In the next in her series of blogs Lilly Lewis, One Small Thing’s Women’s Involvement Advisor discusses the new government’s plans for the justice system, and reflects on what changes she would like to see prioritised, including better responses to the racism and hatred seen in the riots in August this year.

Like most in the sector, I have been following the announcements and appointments for the new Government’s Justice team and reflecting on my hopes for what the new Government might deliver.

It was great to hear James Timpson, Prison Parole and Probation Minster talking in his maiden speech for the House of Lords. He made some great points on how 80% of offenders are repeat offenders and how having a secure job upon release from prison reduces the risk of re offending. One sentence that really stood out to me was “when you care for people they care back” I think this statement is so powerful and truly makes sense. I am looking forward to seeing how he uses his position to ‘rehabilitate offenders instead of creating better criminals’ as he suggests.

When reading the Labour manifesto, I felt that their plan to introduce mandatory professional standards vetting checks for misconduct of police officers, along with stronger training on racism and VAWG was positive. The need for legal safeguards around strip searches of children and young people is also essential.

It is also good that they intend to intervene earlier to stop young people being drawn into crime, and to address the court backlogs which have seen women being remanded for long periods of time and unable to get on with their lives as they await outcomes of any criminal charges. The manifesto suggested they will ensure more prosecutors are available and allowing associate prosecutors to work on appropriate cases.

Another positive step mentioned is work within prisons to link up with local employers and the voluntary sector to get those leaving prison into work, and work with children of those imprisoned to break the cycle of intergenerational trauma. I was disappointed that there was no clear outline of working with women and their children affected by the Justice System, and there was also no mention of working in a trauma informed or gender responsive way in the manifesto.

From the new Government I would like to see stronger pledges and plans to supporting women in the community, through places such as Hope Street and Women’s Centres, which can work with women in a trauma informed way, in buildings and environments designed to reduce trauma.

It also is essential that our new government listens to those who have experience of the justice system - if you have not lived and experienced a system that is so broken, you will struggle to fully reflect on all elements and make the changes needed.

How the new government should tackle Racism within and outside the justice system

After seeing and hearing about the riots across the UK whilst I was on honeymoon, this once again highlighted to me what I already knew. That there is so much anger and hatred towards black and brown people. I was saddened to have to ask my 84-year-old father not to get the train to Liverpool as he does every weekend. And only last month did I find myself experiencing unconscious bias when I was trying to raise awareness around racism and unconscious bias in professional settings.

The new government took action during the riots in August by arresting, charging and sending rioters to prison for long sentences, sending a clear message that under this Labour government this behaviour would not be tolerated. However, I would like to see the new government address the root causes of racism in this country, and how that not only influences the kind of hatred and violence seen during the riots, but how it also contributes to the over criminalisation of black and minoritised people.

Going forward I would also like to see racism within the criminal justice system tackled and would hope that the Lammy review would be addressed, specifically looking at why there is a huge disproportion of black and minoritised people affected by the criminal justice system, and focusing on fairer sentencing and rehabilitation offers for black women. I have spoken before how black and minoritised women affected by the criminal justice system are described as being ‘Double Disadvantaged’ by gender inequality and racism. I would hope for change for these women to provide and support better outcomes for Black, Asian, minoritised and migrant women, and their children.

Written by: Lilly Lewis, Women’s Involvement Advisor at One Small Thing

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