newsWinter 2005/06

13

niacro and theadult offenderhighlighting ourwork with adults

reachoutand jobtrackniacro’s majoremployability programmes

doingthe prepthe work of theeducational trust

ni prisonserviceniacro interviewsthe head of nips

also in this issue:

NIACRO’s current corporate planruns from 2003 – 2006, so we arein the throes of preparing our newplan to come on stream on 1 April2006. While our core business isnot likely to change fundamentally,three years can bring about bigdevelopments which need to betaken into account. There have

been significant policydevelopments like the outworkingof the Criminal Justice Review,proposals for new equalitylegislation, the introduction ofASBOs and many more.

For NIACRO, too, there have beensignificant developments – linkswith Community Safety

NIACRO CORPORATEPLAN 2006–2009

Partnerships; a new and verysuccessful mentoring service foryoung people; more focussed workwith children of prisoners; theChildren and Parents service; therenewal of the major Jobtrackprogramme described on page 7;the Educational Trust work movingup a gear with Peace II funding;new partnerships with the NIHousing Executive, DEL andBusiness in the Community. Andof course we moved into our newoffices in Amelia Street.

It has been particularly gratifyingto see NIACRO increasingly valued,consulted and engaged byGovernment and the statutoryagencies. An independent, flexibleand committed voluntary/community sector is a key player inany balanced society. As thecriminal justice system adapts to apost-conflict, 21st century role,this fact has been recognised bythe Justice OversightCommissioner, who commented inhis second report that “[thevoluntary bodies’] experiencequalifies them to give advice whichdeserves to be heard. One factorwhich is to be respected is theirindependence, which gives addedvalue to their contribution…

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Alan Shannon, Permanent Secretary, DSD; Peter Crossan;Wendy Alexander CEO of Volunteer Development Agency

Being a Mentor(see page 15)

agm

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Their freedom and ability torespond quickly and efficiently toimmediate demands is somethingto be treasured…”

Over the last few months, we havebeen discussing the sort of shapethe new corporate plan shouldtake. Three internal sessionsincluded a residential for all staff,and the Executive Committee hasalso considered the new plan indetail. We discussed it withvolunteers at the celebration eventdescribed in the last NIACRO News(see photo on page 15). On 12December we met stakeholdersfrom the criminal justice sector,and welcomed their contributions -both thoughtful and thought-provoking. On 12 January we metwith other partners andorganisations with an interest inour work.

Putting all that together, we willconsult formally over the next fewweeks, and the ExecutiveCommittee will then sign the planoff.

NIACRO’s AGM was held on 24November, with around 70members and well-wishers turningup to conduct the necessaryformal business of a registeredcharity, and to hear from staff andExecutive about the work of the2004 – 2005 financial year. Wewelcome Joanne McKenna to theExecutive, and say goodbye withour thanks to Rose AnnMcCormick and Gus Campbell.

As is our custom, we rounded offthe AGM with a seminar, this yearfocussing on resettlement andrehabilitation.

The keynote speaker was DrShadd Maruna, Reader inCriminology at the School of Lawat Queen’s University, speakingon “Restorative re-integration;helping offenders rebuild theirlives”. Different people meandifferent things by “reintegration”“rehabilitation” and the rest ofthe terminology that is used moreor less approximately with more orless understanding by the people

who use it. Drawing onUS and GB public policy,Shadd gave examples ofhow draconian, negativeand short-term policiescould be given the samepositive-sounding label as

genuinely innovative, supportiveand effective interventions.

Moving into more unfamiliarterritory, Shadd suggested thatwe need “restorative re-integration”, which would becommunity-led; focussed onreparation; with some sort ofpublic, symbolic “re-integrationrituals”. The role of the state inthis process would be to support,enhance and work with what hedescribed as the community’s“natural” way of working.

Two NIACRO staff membersdescribed their work inreintegration – Declan McKee’scase studies of two of his clients isdescribed in the context ofJobtrack, and Denise MacDermott described the mentoringservice which has beenhighlighted in the last couple ofissues of NIACRO News.

One of the developmentsannounced at the AGM was astreamlined membership system,with a £30 life membershipsubscription. Why not join?You’ll find a membership form inthis issue.

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To ensure that you get a copy ofthe consultation document,

contact Jackie Junk at

jackie@niacro.co.uk

NIACRO President Lord Hylton,Chair Richard Buchanan andTreasurer Patrick Farry at the AGM Olwyn Lyner and Shadd Maruna at the AGM

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NIACRO &THE ADULTOFFENDERThis issue of NIACRO News featuresour work with adult offenders and ex-offenders. This work links two of ourcurrent strategic aims: “Supportingoffenders and ex-prisoners in thecommunity” and “Working withprisoners”.

So: how many people are wetalking about?The NIO published its latestcommentary on NI crime statistics inAugust 2005. In 2004-2005, thepolice recorded 118,000 offences, thelowest figure since 1998-1999. Therewere almost 31,000 courtprosecutions, and over 27,500 peoplereceived some sort of sentence.

Figures from the prison service showthat in 2004-2005, there were anaverage of 1277 people in prison here,30 (around 2%) of them women.

In September 2005, 133 people wereserving a life sentence, and the largestsingle group of prisoners - defined bythe length of their sentence - wasmade up of those serving five to tenyears (150). The most commonoffences, measured by the number ofprisoners serving sentences for theoffence, were violence against theperson, robbery, and sexual offences.There were 76 “separated prisoners”,that is, loyalist or republican prisonerswho have applied to be, and beenapproved as being, accommodatedseparately from each other and fromthe rest of the prison population.

Adult offenders formed the core groupwhom NIACRO was set up to help, in1971 (yes, we will indeed becelebrating our 35th anniversary thisyear). Over all that time, a coreelement of our work has been aroundemployment and employability. Whyis that so important? Employment foran ex-prisoner is not only of value initself, but is a key factor in helpingpeople stay out of the criminal justicesystem in the future. This isrecognised not least by the ex-prisoners themselves, but also by awealth of academic research, by theCriminal Justice Review and by theNIPS resettlement strategy.

