Cross Justice Working Group on Race Data and Evidence: joint research plan - summary of ethnicity and justice related research

Contents

• research planned by justice organisations
• summary of research planned
• sources of research around justice and ethnicity
• research plans and how they fit with group priority areas
• joint research plan: summary of ethnicty and justice related research - combined responses

Key points summary

• four justice organisations provided information on 17 research projects (Police Scotland, Scottish Policing Authority, Scottish Children’s Reporter, and Scottish Legal Aid Board)
• the research projects most commonly align with the following aims and priority actions from the Justice Vision for Scotland: Person-Centred and Trauma-Informed, Safe, Hearing victims’ voices, and Women and children in justice
• the most common research topics are: types of crime, police, children and young people
• areas identified as potential research gaps are: courts, custodial sentences, re-offending, re-imprisonment, non-custodial sentences, “shifting the balance between use of custody and justice in the community” and post–prison activities and processes

Introduction

This paper summarises the research projects that Cross Justice Working Group Organisations have planned around justice and ethnicity, and which will form the basis of a joint research plan for the group.

It also briefly outlines other relevant Scottish research, taken from:

• engagement with members of the JAS Research and Analysis Forum
• engagement with academics and researchers via a survey
• work JAS is undertaking
• results of a 2020 research audit

It highlights which topics are considered as priorities for further research, drawing on:

• the aims and priority actions laid out in the new Vision for Justice in Scotland

• engagement with academics and researchers via a survey
• community engagement discussion groups
• workshop with Cross Justice Working Group members

It then considers what the gaps in the research evidence base are.

The strategic context

In February 2022, the Scottish Government published its new Justice Strategy, The Vision for Justice in Scotland which sets out its vision “for a just, safe resilient Scotland”. 

The strategy is founded on four principles:

• equality and human rights
• evidence-based
• embed person-centred and trauma-informed practices
• collaboration and partnership

It contains five key aims, and three priority actions.

The aims are:

• safe
• prevention and early intervention
• person-centred and trauma-informed
• rehabilitation
• COVID-19 recovery

The priority actions are:

• women and children in justice
• hearing victims’ voices
• shifting the balance between use of custody and justice in the community

Information provided on research planned by Justice Organisations who sit on the Cross Justice Working Group on Race Data and Evidence (CJWG) has been mapped onto which aims and priority actions it is relevant to.

In addition, the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government 2021-22 sets out the following action on p103 “Scotland’s police officers work hard every day to keep their communities safe, and have shown a strong, rights‑based approach to compliance during the pandemic. We will work to build on that model of policing by consent. To better understand and service the needs of our communities, we will support Police Scotland and wider partners to improve the diversity of their workforce and to enhance the quality of data across the justice system.”

Caveats

The information summarised here is based on information provided by organisations, which varied in level of detail. A limited amount of information about planned research could result in a degree of under or over-counting when assigning research projects to Justice Vision Aims, and priority actions, or the topic headings from the research audit and survey work. The figures presented in the lists below around research topics and participants, should therefore be viewed as indicative rather than definitive.

Research planned by justice organisations who sit on the CJWG

In December 2021, all Justice Organisations on the working group were invited to either i) complete a template, providing some basic details about research they had planned which would include, or might include ethnicity. Or ii) to confirm that they had no such research planned.

This information has been pulled together into one template containing all the organisation’s responses. The completed template is available in Paper 2/Excel Spreadsheet. Responses are summaries below.

Organisations who have research planned

Four organisations are planning relevant research which includes race or ethnicity. Information was provided on 17 research projects.

• Police Scotland – 11 projects
• Scottish Policing Authority (SPA) – 2 projects
• Scottish Children’s Reporter (SCRA) – 2 projects
• Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) – 2 projects

The following organisations confirmed that they do not currently have any research including race or ethnicity planned.

• Community Justice
• Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS)
• Parole Scotland
• Police Investigation and Review Commissioner (PIRC)
• Scottish Courts and Tribunal Services (SCTS)
• Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS)
• Scottish Prison Service (SPS)

Summary of research planned

How the research fits with the aims and priority actions of the justice vision for Scotland

Aims

• Person-Centred and Trauma-Informed (16)
• safe (11)
• prevention and Early Intervention (2)
• rehabilitation (1)
• COVID-19 Recovery (0)

Priority actions

• hearing victims’ voices (7)
• women and children in justice (6)
• shifting the balance between use of custody and justice in the community (0)

Research topics

• types of Crime (7) (Police Scotland), including:
  • violence Against Women and Girls (VAVWGs) (3) – domestic abuse (1) and female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) (2)
  • human Trafficking (2)
  • modern slavery (1)
  • male Honour-based Abuse (1)
• police – relationships / interactions with minority ethnic communities / trust / confidence in police (6) (Police Scotland 4, SPA 2)
• children and Young People (3) (SCRA 2, Police Scotland 1), Including:
  • children who offend (1)
  • children in residential care (1)
  • young Vietnamese males who have been trafficked (1)
• prevention and early intervention (2) (SCRA)
• access to Justice 2 (SLAB)
• civil Justice (1) (SLAB)

