JUSTICE with prison philanthropist Edwina Grosvenor

In this episode we explore diversion schemes for women, and what role they play in preventing women from being unnecessarily drawn further into the criminal justice system. Edwina speaks to Pamela Price South London Women's Hubs Manager, and Miranda Dobson Head of Communications from Women in Prison (WIP) to learn more about the diversion scheme they run in South London, linked to their women’s centres. The programme aims to provide early intervention and support for women who have been taken into police custody, addressing underlying issues such as housing, poverty, and substance use. This episode highlights the challenges faced by women in the criminal justice system, including the stigma and shame associated with criminalisation, particularly for mothers, and explores the positive outcomes diversion schemes can have – such as improvements in mental health, relationships, and well-being.  Learn more about the work of Women in Prison here: www.womeninprison.org.ukFollow them on X @WIP_live, on Instagram @womeninprisonuk, and on LinkedIn @Women in Prison.Twitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company

In this episode our Women’s Involvement Advisor Lilly Lewis explores Problem Solving Courts for women with Dr Alexandria Bradley Senior Lecturer in Criminology, and Dr Sarah Waite Senior Lecturer in Law and Criminology from Leeds Beckett University. Alexandria and Sarah are currently evaluating Greater Manchester’s Problem Solving Court for Women, a community justice initiative Lilly also knows well from her work supporting women in the Manchester area. The Problem Solving Court in Greater Manchester is a process in which the woman, the courts, probation services and women’s centres work together to support the woman to adhere to her court order and to achieve positive outcomes for herself.  The episode looks at how the approach works and what the evaluation will explore, as well as broader discussions on what a trauma informed community justice system could look like and what support services are needed. Learn more about Greater Manchester’s Problem Solving court in a blog by Fiona Deacon, Strategic Lead for Women for Greater Manchester Probation: https://www.russellwebster.com/the-greater-manchester-problem-solving-court/ Learn more about the work of Dr Alexandria Bradley here: https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/staff/dr-alexandria-bradley/ and find them on X: @DrAlexandriaB Learn more about the work of Dr Sarah Waite here: https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/staff/sarah-waite/ and find them on X: @DrSWaite1Twitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company

In this episode we look at what’s needed to prevent young women getting caught up in the justice system and what community-based solutions are needed. Lilly is joined by Indy Cross, CEO of Agenda Alliance, who shares learning from their Young Women’s Justice Project. In partnership with the Alliance for Youth Justice, the project engages with young women, front-line practitioners and other experts, with the aim to build a strong evidence base and influence practice and policy to better meet the needs of young women in contact with, or at risk of being in contact with the justice system. We also speak with a young woman Caiyan from Daddyless Daughters, a key partner in the Young Women’s Justice Project, who shares her insights into what support should be provided. Daddyless Daughters supports girls and young women who have been affected by family breakdown, abuse and adversity across London between the age of 11 – 25 years old. Aliyah Ali, Founder of the organisation, also joins us to share more about their mission. Learn more:Agenda Alliance work to promote understanding of, and encourage systems and services to respond better to, the experiences of women and girls with multiple or complex unmet needs. Learn more about Agenda Alliance https://www.agendaalliance.org/ and on X: @Agenda_alliance ,Instagram: @agenda_alliance Read the Young Women’s Justice project reports and find out more about the project: https://www.agendaalliance.org/our-work/projects-and-campaigns/young-womens-justice-project/ Learn more about Daddyless Daughters https://www.daddylessdaughters.co.uk/ X: @theddproject_ , Instagram: @daddyless_daughtersTwitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company

This episode celebrates the one year anniversary of Hope Street opening, our residential community for women and their children in contact with the Justice System. Edwina and the team look back at our service design and intentions and reflects on the first-year and the challenges and opportunities so far. This episode draws on previous interviews for the JUSTICE podcast such as with Lilly Lewis, One Small Thing’s Women’s Involvement Advisor exploring why a different kind of approach and space for women in the Justice system was needed. It also examines the design of the project with Mike Worthington, lead architect on Hope Street and Dr Madeline Petrillo, Associate professor of Criminology from Greenwich University who has been researching the co-production design process we used. We hear from Hope Street evaluation lead Dr Emma Plugge from the University of Southampton on the learning we hope to gather over coming years. To mark one year we also spoke to the CEO of One Small Thing Claire Hubberstey and a number of the team at Hope Street on how the first year has gone and their challenges, successes and hopes for Hope Street. Learn more about Hope Street www.onesmallthing.org.uk/hopestreetFollow us on Instagram  @hopestreet_ostTwitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company. 