It is worth drawing the distinctionbetween “employment” and“employability”. Many of NIACRO’sclients find themselves far away fromthe labour market. Statutorytraining and back-to-workprogrammes can feel very alien totheir experience and capabilities.That’s even before they face up tothe undoubted reluctance of mostemployers to take them on. What isneeded is a high level of support andencouragement, with a strongelement of life skills training,personal development, building self-confidence and motivation. It’sabout bringing people to the startingline. These are the characteristics ofNIACRO’s work; you can read abouttwo significant employability/trainingprogrammes, Jobtrack andReachOut, in this issue. Whileattracting different target groups,the programmes share somepractical approaches – the use of aparticular assessment tool, forexample – and the goal of increasingemployability. Some clients doindeed move fairly straight intoemployment, but being able toaccess mainstream programmes likeNew Deal is also a success. There isalso a growing interest in measuring“soft outcomes” - things likeincreased self-confidence - whichmay reflect a real transformation in aperson’s life and should be notedand celebrated.

Employers are key to the ultimatesuccess of our work, and we haveincreased our direct contact withthem over the years. You can readlater about our services toemployers.

In this area as in others, NIACRO istrying to influence public policy onbehalf of offenders, ex-offenders andtheir families. In the context ofemployability, we have focussed onemployment policies, especiallyrecruitment and selection, androutinely respond to consultationsfrom public authorities on theseissues.

A consultation which had majorimplications for the rights ofNIACRO’s client group was theSingle Equality Bill, designed toharmonise and extend the anti-discrimination and equalitylegislation in the context ofemployment and training.

There is no existing legislationprotecting people with convictionsfrom discrimination – rehabilitationof offenders law only says thatpeople may not have to disclose aconviction after a period of time. Toillustrate the point: NIACRO can citethe example of someone havingdisclosed a conviction (not relevantto the post); being appointed; thenbeing sacked after five weeks by anarea manager who said he shouldnever have been appointed as it was“company policy not to employpeople with convictions”.

Could there be any clearer evidenceof discrimination? This is of coursethe old blanket rejection whichunderlay all the other grounds nowcovered by law; can we imaginetoday a declaration that it was“company policy not to employwomen/Catholics/disabled people?”And yet there was a time when someemployers would have felt quitecomfortable about using suchphrases.

And so NIACRO works with adultoffenders in the multi-faceted waywe approach all our work – givingpractical direct services toindividuals; evaluating those servicesso that we can continually learn fromand improve them; buildingpartnerships with otherorganisations who have similargoals; raising awareness of theissues; lobbying and campaigning forfair treatment and appropriate publicpolicy. The following articleshighlight those processes in moredetail.

&employmentemployability

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EQUALITY IN ACTIONEQUAL is a European funding programme designedto promote equality and challenge discrimination.Not the richest or the biggest ofthe EU programmes, itnevertheless has the potential tomake a real difference to people’saccess to the labour market, for asthe Head of the EQUAL Unit in

resettlement matters and the threeorganisations share plenty ofcommon ground.

Partnership is becomingincreasingly important in UK publicpolicy, and the EQUAL DPs have

the transnational partners fromFinland, Greece and theNetherlands, as well as GreatBritain, pooled their experienceand opinions so they could learnfrom each other’s work.

The evaluation of PPS showed thata total of 415 people hadbenefited from its services andsupport. Some of them sharedtheir views of the experience –

“I have had regular contact withthe project since release and I havepassed literacy and numeracycourses.”

“Without the project I wouldn’thave bothered because I hategoing to job centres.”

“This time, I had moreopportunities coming out of jailthan I did before I went in!”

“I have had regular contact with theproject since release and I havepassed literacy courses”Brussels put it, “It’s a new way oftackling old problems.” The oldproblems being the barriers thatsome groups in society – includingex-prisoners – still face in getting ajob.

EQUAL projects are carried out byDevelopment Partnerships, groupsof organisations who cometogether to design and deliver aprogramme of work which isrelevant to their individual goalsand objectives. NIACRO led aDevelopment Partnership in thefirst round of EQUAL, which ranfrom 2001 to 2005. We called theproject Personal ProgressionSystem, and it was designed tohelp ex-prisoners get ready toaccess the job market.

NIACRO has a long track record ofresettlement and rehabilitationwork, with training and adviceservices for offenders andemployers. Our partners in PPSwere the Northern Ireland PrisonService and the Probation Boardfor Northern Ireland. Both theseagencies have a keen interest in

learned a lot about how to workeffectively in partnership, how topool skills and knowledge, and howto manage differences of size,wealth and scale among thepartners. PPS was no exception.An important part of the externalevaluation of the project, justcompleted, analysed the jointworking in some detail. The

“This time, I had moreopportunities coming out of jailthan I did before I went in!”

“Without the project I wouldn’thave bothered because I hategoing to job centres.”evaluator concluded that “PPS wasan outstanding example ofeffective partnership in the EQUAL1 programme”. We’ll be buildingon this good foundation in oursecond round project, ReachOut(described below).

As well as the other members ofthe Development Partnership,NIACRO worked with partners fromother EU Member States. Groupedunder the name MERIT (MakingEmployment Realistic in Transition)

For NIACRO, the key achievementsof PPS were the mainstreaming ofstandardised assessment andplanning for all prisoners; making asignificant contribution to thePrison Service’s resettlementstrategy, launched in June 2003;engaging with the beneficiaries;and creating strategic links with arange of statutory, voluntary andprivate sector organisations.We’re extremely pleased that PPSwas one of four EQUAL projects tobe presented to senior programmemanagers and managingauthorities from different MemberStates at a seminar in Brussels inDecember.

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The second round of the EQUALprogramme funded by the EU, thePrison Service and the ProbationService, runs from mid-2005 tomid-2007, and the new project,ReachOut, is well underway. Thegoal is again to help people with anexperience of custody to access thelabour market; to encourage thestatutory services, with their muchgreater resources, to build thegood practice learned in ReachOutand PPS into mainstream services;to increase and improve links withpotential employers.

