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Date: November 25, 2024 Mon
Time: 8:10 pm
Time: 8:10 pm
Results for learning disabled offenders (u.k.)
1 results foundAuthor: Great Britain. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation Title: A joint inspection of the treatment of offenders with learning disabilities within the criminal justice system Summary: The needs of many people with learning disabilities are going unnoticed when they are arrested by police, go to court and are sentenced, according to independent inspectors. They have published a report of a joint inspection into people with learning disabilities within the criminal justice system which said their needs should be recognised and addressed. The report, 'A joint inspection of the treatment of offenders with learning disabilities within the criminal justice system: phase 1 from arrest to sentence', reflects the findings of HM Inspectorate of Probation, HM Inspectorate of Constabulary, HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate and the Care Quality Commission. The inspection covered activity at police stations, the prosecution and court process, pre-sentence report preparation and the assessment and planning undertaken at the start of the community order An accurate estimate of the number of people with learning disabilities within the criminal justice system is impossible because of poor interpretations, about what constitutes a learning disability and a failure to properly identify and record this issue by all the key agencies at all points in the criminal justice process. The specific findings of this inspection are to a great extent a manifestation of these problems of definition and identification. As a result, the needs of offenders with learning disabilities are often overlooked and, although there were some pockets of good practice and examples of practitioners 'going the extra mile' to ensure that these offenders received the support and treatment they needed, examples of good practice were the exception rather than the norm. Offenders with learning disabilities were not always afforded the level of service appropriate to the risk of harm they presented or their needs. Problems included a failure to recognise a learning disability, and failure to refer the offender to specialist services for assessment. We regularly found an absence of access to specialist support that would address their offending behaviour and manage the risk of harm posed to the public. We were particularly concerned to find that the processes, absence of services or a simple lack of knowledge and training often led to offenders with a learning disability being perceived as a problem to be processed, rather than an individual with particular needs requiring individual treatment. Specific findings Police custody Contact with the police is the first stage in the criminal justice system and for the majority of offenders with learning difficulties provides the first opportunity to assess their needs. Identification of learning disabilities by police custody staff is based on a combination of judgement drawn from experience, a risk assessment that does not specifically examine learning disabilities and the availability of historical information held on police systems. Risk assessment processes normally consisted of asking the detainee a series of set questions on arrival in custody. Questions regarding learning disabilities were usually general about whether the detainee had any problems with reading or writing or any mental health problems. Problems identifying learning disabilities were compounded by the physical layout of custody units. The custody facilities we saw were mainly open plan units, which afforded little privacy for detainees and reduced the likelihood of them disclosing a learning disability. We found a variety of Appropriate Adult schemes in the police forces visited; some were run by charities whilst others relied on adult social care services or commercial provision. Police forces are individually responsible for the arrangement of Appropriate Adult services, with no statutory obligation on any agency to provide them. In some areas custody sergeants said Appropriate Adults were not always available to assist with cases. Only one of the police forces we visited had a mechanism to divert offenders from custody before arrest on the grounds of identified mental health problems or a learning disability. A Community Psychiatric Nurse worked alongside officers responding to reported incidents involving people with mental health or learning difficulties, and could access medical histories and services to divert suspects away from arrest where this was appropriate. In the other areas, diversion schemes were implemented within the court building rather than before or at arrest. Earlier interventions might have avoided the need for a costly and stressful court process in some cases. Details: London: Criminal Justice Joint Inspection, 2014. 41p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 20, 2015 at: http://www.pwd.org.au/documents/pubs/adjc/2014-Jan-LearningDisabilities.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www.pwd.org.au/documents/pubs/adjc/2014-Jan-LearningDisabilities.pdf Shelf Number: 135279 Keywords: Learning DisabilitiesLearning Disabled Offenders (U.K.)Offender Treatment Programs |