In this episode we explore suspended sentences and what a presumption against short prison sentences really means. With the election this year, it is not clear which policies will be upheld if there is a change in Government, however recently Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk announced intentions to introduce a presumption against sentences of less than 12 months in England and Wales, in favour of these short sentences being suspended in the community. Experts Dr Shona Minson and Dr. Cyrus Tata discuss the effectiveness of this policy in Scotland since it was introduced over a decade ago, finding little impact on reducing custody rates. They explore the proposed legislation in England and Wales, challenging assumptions around it’s suggested impact, and highlighting that without both clarity of vision and proper investment in community support, prison will often be used as the default. We explore how vital community support services, such as women’s centres, are for women involved in the justice system, 66% of whom receive sentences of less that 12 months and would therefore have their sentences suspended under the new presumption. Learn more about Dr Cyrus Tata https://www.strath.ac.uk/staff/tatacyrusprof/ and find them on Twitter @CyrusTata1 Learn more about Dr Shona Minson https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/people/shona-minson and find them on Twitter @ShonaMinsonTwitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company. 

Introducing our new series of JUSTICE where we will be exploring community justice solutions for women. What are community justice solutions? And why are they important for women? For the first time, this series will be co-hosted by Edwina Grosvenor with One Small Thing’s Women’s Involvement Advisor Lilly Lewis. Along with expert guests we’ll delve into different sentencing options, and initiatives aimed at keeping women in the community, as well as prevention and diversion. Importantly, we’ll be highlighting why it’s vital we stop sending women to prison unnecessarily, and focus on providing support within communities.  Our JUSTICE podcast series exploring community justice solutions will be out this Summer. To keep up to date with all the latest episode releases subscribe to JUSTICE, and follow us on X @OSTCharity.

In this week’s episode, we continue our exploration of transformational spaces by looking at an example of trauma informed design from further afield. Edwina speaks to Samantha Donnelly, an architect and lecturer at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. Samantha is also a PHD Candidate, her thesis focusing on how trauma informed design can benefit the experiences of women, children and staff in domestic abuse refuges. Edwina and Samantha discuss how trauma informed design, and buildings can impact the lives of people who are in vulnerable situations. Samantha shares more about some of the issues she has encountered as an architect in designing spaces for women in refuge, as well as the design solutions she has found to supporting women to feel safe in their surroundings.  Learn more about Samantha Donnelly’s work here: https://profiles.uts.edu.au/Samantha.Donnelly/aboutRead more about the One Small Thing charity here.Twitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company. 

In this week's episode, Edwina speaks to Are Høidal, Senior Advisor for the Norwegian Correctional Service. Are has over 30 years’ experience of being a Governor in Norway’s prison system, first in Oslo Prison, and then in internationally renowned Halden Prison for 14 years. Are was heavily involved in the radical transformation of the Norwegian Prison Service in the 1990s, which led to the dramatic reduction in recidivism which now stands at a world leading 20%. The changes in the 1990s saw the Norwegian prison service professionalise the frontline workforce and radically change their training. Another key element of this was designing prisons to be places of rehabilitation, and to simulate life outside of prison as far as possible. Halden Prison is a prime example of this. Designed to simulate a village, the architecture aims to minimise residents' sense of incarceration, avoid psychological pressures, conflicts, and interpersonal friction, whilst maintaining security. In this episode Are shares his experience of working in Halden Prison, how the environment differed from Oslo prison, and whether he thinks Halden, despite the international praise it has received, can ever be considered a ‘healing space’.  Are has written a book, ‘The Norwegian Prison System, Halden Prison and Beyond’. Learn more about his book here.Read more about the One Small Thing charity here.Twitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company. 

In this episode Edwina explores prison design and architecture. Throughout history prisons have been places purposefully designed to be oppressive and punitive. However today, there is growing consensus that conditions inside prison should not be part of the punishment, and that if custody is appropriate at all, prisons should in fact be spaces that support change and growth. The question remains - can spaces designed to deprive people of their liberty ever be conducive to healing? And to what extent? In this episode we explore these questions with Yvonne Jewkes, Professor of Criminology at the University of Bath. Yvonne’s research area is prison architecture and design, and she has consulted on prison design projects around the world. In this episode we explore Yvonne’s work designing the new women’s prison in Limerick, Ireland. Yvonne reflects on the process of working on this project, and the completed results, and speaks more broadly about the tension between designing prisons for women, and advocating for less women in prison. Yvonne has written a personal and professional memoir, An Architecture of Hope: Reimagining the Prison, Restoring a House, Rebuilding Myself, which will be published by Scribe in Autumn 2024. You can learn more about Limerick Prison here:https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/limerick-womens-prison-an-architecture-of-hopeFollow Yvonne on Twitter @YvonneJewkesRead more about the One Small Thing charity here.Twitter - @OSTCharityThis podcast is created and produced by The London Podcast Company.