In moving on from PPS toReachOut, we can of course drawon all the learning from the formerproject. In particular, we areworking to develop jobplacements. Part of the learningfrom PPS was that mainstreamemployability programmes aren’table to provide the sort of short,flexible, placement that will benefitsomeone who is very out of touchwith the workplace. So the goal isto come up with an effective modelfor arranging placements. Aschampions for this and otherelements of the project, wewelcomed Business in theCommunity as a new member ofthe Development Partnership.

the difference between someonesticking at the process of buildingtheir employability, and giving itup. We are currently recruitingmentors, and particularly lookforward to training ex-offenders inthe programme.

For the individual, ReachOut workslike this. Hearing about NIACRO’sservices and ReachOut is part ofevery prisoner’s induction process.The resettlement planning canassess how motivated someone isto work towards ultimateemployment. We receive referralsfrom Resettlement Boards as wellas Probation or other disciplines.

At a subsequent one-to-onemeeting, an agreement is struckabout whether and how to goahead. A detailed assessmentquestionnaire records the person’seducational attainments, trainingand employment history. Then aresettlement plan, focussing onemployability after release, isagreed. The goal might or mightnot be to get straight into thelabour market. It could covertraining and education, how toapply for jobs, how to deal with thefact of being an ex-offender. Andit might importantly includeactions to tackle personal

programme, so that there is somecontinuity of support. This alsomeans that we can have a properevaluation of its impact.

“I’d never have goneback…”

NIACRO News spoke to oneReachOut client. Billy was servinga two-year sentence, after his thirdconviction, in Magilligan Prisonwhen he made contact with theReachOut project worker. He tookhis resettlement planning seriouslyand has high praise for ReachOut.“My project worker was verygood”, he says. “She reallyhelped, and got me on to cateringtraining, NVQ level 1 and level 2while I was still in prison.” Whenhe left Magilligan, NIACRO alsohelped Billy find accommodationand further education, bringing hisNVQ up to level 3. Now he has hisown small business and somedetermination to achieve a betterfuture.

Coming back into a community hasits good and bad points. OK,you’re free; Billy experienced littlestigma and a general welcomeback from the neighbours; there’sthe hope of a better future. Butthere is also all the pressure thatmay have led to the offence in thefirst place, peer group,paramilitary or whatever. Thisleads us on to a general discussionon what Billy feels from experiencewould make the prison regimemore effective; greater respect forthe individual from staff; more andbetter-quality contact with yourfamily; better preparation forleaving; more emphasis on re-integration.

Reaching OutEQUALITY IN ACTION

“If this had been there years agoI’d never have gone back aftermy first time in prison.”Another new element in ReachOutis adult mentoring. Again, this is acase of NIACRO building oncurrent success – the mentoringprogramme for young people isflourishing and was recentlymarked by a national award. In thecontext of ReachOut, the Link-Upadult mentoring project will offerthe continuing personal supportand encouragement that can make

development, ways of dealing withthe offending behaviour, healthand addiction problems, family andcommunity support,accommodation and finance/benefits. Under each of theseheadings, a detailed list of actions– for both the prisoner and theReachOut worker – is agreed. Theparticipant also agrees to keep intouch after leaving the continues over →

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Billy recognises that sometimes it’sthe bad times that make you wantto change things in your life. Heclaims that this particularsentence, and the opportunityoffered by the ReachOut contact,has changed him. “If this hadbeen there years ago”, he says,“I’d never have gone back after myfirst time in prison.”

This is practical, concrete help,based on what we know iseffective. It has obvious value tothe individuals who take part in theproject. But we know that it canachieve much more; a labourmarket which deals more fairly andrationally with people who havebeen in the criminal justice system,and a reduction in re-offendingwith all the benefits that has forcommunities and the widersociety.

The LatvianexperienceThere is a strong transnationalelement to EQUAL, and one of theReachOut transnational partners isa Latvian DP led by the StateProbation Service. Director ofServices Pat Conway visited themat the end of November, alongwith technical experts BrendanFulton and Peter Denley. TheProbation Board’s Jimmy Mooreand David Williamson from theProbation & Welfare Service in theRepublic of Ireland, who areworking on areas of mutualinterest, made up the party.

Over the five-day visit, the groupmet with our Latvian partners,took part in a conference of all theLatvian EQUAL projects, andvisited Social RehabilitationCentres in Riga and Valmieras, andthe Riga City Mission.

These rehabilitation centres areessentially “half way houses” forthose released from prison. Theprisons themselves are run downand very under-resourced in termsof their physical fabric. There islittle attempt to implement over-arching resettlement programmesfrom within the prison system,where the emphasis is oncontainment. The people wetalked to, particularly the DirectorGeneral of the Latvian prisonservice and the Deputy StateSecretary of the Ministry of Justice,were very clear that much moreneeds to be done to put in place aneffective resettlement strategybacked up with programmes thatwill have a real impact.

This visit was the beginning ofwhat all parties hope will be afruitful relationship. While theconcept of resettlement has onlybeen introduced to the Latviancriminal justice system (the Latvianprobation service was only

established two years ago and isgrowing dramatically – 0 to 500staff planned in the first threeyears). Our Latvian hosts showedand articulated evidentcommitment and energy; they areyoung, enthusiastic and it’s all veryfast-moving. There’s a dangerthere too; any resettlementstrategy needs basic strategicplanning and legislation before it isput into operation. ReachOut iskeen to contribute to thedevelopment of a model ofresettlement which is – unlike inNorthern Ireland - starting from ablank sheet. We will share withthem our good learning andhopefully help them to avoid someof the problems we haveencountered in the past.

North/SouthIn December, we had our firstsignificant contact with ourpartners in Cork and Castlerea.With the criminal justicesystems in both Northern Irelandand Latvia in a state oftransition, it’s an opportunity todevelop resettlement strategiesin both jurisdictions.

