Blue remembered skills : mental health awareness training for police officers

The Bradley Report (Bradley, 2009) has raised a number of important questions regarding the treatment of individuals who are experiencing mental health problems and find themselves in the criminal justice system. One of the key recommendations is that professional staff working across criminal justice organisations should receive increased training in this area. This paper explores the experiences of two professionals, a mental health nurse and a social worker, involved in providing training for police officers. It goes on to consider the most effective models of training for police officers

Adult Social Work and High Risk Domestic Violence Cases

Summary This article focuses on adult social work’s response in England to high-risk domestic violence cases and the role of adult social workers in Multi-Agency Risk and Assessment Conferences. (MARACs). The research was undertaken between 2013-2014 and focused on one city in England and involved the research team attending MARACs, Interviews with 20 adult social workers, 24 MARAC attendees, 14 adult service users at time T1 (including follow up interviews after six months, T2), focus groups with IDVAs and Women’s Aid and an interview with a Women’s Aid service user. Findings The findings suggest that although adult social workers accept the need to be involved in domestic violence cases they are uncertain of what their role is and are confused with the need to operate a parallel domestic violence and adult safeguarding approach, which is further, complicated by issues of mental capacity. MARACS are identified as overburdened, under-represented meetings staffed by committed managers. However, they are in danger of becoming managerial processes neglecting the service users they are meant to protect. Applications The article argues for a re-engagement of adult social workers with domestic violence that has increasingly become over identified with child protection. It also raises the issue whether MARACS remain fit for purpose and whether they still represent the best possible response to multi-agency coordination and practice in domestic violence

Democratic localism and the implementation of the Community Remedy in England and Wales

This article assesses the development and implementation of the Community Remedy anti-social behaviour policy by Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales. The Community Remedy, introduced by the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act (2014), allows victims of ‘low-level’ anti-social behaviour to select an informal action for their offender from a list designed by their local PCC via consultation with the public. This article reports the results of a benchmarking exercise that investigates how PCCs have translated this policy into practice by examining: public consultation procedures; the contents of the Community Remedy documents; and police usage. The findings indicate an uneven implementation across regions with variable levels of engagement from PCCs, police forces and members of the public. We assess the enactment and adoption of this new power alongside its potential to stimulate democratic localism

The provision of fire services in rural areas

Fire services have been neglected in discussions of public service provision in rural areas. The way in which they are provided has a broader significance in terms of current debates about risk management. Fire service policy was transferred away from the Home Office, but the Bain Report provided the major stimulus to change. Early central government attempts to stimulate fire service provision in rural area were hampered by a lack of cooperation between local authorities. Rates of death from fire are influenced by attendance times and are particularly high in remote rural areas. The development of national standards of fire cover was focused on protecting property rather than saving lives with disproportionate funding being provided for urban areas. Social changes in rural areas have made it more difficult to secure sufficient numbers of retained fire fighters. It has proved particularly difficult to provide an adequate service in remote rural areas such as the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, despite recent policy initiatives there. Problems of providing fire cover are particularly acute on isolated islands. The development of integrated risk management plans should offer a more fine grained approach to providing fire cover. However, they may be too sophisticated for the task in rural areas and more traditional democratic mechanisms for expressing perceived community needs may have a greater relevance

Where has all the youth crime gone? youth justice in an age of austerity

Youth justice under the Coalition government in England and Wales has been characterised by considerable gains — falling youth crime, increased diversion and substantial reductions in child imprisonment — that would generally be associated with a progressive agenda. Focusing on youth justice policy in England and Wales, this article suggests that the tensions implicit in a government of the new right delivering outcomes that demonstrate an increased tolerance to children who offend can be explained by the logic of austerity. That same logic brings with it other policy measures that are potentially less compatible with children's well-being

Seeking safety beyond refuge : the impact of immigration and citizenship policy upon refugees in the UK

