a field probation officer in London. I was on office duty when Carter (not his real name) reported having moved into a hostel from another probation area. His probation order for drug-related offending was close to its conclusion.

Comment
19 June 2023

The desperate situation in many of our prisons – desperate for both prisoners and the staff who work in prisons – is one of the most conspicuous signs of a decade of decay. Conspicuous, that is, for those who work in and around prisons. The awful state of our prisons is almost entirely hidden from the wider public.

Comment
15 June 2023

Our database of sanctions for breach of Anti-Social Behaviour Injunctions (ASBIs) and other injunctions reported on the official site of for contempt of court now comprises 307 cases. In 11 per cent of cases (33) the judgments of the court mention mental health issues, including addiction.

Comment
30 May 2023

Not my words, but those of Andrea Albutt, President of the Prison Governors Association, speaking last week to MPs on the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Penal Affairs. It was a stark assessment by someone with over thirty years experience working in prisons.

Comment
26 May 2023

I was told by my managers that both companies were taking advantage of their position. The term “rotten contract” was used. Those same managers explained that both companies were too powerful and owned too much of the EM technology and intellectual property. They felt it was inappropriate that commercial companies had more knowledge than Government departments did about how electronic monitoring functioned.

Comment
24 May 2023

It brought to mind an episode from my time as a field probation officer. I had unknowingly met Amadi (not his real name) prior to being allocated as his supervising probation officer, when a raffish looking man had shouted out “Jah man” as I was entering the office.

Comment
19 May 2023

However, as a witness in the long running Serious Fraud Office investigations, I was obliged to remain silent while court cases were pursued against G4S and Serco employees.