Exercise pens in Latvian high-security prison

Consultant Brendan Fultonand Jimmy Moore, Protect N&S

EQUALITY IN ACTION

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“Jobtrack” is the name of one ofNIACRO’s biggest programmes ofwork, aimed at empowering adultoffenders to develop skills whichwill enhance their opportunities toget into appropriate and realistictraining, education andemployment. Funded under theEU Structural Funds’ BuildingSustainable Prosperity measure,Jobtrack is also supported by theProbation Service, who part-fundit; the majority of Jobtrack clientsare referred by Probation.

NIACRO compiles detailedstatistical returns for Jobtrack.Some key figures from the 2004-2005 annual report show that:

✹ There were 611 referrals to theprogramme, 590 of them fromProbation

✹ 11% of new referrals werewomen

✹ Of the Probation referrals, 50%were assessed as medium risk,with a further 32% assessed ashigh risk

✹ Only 7% of referrals did notattend for initial assessment

✹ Over 18% of leavers went on topositive destinations

✹ At the end of the year, therewere 565 current clients

✹ All of these statistics far exceedthe original targets agreed withProbation.

An external evaluation of Jobtrackis underway and will be publishedin Spring 2006. It will show thatalmost 80% of Jobtrack clients arelong-term unemployed, more than

JOBTRACKON TRACK

Being a Jobtrack clientAs always, it’s the individual storieswhich convey the impact of theprogramme. At the AGM,members and supporters heardabout two people.

Jonathon was a 19-year-oldpersistent offender when he beganthe programme, and was assessedas being at high risk of re-offending. He had held two jobsfor a short time, but lost themthrough poor attendance.NIACRO’s Training Officer feltJonathon was “genuinely on forchange”, and started a detailedground-level process of discussinghow you applied for a job, how tomake the most of what you had tooffer, what you say about yourconviction. Jonathon was reluctantto acknowledge that he hadliteracy problems, but did get tothe stage of applying for three jobs(and role-playing the interviewsituation with his NIACROcontact). The bad news is that thefailure to get any of these, alongwith the major, and common,problem that he was still mixingwith people who weren’t helpinghim stay away from offending,meant that Jonathon breached hisprobation order, and is back incustody.

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50% unemployed for more thantwo years and 46% for over threeyears. Most have been given anon-custodial sentence, and thegreat majority (see above) wereassessed as at medium or high riskof re-offending. They are likely tobe single or separated. Theevaluation has already shown thatwe are working with one of themost socially excluded groups andthat outcomes are more thancomparable with the mainstreamNew Deal programme which“works with a client group withconsiderably fewer difficulties thanmost Jobtrack clients”.

In short, this is a group of peoplewho are very difficult to reach andwho face daunting problems infinding and keeping a job, orentering and completing educationor training. They need, and withJobtrack they get, an individuallytailored, dedicated service, goingbeyond immediate employmentissues to personal, human needsand wishes.

The programme is made up of awide-ranging assessment process,followed by job preparation (whichmay include benefits advice,essential skills training, personaldevelopment etc) and signposting/brokerage (ie, introduction toservices outside NIACRO, workplacements, education andtraining, or actual employment).Work to improve employers’recruitment policies is another keypart of the programme and isdescribed elsewhere in this issue ofNIACRO News.

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So – a failure? Not necessarily. Hehas had the experience of havingindividualised, serious andcontinuing positive and practicalsupport; he is getting a little older;and he knows that he has not beenbanished from the programme forever. He can make anotherattempt in due course, andhopefully this time, with that bit ofextra learning under his belt, he’llmake it.

Sheila had spent six years inprison, and with that and her child-rearing responsibilities had beenout of the labour market for 15years. With some secretarial-related qualifications andexperience, she was keen not onlyto get back to work but to rebuildlost relationships with family andthe community. NIACRO helpedher to contact a local women’sgroup, in which she now has aleadership role, to re-entereducation (she is currently studyingwith the Open University) and toget part-time employment.

Jobtrack has become a well-established and integral part of theservice to offenders in NorthernIreland and it’s important that itcontinues to do its work. NIACROhas applied to the current round ofBuilding Sustainable Prosperity sothat we can carry on with thisimportant and effectivecontribution to bringing offendersinto the labour market and out ofoffending. But European fundingwon’t go on for ever. We arealready working with the statutoryagencies to try to ensure that thegood practice we have establishedis maintained and developed.

The success of Jobtrack led inOctober 2003 to the piloting of asimilar programme for 16 and 17year olds, now extended to 2006with funding from the ProbationBoard and the NIO. There was asummary of the evaluation of theYouth Employability Programme inNIACRO News issue 12.

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The aim was to support politicallymotivated prisoners to completeacademic qualifications – laterextended to cover vocationaltraining as well – when they leftprison. The client group nowpotentially includes all offendersand ex-prisoners and their families,and the coverage includes theRepublic of Ireland. Over 800students have used the servicesince it started.

PREP was funded under Peace IIwithin the measures managed byArea Development Managementand the Combat Poverty Agency.Its goal was to serve 400 clients, toresearch the barriers to inclusion ofthe client group, and to developpolicies and influence policy-making.

DID IT WORK?The external evaluation of theproject gave details of the peoplewhom the project had helped up toAugust 2005:

◆ 431 (108% of the target) peoplehad contact with the Trust.

DOING THE PREPP.R.E.P. (Pathways to the Reintegration of Ex-Prisoners) is the name of a project of theEducational Trust, a North/South charitableTrust which supports education and trainingfor ex-offenders and ex-prisoners in Ireland.NIACRO was a founder member of the Trust,established in 1995; Trustees now includerepresentatives from ex-prisoner groups,statutory agencies, prison authorities andeducational institutions, North and South.

They were given advice andsignposted to appropriateeducation and/or training, and

· 220 (65% of them politicallymotivated ex-prisoners andtheir family members) werefunded so that they could takeon the course/s they wantedto do.

◆ Twenty-four percent ofapplications came from women,a marked increase from the14% applying to the Trustbefore the PREP project.

◆ Seventy applications came fromthe Loyalist community, and73% of these were funded.

◆ Of the 309 people who left theproject by August 2005, thehighest percentage (46%) wentinto further education ortraining, and 40% intoemployment.