Who the research subjects/participants are

• professionals (5) including
  • Police officers / Police forces (4) and first responders (1)
•  people from minority ethnic communities (5) including:
  • Vietnamese people who have been trafficked (2)
  • Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller communities (1)
• victims (4)
• children and young people (3)
• women (3), including
  •  South Asian Women (1)
• men (2)
• refugee / asylum seeker communities (2)
• offenders (1) (specifically children and young people who offend)
• communities – including communities experiencing deprivation (1)
• customers (1)

How central ethnicity is to the research project

• ethnicity a main focus of the research (7)
• ethnicity data collected as part of wider sample within a more general population (5)
• ethnicity possibly included, projects not fully scoped out (3)
• not stated (2) 

Research methods

• qualitative (7)
• survey / questionnaire / polling (3)
• community-based action research / Collaborative research with communities (2)
• mixed-methods (1)
• public engagement (1)
• quantitative (1)
• not stated (3)

Timings

• current research (9),
• early stage / still being scoped out (2)
• already complete (2). 
• regular, 6 monthly, polling process (1)
• not stated (3)

Other sources of relevant research around justice and ethnicity

Other Justice Organisations who do not sit on the Cross Justice Working Group, but are part of the JAS Research and Analysis Forum

The Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) have 2 relevant pieces of research.

• ‘What Works’ evidence review on reducing violent re-offending amongst young people and adults- Will look to see if ethnicity is a moderator of what works in reducing violent re-offending
• “Looking at hate motivated crimes from the perspective of the perpetrators”- Data captured using SG harmonised questions on ethnicity

Research topics covered by VRU research:

• type of crime (2), including violent offending (1) and hate crime (1)
• offenders/ perpetrators (2)
• re-offending, re-imprisonment (1)
• children and young people (1)

The Risk Management Authority (RMA) plan on carrying out a number of literature and service provision reviews. Ethnicity might be included in these, but this depends on whether ethnicity has been considered in the articles and services which are included in the reviews.

Research by Scottish academics/researchers

A survey of academics/ researchers in Scotland in April-May 2021, asked respondents about previous, current and future plans for research around ethnicity and justice in Scotland. 

Information was provided on:

• 10 previous research projects
• 11 current research projects
• 2 future / planned research projects

Research topics

Respondents were asked to select which topics their projects related to. Topics are listed from those associated with the highest number of projects, to the least number.

• experience of crime and feelings of safety (18), previous (8), current (8), future (2), including
  • hate crime (4), previous: (2), current (2)
  • VAWGs (3) (all previous)
• police (15) previous (5) current (8), future (2), including
  • stop and search (2) previous (1), current (1)
• courts (7), previous (3),current (3), future (1)
• custodial sentences (3), current (2), future (1)
• other, please specify (3), previous (1), current (2), including:
  •  other: victim/witness experiences (2) (both current)
  • other: influence of race and space on youth crime/violence (1), previous (Academic Engagement - Mapping of Previous Current and Future Research' 'Academic Engagement- Survey results Report') 
• prevention and early intervention activities (2), current (1), future (1)
• re-offending, re-imprisonment (2), current (1) future (1)
• civil justice (2), both current
• non-custodial sentences (1), future
• Post–Prison activities and processes (0)

Who the research subjects/participants are

• victims (6), previous (3), current (3)
• specific minority ethnic community (3), previous (2), current (1), including:
  • sSouth Asian (2), previous (2)
  • Scottish-Pakistani (1), current (1)
• children and Young People (3), previous (1), current (1), future (1)
• asylum seekers and refugees (3), previous (2), current (1)
• those with a conviction (2), current (2)
• witnesses (2), current (2)
• gender – Women, specifically South Asian Women (2), previous (2)
• disability (1), current (1)

Research commissioned/funded by JAS/rest of SG

JAS research grant

“Diversifying Justice: Revealing viable pathways for South Asian women”

Topics: VAWGs – domestic abuse, access to justice/barriers to justice

Who: South Asian Women, victims

JAS: Analysis of the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) by ethnicity, using a pooled sample of data from (2008/09 to 2019/20) to investigate how experiences and perceptions of crime may vary for people of different ethnicities in Scotland.

Topics: Experience of crime and feelings of safety, police

JAS: A study into the characteristics of police recorded hate crime in Scotland, 2020-21: Based on a random sample of police recorded crimes, this study looks into the nature of police recorded hate aggravated crimes in Scotland. It provides details on the characteristics of these cases, including categorisation of the ethnicity of victims and perpetrators.

Topics: Hate Crime

Who: Victims and perpetrators 

Research audit (2020)

A research audit ('Race and the Justice System - Research Audit - Findings Report') was carried out in October 2020, to explore what research exists relating to Race and the Justice System in Scotland over the past decade (2010 – 2020). 72 unique sources were found.

