Thousands more vulnerable women caught up in crime will benefit
from drug, housing and employment support to get their lives back
on track thanks to a £15 million government funding boost.
This investment has been awarded to 40 women’s centres and
charities, and four Police and Crime Commissioners to provide or
access specialist help to those who commit lower-level offences.
These organisations help female offenders to get clean, move away
from abusive relationships, and find work and stable
accommodation ultimately reducing the £18 billion overall cost of
reoffending to the taxpayer.
Successful organisations include:
- Brighton Women’s Centre, awarded £761,280 to continue their
support for vulnerable women through childcare provision,
counselling and psychotherapy.
- The Nelson Trust in the south west of England and Wales,
awarded £1,164,915 to continue their work including residential
abstinence-based addiction treatment programmes to help women
achieve long-lasting recovery.
- The Together Women Project in Yorkshire and the Humber,
awarded £621,309 to continue their work offering one-to-one,
trauma-informed support to women serving community sentences.
This support is key to cutting crime as around one-third of
female offenders have a history of drug abuse and more than three
fifths of women have experienced domestic abuse.
Prisons and Probation Minister, , said:
We know that female offenders often turn to crime because of poor
mental health or drug abuse so it is absolutely vital we address
those underlying issues to stop their offending.
These community organisations play a key role in our work to cut
crime and improve support for some of society’s most vulnerable
women.
The Minister visited Brighton Women’s Centre on Thursday (25 May
2023) to meet with the staff providing this specialist help and
as well as the women being supported.
Lisa Dando, Director at Brighton Women’s Centre said:
I am delighted that we have been awarded funding from the MoJ to
support women living with multiple disadvantages to lead happier
and fulfilling lives.
Brighton Women’s Centre is committed to supporting women through
a trauma informed and holistic model of care to ensure women can
move away from the Criminal Justice System. This funding from the
MoJ will enable us to specifically target support at preventing
women from entering the Criminal Justice System. Ultimately, this
will save lives as well as saving the public purse.
John Trolan, CEO at The Nelson Trust, said:
This welcome funding enables us to support women with multiple
vulnerabilities many of whom end up in the justice system because
of exploitation by others. 58% of women report committing crimes
to support the drug habit of others as opposed to 27% of men.
We enable women to develop positive social networks of support
leading to lives where they are financially independent, choosing
healthy relationships and if they are parents, parenting
responsibly.
While women who commit the most serious crimes will always be
sent to prison, custody should always be a last resort. Tackling
the root causes of female offending and providing vulnerable
women with early support is a key part of the Government’s Female
Offender Strategy to cut crime by women and reduce the number who
end up in prison.
Since 2018, almost £55 million has been invested to tackle female
offending. New specialist staff have been recruited to support
pregnant women and mothers in prison, and charities and community
organisations have also received funding to support their work.