The other main evaluation findingswere that:

◆ The project successfully cateredfor the diverse needs of ex-prisoners and their families.

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◆ The work “requires a highdegree of sensitivity andunderstanding…a challengingtask but there is clear evidencethat a satisfactory level ofsuccess is being achieved…notmerely in levels of participation…but also in qualitative terms”

◆ It is “contributing significantlyto a more peaceful and a moreequitable society”, not leastbecause of the involvement ofex-prisoner groups.

◆ The process of building trusthas been slow but the project is“demonstrating its ability tosucceed both with theparticipants and with otherstakeholders.”

“…People puttheir lives onhold during thepartner’s time inprison – theyneed to startmoving on.”

“I’ve got greatjoy out oflearning.”

”…I’m reallyenjoying thecourse … andpositive aboutthings again.”

Those are some of the comments of the external evaluator – butwhat did the participants think? Some quotes: “The EducationalTrust introduced me to formal education after 34 years. I’ve gotgreat joy out of learning.” “It’s good that the Trust is open tofamily members. People put their lives on hold during the partner’stime in prison – they need to start moving on.” “The support hasmade all the difference. I couldn’t do this course without yourhelp.” “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate everything. I’mreally enjoying the course and being occupied again. It’s beenyears since I felt this good about myself and positive about thingsagain.”

One feature of PREP was a series of workshops and seminars forpotential clients, most of them hosted by the various Trustees.This was a real breakthrough for the project; it revealed clearly thebarriers people found – or perceived – in accessing education, andthe sort of support they were looking for. We want to develop thisway of working.

With a very positive evaluation from all concerned, NIACROnaturally wants to build on the work and we have applied to a rangeof funders so that we can do so.

You can find out more about the Educational Trust from FionaMcLaughlin, fiona@niacro.co.uk

◆ Mainstream providers will haveto take on more of the fundingof the work as demandcontinues to increase.

◆ Better information for the clientgroup about the supportavailable from statutoryagencies and how to access it.

“…I couldn’t do this course withoutyour help.”

The evaluators looked to the futureas well as the past. Recognisingthat we want to continue anddevelop this work, theyrecommended:

◆ Improved co-operation amongthe agencies, North and South,and an integrated approach tothe work.

THE JOY OF LEARNING

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NIACRO’s employment equitywork focuses on influencingemployer organisations and policymakers to help break downattitudes and barriers faced bymany people with past convictions.

Ex-offenders and ex-prisoners facesignificant legislative, structuraland attitudinal barriers. NIACROworks in all these areas to enhanceopportunities for individuals bysupporting organisations to makesafe, fair and objective recruitmentdecisions.

InfluencingEmployersEvery employer involved inrecruiting and selecting staff wantsto find the best person for the job.Employers also need to be mindfulthat they do not reject applicantswho have convictions which wouldnot affect their ability to carry outthe duties of the job. People needto be considered in terms of skilland experience; a convictionshould not in itself be a barrier orreason to exclude people.

In Northern Ireland more than30,000 people were convictedthrough the courts in 2004-05.Many of these convictions are forminor offences and few peoplewith convictions pose a serious riskof harm. Many people withcriminal records are already part ofa productive workforce. In Englandand Wales, over a quarter of the

working population has a previousconviction and 40% of men have atleast one conviction. So it makessense for employers not to cutthemselves off from this pool ofpotential employees.

We provide an advice line to jobapplicants, employers and otherorganisations looking forinformation and support aboutemploying people with criminalconvictions.

Callers will be advised on theRehabilitation of Offenders Orderand the Rehabilitation of Offenders(Exceptions) Order and otherassociated legislation. They arealso told about our trainingworkshop “The Fair Recruitmentof People with CriminalConvictions”. The session covers:concerns/issues about recruitingoffenders; the rehabilitation ofoffenders legislation; how tofacilitate disclosure of convictions;dealing with the information; andlooking at the risk issues whenassessing relevance. We have alsoincluded training on new Codes ofPractice.

The training is supported by theNIACRO publication “Working withConviction – A Guide forEmployers”.

Employers wishing to promotetheir commitment to good practicecan apply for accreditation ofNIACRO’s Employment EquityAward. It gives recognition toemployers’ efforts in promotingbest practice fair recruitment andselection.

In 2004-2005, we received 288advice calls, and 277 people from74 organisations undertook thetraining. All of the evaluations wereceived were very positive.Among the comments were:

“Really enjoyed the course,presentation and training: awelcome relief from the sometimestedious courses I go on.”

“I got a lot from the course and itwill certainly help my organisationto adopt some best practice aheadof the legislation changes.”

As part of our reintegrationservice, we hope to develop closerlinks with employers to developand test a model of supportedplacement for beneficiariesengaged in NIACRO’semployability programmes.

Section 75Section 75 of the Northern IrelandAct requires public authorities topromote equality in their policiesand services, and to consult withrelevant organisations when theyare drafting policy. This includestheir employment policies, and wetake every opportunity to make thepoint in our responses toconsultations that it is a matter ofgood practice for employmentpolicies not to discriminate againstpeople with criminal convictions.

If you want to know more aboutour services to employers, contactAnne Reid, anne@niacro.co.uk

Influencing EmployersAnd Policy MakersMany people with previous convictions experience discrimination when applyingfor employment, accessing training opportunities, obtaining insurance (car andhome), mortgages, holding licences to provide public services.

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The Northern Ireland PrisonService sets itself a challengingtask in its “Statement of Purpose”– it “serves the community bykeeping in secure, safe andhumane custody those committedby the courts; by working withprisoners and with otherorganisations, seeks to reduce therisk of re-offending; and in sodoing aims to protect the publicand to contribute to peace andstability in Northern Ireland”. Todo all this, the service hasoperating costs of around £130million, over 2,000 staff and threecore institutions – Maghaberry andMagilligan Prisons, and HydebankWood Young Offenders Centre andPrison, which also houses thewomen’s unit Ash House. (TheJuvenile Justice Centre, whichfeatured in the last issue ofNIACRO News, comes under thecontrol of the Youth JusticeAgency).