• the most sources were found relating to police, crime, and victims
• fewer sources were found for: perpetrators, children and young people, courts and sentencing and prevention activities
• gaps, where no sources were found include: witnesses, the courts, community sentencing, licencing / parole conditions following release from prison, re-offending and re-imprisonment and civil justice

How do these research plans fit with areas identified as priorities in the justice vision, and during engagement work and working group discussions?

The aims and priority actions of the justice vision for Scotland

Looking at how the research planned by Justice Organisations on the CJWG fits with the aims outlined in the Justice Vision for Scotland, it can be seen that many of the projects align with the “person-centred and trauma-Informed” aim (16 out of 17 projects) and also “safe” (11 out of 17 projects). However very few look at “prevention and early intervention” (2) or “rehabilitation” (1). None seem to fit with the “COVID-19 recovery” aim.

Looking at the priority actions in the Justice Vision, Justice Organisations’ research aligns with the actions around “hearing victims’ voices (7) and “women and children in justice (6). However none seem to relate to “shifting the balance between use of custody and justice in the community”.

Survey of academics/researchers in Scotland ('Academic Engagement- Survey results Report')

Respondents were asked to select areas they thought were priorities for further research around ethnicity and justice from a list of topics, taken from the research audit. The topics are listed below from most commonly selected to least commonly selected. Respondents could tick as many topics as they thought were priorities.

1. police 86%
2. experience of crime and feelings of safety 76%
3. prevention and early intervention activities 48%
4. courts 48%
5. custodial sentences 43%
6. civil justice 33%
7. re-offending, re-imprisonment 24%
8. non-custodial sentences 19%
9. Post–Prison activities and processes 10%
10. other, please specify 0%

Looking at the top 5 priorities selected by academics/ researchers, there is research around the top 2, police and experience of crime. This work is found across Justice Organisations and academics. The survey of academics highlighted some research around courts, and a small number of projects around custodial sentences and prevention and early intervention, but these topics do not appear to be covered in the research plans of Justice Organisations. 

Community engagement discussion groups ('Community Engagement - Analysis Report - Justice Summary for Working Group')

Two discussion groups with participants from organisations representing a range of minority ethnic communities were held in July 2021. As part of these discussions, participants were asked if there were any particular areas where they felt more or better research or data was needed. The following were mentioned:

• police – specifically data in relation to the role of Police Scotland in immigration enforcement
• domestic abuse- specifically in the context of white minority ethnic women
• participants also wanted more research and data on the following minority ethnic communities: African, Polish, Central European and Spanish and Latina

Working group discussions

At the Cross Justice Working Group meeting in October 2021, workshop discussions were held, where working group members discussed areas which they though were priorities for research, how identified gaps could be filled, and what the role of the working group was going forward.

Areas highlighted as research priorities during the workshop discussion were:

• police (selected as top priority by 3 people on Jamboard)
• re-offending and re-imprisonment (selected as top priority by 2 people on Jamboard)
• courts (selected as top priority by 1 person on Jamboard)
• prevention and early intervention (Mentioned as number 2 priority by 2 people on Jamboard)
• experience of crime and feelings of safety (Mentioned as number 2 priority by 1 person on Jamboard)
• children and young people (mentioned in discussion)
• experience in custody and whether it has impacts on future offending and or reinforcing prejudice (additional comment on Jamboard)
• an understanding of people’s lived experience and how these might vary by ethnicity (and other characteristics), and what this would imply for policy development (mentioned in discussion)
• considering what key points in the Justice System we need data on (e.g. arrests, charges, prosecutions, court activity, disposals) – in effect a justice journey type product (mentioned in discussion)

In addition comments were made about the importance of demonstrating impact, taking a collective joined up approach and working with communities. All of which echo key themes emerging from the community engagement work.

What areas are gaps?

Having pulled the above information together, there are a number of topics which were deemed to be priority areas in “Justice Vision for Scotland”, the survey of academics / researchers, and by members of the working group, which are not covered in the list of research projects which will form the basis of the joint research plan.

The following topic areas have been identified as potential gaps as they do not appear in the joint research plan:

• courts - Joint no. 3 priority in academic survey (48%) and mentioned by working group)
• custodial sentences - no. 5 priority in academic survey (43%) and mentioned by working group
• re-offending, re-imprisonment - no. 7 priority in academic survey (24%) and mentioned by working group
• non-custodial sentences - no. 8 priority in academic survey (19%), and links to the Justice Vision for Scotland priority action around “shifting the balance between use of custody and justice in the community”
• Post–Prison activities and processes - no 9 priority in academic survey (10%)

In addition, civil justice and access to justice / barriers to justice, are likely to be covered in the joint research plan via SLAB’s customer surveys, which will gather ethnicity data. However, whether or not any breakdowns by ethnicity are possible will depend on sample size. 

Justice Analytical Service

February 2022

Joint research plan: summary of ethnicty and justice related research - combined responses