women – Page 5 – The Church of England in Parliament

Bishop of Gloucester asks about conditions for prisoners, especially those with dependent children

The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 6th December 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government how many women in prison aged (1) 18 to 24, or (2) 25 years or older, have dependent children.

Lord Wolfson of Tredegar (Con): We do not hold current figures on how many women in prison aged (1) 18 to 24 or (2) 25 years or older have dependent children. Information on a prisoner’s caring responsibilities and their children living in the community is currently monitored locally by prison Governors/Directors to ensure appropriate support can be provided to offenders and their families. We are making changes to the questions within the Basic Custody Screening Tool (BCST) in the first quarter of 2022 and, once this has been done, we will be able to collect primary carer data via the BCST and access this information centrally. Consideration will then be given to how and what we can publish.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about alternative detention pilot scheme

The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answer on 3rd December 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government when they will
publish the evaluation of the ‘Action Access’ alternative detention pilot.

Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con): The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have appointed the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to independently evaluate this pilot.

NatCen will be publishing the evaluation on their website the aim is for the evaluation to be published by the end of the year.

Hansard

Bishop of Gloucester asks about conditions for women in prisons

The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answers on 29th November 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government what age-specific training prison staff receive for working with female prisoners aged 18 to 24.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about numbers of women in prison

The Bishop of Gloucester received the following written answers on 24th November 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester asked Her Majesty’s Government how many women aged (1) 18 to 24, and (2) 25 and above, went to prison in each of the last 10 years; what was the sentence length in each case; and what type of offence was committed.

Lord Wolfson of Tredegar (Con): The attached tables [on Hansard] show data on the numbers of women convicted by offence type and the length of sentence from 2011 to 2020 for those aged 18 to 24 and above 25 years of age.

Bishop of Gloucester asks about sentencing guidelines relating to pregnant women and primary carers

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on whether sentencing guidelines relating to pregnant women and primary carers are being followed, and on safeguarding training given to sentencers, on 17th November 2021, during a debate on the safety of pregnant prisoners:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, Committee on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill was grateful to hear the Minister say on 1 November that

“there has been a revolution, a real sea change, in the judiciary. They really ‘get it’ when it comes to female offenders and primary carers.”—[Official Report, 1/11/21; col. 1042.]

Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Bishop of Gloucester speaks on need for “restorative, responsible, and relational” criminal justice system

On 14th September 2021, the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill had its second reading in the House of Lords. The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in response to the bill, expressing concern over the effects of the bill on women and children and calling for a “restorative, responsible, and relational” approach to criminal justice:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I am grateful for the varied contributions heard today from noble and learned Lords, many of whom have vast experience in this area. I declare an interest as Anglican Bishop to Her Majesty’s Prisons in England and Wales and as president of the Nelson Trust.

As a Lord spiritual rooted in Christian hope, I look for a criminal justice system which is restorative, responsible and relational, and which is effective in focusing holistically on prevention and rehabilitation as well as appropriate conviction and punishment.

There are some welcome proposals within this very long Bill. These include community and diversionary cautions, problem-solving courts and additional support for employment for ex-offenders. There are other aspects that raise concern, and I will name just a few of them: increasing sentence lengths, police-led diversion, sentencing of mothers, racial disparities and young offenders.

Bishop of Gloucester speaks about impact of aid cuts on women and girls

The Bishop of Gloucester spoke in a debate on the UK Foreign Aid Programme on 1st July 2021, stressing the impact cuts to aid would have on women and girls:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, I have spoken before about the challenges faced by girls and women throughout the world, and I am therefore dismayed, along with others, by what we hear of the impact of the aid cuts on them. As the noble Baroness, Lady Sugg, said so eloquently, women and girls will suffer disproportionately as a result of these cuts. I understand that Her Majesty’s Government have undertaken a central equalities impact assessment. However, I believe this is yet to be published and I would be grateful for an update from the Minister.

Bishop of Gloucester asked about protection for migrant victims of abuse

The Bishop of Gloucester asked a question on safeguarding vulnerable migrant women and children from abuse on 28th June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: My Lords, during the passage of the Domestic Abuse Bill, now an Act, your Lordships discussed how best to protect migrant victims of abuse. Will the Minister assure me that any reforms, such as those being discussed here today, will safeguard migrant women and children, who are often particularly vulnerable?

Bishop of Gloucester asks about implementation of the Female Offender Strategy

The Bishop of Gloucester tabled a question on the progress of the government’s 2018 Female Offender Strategy on 21st June 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Gloucester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the progress towards the implementation of the Female Offender Strategy, published on 27 June 2018; and what plans they have, if any, to revise the timetable for its implementation.

Queen’s Speech – Bishop of Gloucester on criminal justice, violence against women and girls, online safety

On 18th May 2021 the Bishop of Gloucester took part in the fourth day of debate in the House of Lords on the Queen’s Speech. She focused on criminal justice, violence against women and girls, and online safety:

My Lords, I too look forward to the maiden speeches of the noble Baroness, Lady Fullbrook and Lady Fleet. In my few minutes, I shall briefly mention women in the criminal justice system, the Police, Crime Sentencing and Courts Bill, violence against women and girls and the online safety Bill. I refer to my interests in the register, as Anglican bishop to prisons.

I begin by asking: when will we see a renewed timetable for the 2018 female offender strategy? While I welcome the implementation of some of the deliverables, analysis by the Prison Reform Trust shows that the Government have met less than half the commitments. The concordat published last year does not appear to have been progressed. Then there was that shocking announcement of 500 new prison places for women, totally at odds with the strategy’s direction to reduce the number of women in prison. What evidence is it based on, and why is the designated £150 million not being spent on women’s centres and implementing the concordat?

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