Robin Masefield has been DirectorGeneral of the Prison Service forjust over a year. He had beenDirector of Finance, Planning andEstate Management between 1997and 2000, and spent theintervening four years as Head ofPolicing reforms Division in theNIO. NIACRO News spoke to himin his office in Dundonald House.

NIACRO works in partnership with many of the keycriminal justice agencies in Northern Ireland, and weare highlighting some of them in NIACRO News. Inthis issue, we feature the Northern Ireland PrisonService.

The Prison Service is working to astrategic development programme(known within the service as theBlueprint) looking at the next 10to15 years – an unusually longtimespan for a public service.Robin described it as theopportunity “to stand back and askthe basic questions” – like howmany people will be in prison?What types and groups of peoplewill they be? What is the level ofrisk of their re-offending? Whatsorts of work can the service dowith them?

there is increasing interest incoming up with alternatives tocustody. There is also a currentdebate on sentencing, andfollowing the NIO’s consultationearlier this year on its review of thesentencing framework, theCriminal Justice Board is due toconsider subsequent proposals fora new framework next month.

In answer to NIACRO News’ queryabout the proposed new thirdprison, Robin pointed out that aprison probably takes seven toeight years to plan and build. At

NORTHERN IRELANDPRISON SERVICE

there is increasing interest in comingup with alternatives to custodyThere may be fewer prisoners inNorthern Ireland than in GreatBritain or the Republic of Ireland,but the average population in2004 was 10% up on 2003. TheNIO recently came up with someprojections for future prisonpopulation figures, ranging from2% a year to five percent. RobinMasefield feels that it is likely to beeven greater than that. He is,however, committed to working totry to keep the figures – especiallyfor re-conviction - down. He pointsout that, for example, delays indealing with remand prisoners area long-standing problem, and that

this stage, there are no decisionson where it would be sited andindeed what kind of prison it mightbe, but it is certainly part of thestrategic developmentprogramme. While applaudingMagilligan Prison’s hard work inthe area of resettlement, Robinreinforced NIACRO’s experience inworking in Magilligan - that itsremoteness is a real difficulty. Aprison closer to a larger centre ofpopulation would offer easieraccess for families, and betteraccess to employers andemployment opportunities.

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Children andyoung peopleSticking with the theme ofparticular groups of peopleaffected by the prison service,NIACRO News raised the issue ofchild-centred visits, the one-to-one visits between a prisoner andhis/her child designed to keep theparent-child bond intact.NIACRO staff who help with thetransport on these occasions havebeen worried about the timeswhen a child may arrive at theprison, only to find that forreasons to do with the availabilityof staff, the visit is off. It’s nothard to see how devastating thatis for parent and child. Oursuggestion is that some staffshould be “ring-fenced” forduties like this, as isrecommended in the resettlementstrategy; Robin was not preparedto guarantee this, but noted thata second family officer wasappointed in Maghaberry inDecember. We do understandthat there are issues aboutrotating staff between differentduties, and balancing specialistskills with the need to be able tocall on staff for a range of duties.But given that we all acknowledgethe value of, and are working toimprove, contact betweenprisoners and their families, thisdoes seem one area where it isparticularly important to deliverthe service consistently.

On the topic of the 30 or sounder-18-year-olds in HydebankWood (in principle, 17-year-oldsshould be in the Juvenile JusticeCentre), the Director General canonly “try to provide a slightlydifferent regime” for the youngerpeople, though there are not theresources to do all that is needed.He suggested that some of thework being done in carving out anew regime for women could readacross to the younger people andtheir particular needs.

This seemed an appropriate pointto raise the issue of how NorthernIreland caters for its womenprisoners. After some bruisingpublicity, after the controversyabout the move from Maghaberryto Hydebank, isn’t it essential thatthere is a separate women’s prisonin Northern Ireland? It’s not thefirst time Robin Masefield has beenasked the question and his answerwas that in an ideal world, thismight be the solution. Whether itcould be justified in NorthernIreland with its very small numbersof women convicted, is, he says,doubtful. What about a unit whichwould be part of a large prison butmanaged separately, as the next

women in prison

best thing to a wholly separatefacility? – again the DG demurred.He was firm about the move toHydebank’s Ash House being achange for the better, butacknowledges that is was “asalutary experience for us” andsees it as “a good basis fordeveloping our work with womenprisoners”. To that end, a series ofspecific policies is being drawn upon aspects of the regime. Nordoes the DG see Ash as“acceptable in the long term”which is good news for those whohave been concerned about thewhole issue of women prisonershere.

mental health problems

Olwen Lyner, Graham Kelly (Probation Board) and Robin Masefield at the launch of the report onthe re-integration needs of women

NORTHERN IRELAND PRISON SERVICE

Asked about another group ofprisoners who have particularproblems, those with mentalhealth problems, Robin wasanimated in his response to whathe described as a “massive issue –prisoners with mental health issuesare not served well by thelegislation or by the healthservices”. Around 70% ofprisoners may have some degree ofmental health problems – if theyhave offended, there is at present

little alternative to his servicemanaging them, mostly inMaghaberry. However, the leadresponsibility for prison health carewill pass to the health services in2007, and he is “trying to plannow to build the necessary links”.His service has been much involvedin the current Bamford review ofmental health services through theForensic Services working group,and is hoping that it will take onboard the NIPS recommendations.

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NIACRO works with the PrisonService in many projects andprogrammes – the visitors’ centresand the transport to get peoplethere, the Prison Link programme,and the EQUAL projects describedelsewhere. Most importantly,perhaps, we are members of thepartnership which undertook inJune 2004 to work together toimplement the NIPS ResettlementStrategy. To turn the strategy intoconcrete outcomes, animplementation plan waspublished in summer 2005, with atwo-year timeline. Robindescribed the service as being “atthe start of the journey” of

implementing the strategy. Itsignals a major shift in approachfrom – to over-simplify it –containment/security toresettlement, though Robin notesthat the change had started beforethe strategy appeared. And themulti-agency approach (there arenine signatories to theresettlement strategy) requires thebuilding up of new partnerships.

