§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the Women Offending Reduction Programme. [164372]
§ Paul GogginsThe significant increase in the female prison population, and the wider consequences of this in terms of disruption to their families, particularly their children, supports the need to respond specifically to the needs and characteristics of women offenders.
The Women's Offending Reduction Programme (The Programme), published on 11 March 2004, is a three-year programme of work that aims to promote a more specific and joined up response to the range of factors that have an impact on why women offend.
In order to reduce the number of women in custody and increase the potential for diversion the Programme will focus on improving sentencers' confidence in community disposals that offer appropriate packages and interventions and are better tailored to meet the particular needs of women offenders. The Programme includes, for example, the development of women specific community-based interventions such as the `Real Women' offending behaviour programme.
Two key target groups are women with mental health problems and women with substance misuse problems. The Programme will operate in tandem with the Department of Health's Women's Mental Health Strategy and the National Drugs Strategy so that women offenders can access appropriate treatment in the community.
For women who do need to be held in custody, resettlement is a vital element of the Programme. More effective re-integration into the community for women prisoners on release should have a positive impact on re-offending rates. The implementation of the Women's Estate resettlement strategy will ensure that good family ties are maintained to minimise the impact on children separated from their mothers, and necessary local community links are made to meet the range of women's resettlement needs.
The Programme's priorities contribute to the wider Home Office aims of reducing offending and re-offending and will also reflect and support the objectives of the new National Offender Management Service that will come into operation in June 2004.