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- Press release: Fawcett's polling shows 49% of women don’t think politicians are considering their views on tax and spending
- Yasmin Alibhai–Brown thinks that The future of politics lies with women
- New Survey on women solicitors careers, work – life balance and flexible working
- Telegraph Article written by Mary Riddle
- Statement on Stern Review Recommendations on the handling of Rape Complaints
- What About Women letter in the Guardian
- Ceri Goddard writes for the Guardian's Comment is Free
- Don't forget us: Women want MPs' attention
- Fawcett responds to Gordon Brown's podcast
- Independent article celebrating International Women's Day
- BBC's Politics Show Sunday 7th March 2010
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- Fawcett BBC
- Groundbreaking equal pay win for Sheffield City Council workers
- Fawcett holds first national Feminist Firewalk
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- Ethnic minority women facing double discrimination in the Criminal Justice System, finds new Fawcett report
- EU women ministers Summit Cadiz
- Ceri Goddard on Woman's Hour
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Fawcett responds to the Corston Report (13/03/07)
A coalition of major women's rights and criminal justice charities, including the Fawcett Society, has welcomed the publication of a groundbreaking report into vulnerable women in the criminal justice system by Baroness Jean Corston.
It warns however that the Government must not be allowed to sit on the findings and must begin work on implementing Baroness Corston's recommendations immediately.
The group of 16 charitable organisations issued the following statement:
“The Corston Review signals a profound shift in the debate on women's imprisonment away from abstract questions of what to do. The burning questions for the Government now are how and when to implement the recommendations.
“This is not a report for the Home Secretary’s ‘to read’ pile, it’s for his to do list.”
Dr Katherine Rake, Director of the Fawcett Society, added:
“Today’s report is a comprehensive blueprint for creating a system that will meet the needs of women offenders and their families and reduce re-offending.
“Work by the Fawcett Society has shown that the current criminal justice system is designed primarily to meet the needs of men and that women who offend have specific needs which are not being met. Nearly two-thirds of women in prison have a drug problem, the majority have experienced domestic violence or sexual abuse and at least 70% have mental health problems. Most women in prison have children and more than 17,000 children a year are separated from their mothers by imprisonment.
“We need wholesale reform of the criminal justice system to make it responsive to the needs of women and their families. The Fawcett Society welcomes the publication of the Corston Report and urges the Government to act now on its recommendations.”
The coalition has launched an online petition to urge the Government to take action, which has already been signed by politicians and many professionals working with women offenders among others. The petition can be found at: www.womeninprison.org.uk/corstonreview
The coalition believes the following measures will reduce crime and benefit women, their families, and wider society:
- The Government must recognise that for most women who offend, prison does not work; it is inappropriate, unnecessary, and damaging.
- Women offenders and those at risk of offending need local community-based services, close to their families and networked into local services.
- To reduce crime and improve women's lives it is crucial to address women's complex needs, including poverty and debt, mental health problems, abuse and domestic violence, addictions, and housing.
The public is ready for change - a recent poll by ICM for SmartJustice showed that 86% of the public support community alternatives to prison for non-violent offenders and two thirds believe that prison is unlikely to reduce reoffending.
The coalition is made up of the Fawcett Society and Action for Prisoners' Families, Asha Centre, Calderdale Centre, Clean Break, Creative and Supportive Trust, Greater London Domestic Violence Project, The Griffins Society, Hibiscus, Howard League for Penal Reform, INQUEST, Nacro, Prison Reform Trust, SmartJustice, Women in Prison and Women’s Aid.
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