Naturally, NIACRO News asked theDirector General about the role ofthe voluntary sector in the prisonservice, and equally naturally hereplied that the service couldn’t doits job without the sector’scontribution. In discussing that in

continues over →

NORTHERN IRELAND PRISON SERVICEa bit more detail, we foundourselves debating the balancebetween valuing and utilising themore informal, more flexiblemethods of voluntaryorganisations, and at the sametime “systematising” itscontribution. “A more maturerelationship” was how Robincharacterised it, recognising thatboth parties had obligations tomeet. Certainly, it’s good to readin the resettlement strategy arecommendation that the service“takes on board the learning fromthe EQUAL programme” since thatmainstreaming process is a keygoal of EQUAL.

You can learn more about the NIPrison Service from its website:www.niprisonservice.gov.uk

When I made the decision to move toNorthern Ireland from Australia, Ididn’t expect to get a job in anorganisation like NIACRO. Mainlybecause we do not have theequivalent of NIACRO; there is noone organisation devoted to holisticcare and resettlement of offenders,both adults and juveniles.

I was delighted to be offered the postand am looking forward to furtherdeveloping the Adult MentoringProject.

In the short time I have worked here,I have learnt so much (thanks to mycolleagues) about the NorthernIreland criminal justice system. Whileit is complex there are so manysimilarities; issues facing ex-prisonersand ex-offenders are universal and

some element of social exclusion isthe experience of all those who passthrough the system, regardless ofwhere they are in the world.

Working “inside”In Australia I worked with adults andyoung people in the communitybefore taking the post of YouthOfficer and then as Unit Co-ordinator in a Juvenile Justice Centre.Adjusting to working in a detentioncentre was difficult because you arelimited in so many ways and yourmain task is to provide a safe, secureenvironment and to encouragedetainees to make positive use oftheir time in custody. I was fortunateto work in a programme-centredfacility, where we offered a range of

vocational and educationalpathways. In custody much of yourfocus is on security and as soon asthe person leaves custody, wedepend on post-release support topick them up and support them.There is only so much you can do in acustodial setting. Basically we metimmediate needs and then via acasework framework we worked toaddress resettlement needs. As acaseworker, you would set upcourses and employment in thecommunity but if the support was notthere, the young person often endedup back in custody and you felt asthough all your resettlement workwas lost.

Being discharged from custody canbe daunting, and it is during this

niacro and nips

UP FROM DOWN UNDERNo stereotyping in NIACRO News, of course, but visitors toAmelia House may have noted a distinctive accent from twonew staff members. NIACRO News asked our two Aussiesto tell us what brought them to Northern Ireland. They’vealso both moved from the statutory to the voluntary sector,and have interesting points to make about that change aswell.

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crucial time where people needsupport and encouragement. So it’sa positive move for me to be able towork on this side of the ‘system’ anddevelop a mentoring project thataims to support people to resettle inthe community following a period incustody.

I am enjoying living and working andliving in Belfast. I am originally fromhere, and moved to Australia in1993 with my family. It feels great tobe back and I have found everyoneto be so friendly especially the staffat NIACRO, who have made me feelso welcome and part of the team.

Kelly-Anne Stewart

G’day, I know what you’re going toask me, “Why would you move fromAustralia to Northern Ireland?” Well Imust admit whenever I was askedthat question, (it’s usually the firstthing people say to me); I wasstumped for an answer. I had alwayswanted to visit Ireland, but had neverreally considered Belfast - but whatever the reasoning, here I am, feelingthe cold like I have never felt itbefore!

Prior to moving to Northern Ireland Iwas a Constable in the New SouthWales Police, stationed in The Rocksarea of Sydney. I was a GeneralDuties Officer as well as anEducation Officer. The work was very

challenging and enjoyable, however Ifelt very restricted in the amount ofassistance I was able to give to thoseI was arresting.

In August 2005 I won the position ofJob Placement Project Worker hereat NIACRO. My role is to developmodels of voluntary workplacements, seek commitments fromNorthern Irish Businesses to facilitatethose placements, whilst deliveringtraining to employers on the fairrecruitment of people withconvictions. (Quite a mouthful isn’tit!)

Both sides of the coinAt times it seems like I have done a180 degree turn, from being theuniform that locks people up, to theperson that advises on why we mustdeal fairly with people withconvictions. However, being involvedin the investigation and prosecutionof offenders gave me an insight intohow judicial punishments of any kindcan affect every aspect of anindividual’s life.

The Rocks was one of severalstations trialling alternative methodsto charging. For example in 2002 ascheme was brought in where policewere able to issue infringementnotices (fines) for offences such asassault, theft, property damage etc.The benefit is that as long as theperson pays the fine, they would not

→ continued have to attend court and the offencewould not be recorded as aconviction.

In addition, Sydney was one of thetrialling cities for the MedicallySupervised Injecting Facility in KingsCross. Safer injection rooms arelegally sanctioned, supervisedfacilities designed to reduce thehealth and public order problemsassociated with illegal injection druguse. Australia has a great focus onHarm Reduction and has manyinitiatives centred on communityhealth and safety, and offenderstaking ownership of their crimes.

I have found since coming toNorthern Ireland that although thereare not so many programmes foralternatives to charging, the focusaround resettlement is much higherthan in Sydney.

The needs and issues of people whohave been through the criminaljustice system are great and varied.From housing, substance abuse,employment and training, to family,discrimination and social. NIACROaddresses all of these issues whendealing with ex offenders. Thedelivery is holistic and personal andcompleted against many odds. I amvery excited to have the opportunityto work for such a forward lookingorganisation.

Michelle Ring

Mentoring Project volunteer PeterCrossan has recently completedthe Certificate in CommunityVolunteering delivered by theChurches Voluntary Work Bureauon behalf of the VolunteerDevelopment Agency. Peter hasbeen volunteering with NIACRO inthe North West project for overtwo years.

