In this episode, we hear from Dame Vera Baird about how to harness momentum following the publication of the Women’s Justice Board report in March. Dame Vera explains why she is optimistic for the future of women’s justice and calls for a co-ordinated approach involving multiple government departments and the commitment of key ministers to take reforms forward.
In this discussion, Edwina and Vera talk about the urgent need to address the root causes of women's involvement in the justice system, such as domestic and sexual abuse. Vera describes how a future Women's Justice Board should be set up in a similar way to the Youth Justice Board - one which is permanently in place and has its own statutory responsibilities for shaping the approach of the criminal justice system to women - in exactly the same way that the YJB has successfully done.
Dame Vera reflects on her extensive career working in criminal justice with roles including Victims’ Commissioner, Solicitor General and Police & Crime Commissioner for Northumbria. She discusses her early career as a barrister, where she rarely represented women, and her transition to handling domestic abuse cases, particularly those involving women who fought back against abusive partners.
Moving forward, they discuss the importance of working with the Judicial College and Government so magistrates’ courts become a court of record and that magistrates are trained on the new sentencing powers under the Sentencing Act, so that decisions can be properly reviewed and magistrates are held to account.
LinkedIn accounts to tag are:
@verabaird
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