Western states are concerned about maintaining and securing national borders. Across Europe, one response has been to implement restrictive asylum regimes that prevent ‘bogus’ applicants and grant refuge only to the ‘deserving’. Alongside these concerns, states are eager to encourage socially cohesive communities. One recent tool adopted by the UK government has been citizenship policy, including English language/life in the UK tests and citizenship ceremonies. By drawing upon in-depth interviews with refugees in Scotland (UK), this paper explores the impact of the current asylum regime and citizenship policies from the perspective of individual voices that are often absent from wider debates. It explores how temporary refugee status impacts upon individuals’ everyday lives including employment and education, and impacts upon children. The data also question the reasons for refugees deciding to become British citizens (or not) and highlight instrumental reasons alongside less tangible factors such as gaining a sense of security. Taking the discussion forward, the study explores some unintended consequences of immigration and citizenship policies in the UK. The research suggests that not only do restrictive asylum policies negatively impact upon refugees and their integration but also serve to elevate fear and uncertainty, which can unintentionally spur individuals to seek naturalisation

British citizenship, gender and migration: the containment of cultural differences and the stratification of belonging

Debates about integration, British values and identity, who can belong and who can become a citizen, have been fuelled by concerns about growing cultural diversity in the United Kingdom. To promote a shared sense of national identity and claim a universal and normative citizen subject, the UK government, along with many other western nations, has introduced compulsory citizenship and language testing. This article traces and critiques the evolution of the British citizenship test since its introduction in 2005 and argues that the regime fails to recognise the gendered and segmented nature of migration, and functions as a silent and largely invisible mechanism of civic stratification and control. Drawing on Home Office data, it is argued that citizenship testing enables the government to cherry pick migrants who conform to an idealised citizen subject, while containing cultural difference by excluding others, particularly women, who are tolerated but remain symbolic non-citizens

Public Spaces Protection Orders: a critical policy analysis

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to critically appraise the Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) policy that was introduced by the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act (2014). Within a designated area assigned by the local council, PSPOs can prohibit or require specific behaviours to improve the quality of life for people inhabiting that space. Those who do not comply face a fixed penalty notice of £100 or a fine of £1000 on summary conviction. However, the practical and theoretical impact associated with the development of these powers has yet to be fully explored. Design/methodology/approach: Using Bannister and O’Sullivan’s (2013) discussion of civility and ASB policy as a starting point, we show how PSPOs could create new frontiers in exclusion, intolerance and criminalisation; as PSPOs enable the prohibition of any type of behaviour perceived to negatively affect the quality of life. Findings: Local councils in England and Wales now have unlimited and unregulated powers to control public spaces. We suggest this has the potential to produce localised tolerance thresholds and civility agendas that currently target and further marginalise vulnerable people, and we highlight street sleeping homeless people as one such group. Originality: There has been little academic debate on this topic. This article raises a number of original, conceptual questions that provide an analytical framework for future empirical research. We also use original data from Freedom of Information requests to contextualise our discussions

Brexit, immigration and expanded markets of social control

This paper explores the implications of EU citizens’ exposure to UK immigration practices currently operating on non-EU migrants in the wake of the Brexit referendum. This article draws on recent literature analysing the impact of immigration as a factor in voter decision-making during the Brexit referendum. It challenges Hollifield’s (1992) concept of the ‘liberal paradox’ through an analysis of private security firms’ roles in contributing toward the expansion of immigration control markets. The paper concludes with a review of migrant experiences within prisons, detention facilities and dispersed housing for asylum seekers. The findings suggest that the abandonment of EU citizens’ freedom of movement into the UK will result in their exposure to a privatised immigration control regime that contributes to the commodification of immigrants at the expense of human welfare. This paper provides a conceptual link between the role of immigration in the Brexit referendum and the implications of expanding the population of persons subject to immigration control to include EU immigrants. It draws on current debates about privatised social control markets to illuminate the social impact of valorising migrant bodies