Peter attended the ‘Taking itForward’ Conference in Newry on 9November 2005 to receive hisCertificate from DSD Permanent

Secretary, Alan Shannon. He waswatched proudly by NIACRO’sDenise Mac Dermott, SeniorPractitioner for Mentoring, andVivienne Courtney, VolunteerCoordinator.

The Certificate in CommunityVolunteering is designed todevelop and accredit the skills andknowledge volunteers need to workeffectively, a valuable tool inbuilding up the transferable skillsand personal development ofvolunteers. It includes four

modules: Preparing tovolunteer; Skills for self-management; Working to

good practice standards;Understanding needs, issues andresponses.

Each unit has a set of standardswhich must be achieved bycarrying out a set of tasks/activities. A portfolio of evidence isgathered and assessed. The courselasts for 30 hours, delivered over10 weeks.

Denise Mac Dermott met up withPeter to find out more about hisexperience of the Certificate inCommunity Volunteering and - as

BEING A MENTOR

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2005 is The Year of The Volunteer– to ask what impact becoming avolunteer has had in his life.

Why did you decide to volunteerwith NIACRO?

“I was at the Tech and there wereposters looking for volunteers toact as mentors for children andyoung people. I thought – maybe Icould do that, if I needed a mentorI would want the person to besomeone who wasn’t paid to spendtime with me. I had free time andwanted to give something back toyoung people.”

You’re the first volunteer tosuccessfully complete theCertificate in CommunityVolunteering, how did you find thecourse? Would you recommend itto other volunteers?

“I would definitely recommend thecourse to volunteers who want tobuild their confidence within theirroles and contribute to theirpersonal development. It gave methe opportunity to identify linkswith other volunteering roles,within mental health, care andyouth work. The Certificate helpedto explore our perspectives onvolunteering as well as identifyingareas of good practice. The wholeexperience was a very positive one,I met lots of new people and Ideveloped my confidence at

speaking in groups and developeda stronger sense of the value of thecontribution I was making throughmy volunteering role.”

What impact has becoming avolunteer had on you?

“When I first started as a volunteermentor I was only 20 and theyoungest person at the training. Iwas eager and keen to get startedalthough I wasn’t very confident. Iknew I would be fine once I wasmatched with my young person,being a mentor is about being apositive role model, having anawareness of who you are, justbeing yourself. Now two yearslater I’m a much more confidentindividual, I’m more outgoing andassertive. I’ve developed myunderstanding of working withyoung people and not topersonalise things if therelationship breaks down…Iattended the volunteer trainingheld in October 2005 to share myexperiences of being a mentor withthe new volunteers. This was amajor achievement for me and myown personal development.”

Have there been any definingmoments as a volunteer?

“Yes there have beenplenty…although there’s one thatreally struck home with me…I wasout on an activity with my mentee.

We went to get some pizza he tookone slice and closed the box. Iasked him, “Do you not like yourpizza?” He said “It’s lovely Pete…Ijust want to take the rest backhome to share with my mammyand brothers and sister”. I waschoked, here was a young personwho was excluded on so manylevels, and it just demonstrated tome that so often it’s the littlethings in life that mean so verymuch. Giving your time tosomeone is a very worthwhile andprecious gift.

If you’d like to find out more aboutvolunteering with NIACRO contactour Volunteer Co-ordinator:vivienne@niacro.co.uk

Sandra Adair, VDA,presenting the National Mentoring Awardto Denise MacDermott

Volunteers and staff at the volunteering seminar in October

Amelia House, 4 Amelia Street, Belfast BT2 7GS Tel: 028 9032 0157 email: niacro@niacro.co.uk

The Old City Factory, 19c Queen Street, Derry/Londonderry BT48 7EF Tel: 028 7126 4555 email: nw@niacro.co.uk

6 Russell Street, Armagh BT61 9AA Tel: 028 3751 5910 email: sw@niacro.co.uk

Since the last issue of NIACRONews, we have welcomed LordClyde, the Justice OversightCommissioner (on 31 October) andthe Minister with responsibility forthe Department for Employmentand Learning, Angela Smith (on 13December). Both visits gave usthe opportunity to bring them upto date with our work, and ofcourse to raise issues which matterto us and which fall into their areaof responsibility. With Lord Clyde,

we raised the importance of theimplementation of therecommendations within theCriminal Justice Review which referto the contribution of the voluntarysector. He welcomed ourpartnership working with criminaljustice bodies, and stressed thevalue of including human rights inour diversity training.

Angela Smith visited NIACRO on13 December to hear especiallyabout our employment/

employability work. She met stafffrom Jobtrack, ReachOut, theEducation Trust and the YouthEmployability Programme, alongwith colleagues from theorganisations with whom we workin partnership on these initiatives.Welcoming the Minister, OlwenLyner pointed out that “Theprojects NIACRO runs can give theGovernment clear evidence of whatworks. That good practice needsto be picked up and mainstreamedinto the much larger scale of theservices run by the Departmentswhich the Minister is responsiblefor – DEL and the Department ofEducation.”

DISTINGUISHED VISITORS TO AMELIA HOUSE

NIACRO’s Chief Executive, Olwen Lyner, has beenelected Chair of ACOVO, the Association of ChiefOfficers of Voluntary Organisations. ACOVO has 150members, all of whom head up voluntary andcommunity sector organisations, and works to buildeffective leadership in the sector. It was formed in1988 and is funded by the Department for Social

Development. Speaking of how delighted she is tohave the opportunity to lead ACOVO for the next twoyears, Olwen said, “In the voluntary and communitysector we face a challenging future, but I believe thatwe will continue to be a modern and innovative sectorthat will impact on all our lives in Northern Ireland.”

Olwen brings the skills and experience of her work atNIACRO to other bodies as well as ACOVO. She is aBoard member of Proteus, Co-Chair of theEducational Trust described on page 8/9, sits on theStrategic Tier of the Belfast Community SafetyPartnership, and is a representative of the voluntaryand community sector on the Joint GovernmentVoluntary and Community Sector Forum.

niacro ceo takeschair of acovo

DEL Minister Angela Smith and Olwen Lyner

Lord Clyde