NCJ Number
163320
Date Published
1996
Length
31 pages
Annotation
The delivery of services to female offenders by the probation service in Great Britain was analyzed, with emphasis on the collaborations that might be required to assist the probation service in responding to the needs of women and the difficulties that may exist in developing such arrangements.
Abstract
The research used information from a field study of one urban probation office. Data were collected by means of interviews of 25 female offenders, 11 female partners or mothers of male offenders who had some contact with the probation service, and representatives of 21 projects or services, as well as a review of probation files and a survey of probation officers responsible for the women in the sample. The findings were used to group needs into the following categories: housing, relationships, isolation, mental health, employment, training, income and debts, violence and physical or sexual abuse, child care, alcohol use, and drug use. The analysis revealed overlapping needs, the inability of the categories to assess or summarize the severity of needs, and the need to determine whether all these needs should be the concern of the probation service. The main needs were housing, isolation, and income and debts. The probation officers and the female offenders differed regarding the probation officers' responses to women's needs. The major gaps in which collaborations are needed were in the areas of employment, violence and abuse, mental health, and training. Discussion of implications for research and practice, tables, and 23 references