Scottish Prisons Assessment and Review of Outcomes for Women (SPAROW): exploratory baseline study

Footnotes

1 The Scottish Prison Service: Bella Centre; The Scottish Prison Service: Lilias Centre

2 The baseline study involved women in custody only. The specification for the main independent SPAROW Evaluation was developed to involve SPS staff and delivery partners, alongside women in custody. The baseline study survey method was limited in its approach to explore and unpack gender-specificity and trauma-informed theory and practice, and how such approaches were being implemented in the CCUs (see Chapter Two for the baseline study methodology).

3 Two small group discussions with women in His Majesty’s Prison and Young Offender Institution (HMP & YOI) Cornton Vale, and two individual discussions with women who had recently left custody.

4 See the Life in Custody Study website for more detailed information.

5 A full version of the Prison Climate Questionnaire is available upon request from the Life in Custody Study academics.

6 Since the baseline study was undertaken, HMP & YOI Cornton Vale was closed and replaced with HMP & YOI Stirling, which opened in July 2023, and is the new national facility for women on remand and sentence in Scotland. Women are no longer accommodated in HMP Edinburgh.

7 The average number of individuals in daily snapshots over a given period. The information is based on a non-quality assured data source. It is compiled out of daily snapshots of the Prisoner Records system. It has not gone through the quality assurance checks applied to Accredited Official Statistics data. ADP data results in this Chapter and in Annex Three should be considered estimates only.

8 Over the period of 337 days between Monday 1st August 2022 and Monday 3rd July 2023.

9 All the paper survey responses were stored in a locked locker in the Scottish Government, with the JAS researcher the only key holder. Once digitised, all the paper surveys were shredded.

10 For example, on a 5-point Likert scale where: 1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neutral (Neither Disagree/Agree), 4 = Agree, 5 = Strongly Agree; an average Mean score calculation over 3 and nearer 5 reflects a more positive experience, and an average Mean score below 3 and nearer 1 reflects a more negative experience.

11 The closed survey question responses were on a scale of 1 to 5, with: 1 - strongly disagree; 2 – disagree; 3 - neither agree nor disagree; 4 – agree; and, 5 - strongly agree. On analysis, a higher mean score (above 3 and nearer 5) indicates a more positive experience, and a lower mean score (below 3 and nearer 1) indicates a more negative experience.

12 The SPS Risk Management Team (RMT) is the formal decision-making process for assessing and recommending long-term and life/top-end sentenced women to move to a CCU. The Women’s Case Management Board (WCMB) is the formal decision-making processes to assess and recommend a move for short-term sentenced women. The RMT, for all sentence categories, is responsible for decisions to grant temporary release (e.g. for home visits, for community access to work, shop, or participate in an activity) (SPS 2018)).

13 Individuals in custody can be accommodated in more than one establishment over their sentence period. Women who participated were not asked how many establishments they had resided in over the period of their sentence. Participants answered the pre-move survey in the context of the older establishment (the baseline) they were moving from, to live in a CCU. That said, it is acknowledged that women’s responses could have been influenced by previous establishments they had resided, and not just by the most recent establishment they were moving from, to a CCU.

14 The PCQ questions in each Domain were answered on a 5-point Likert scale where: 1 - Strongly Disagree; 2 – Disagree; 3 - Neutral (neither Disagree or Agree); 4 – Agree; and, 5 - Strongly Agree.

15 After one survey interview the JAS researcher spent some time in a CCU hub with a small group of women, who consented to the discussion being captured as part of the baseline study.

16 To note, on analysis the "sense” of questions in this domain is reversed, so that a higher mean score remains associated with a positive experience (i.e. “I do not feel unsafe in this establishment”; “I am not afraid of some fellow women here”).

17 Women only answered questions applicable to their experiences here. Therefore the overall response is lower for some items. Pre-move range 27-33, post-move range 16-23.

18 To note, not in areas of privacy such as bathrooms and bedrooms.

19To note, on analysis the "sense” of questions in the sleep quality questions is reversed, so that a higher Mean score remains associated with a positive experience (i.e. “my sleep quality is often not restless in this establishment”).

20 Twenty-seven of the 34 women who participated in the pre-move survey, and sixteen women of the 23 women who participated in the post-move survey said they had a physical or mental health condition or illness (See Annex Three).

21 Women only answered questions applicable to their experiences here. Therefore the overall response is lower for some items. Pre-move range 18-34, post-move range 6-23.

22 Women only answered questions applicable to their experiences here. Therefore the overall response is lower for some items. Pre-move range 30-34, post-move range 23 only.

23 Ultimate Self is the Offender Management Programme for Women in Custody in Scotland (see Annex Five).

24 At the time of the baseline study, a number of women lived in a mixed establishment, accommodated separately. Women conveyed that they thought there were more jobs for men than women.

25 At the time of the baseline study, it was difficult to un-pack/understand whether feeling locked-up all the time was because of being locked in a cell for most of the time, or because of the limited outside/recreation time, work and education opportunities, and activities.

26 Offender behaviour programmes for women - see Annex Five for further details.

27 From the discussions, although not completely clear, staff were donating equipment (rather than buying/paying from their pocket).

28 This appears to be whilst living in their older establishment. Whilst repeating the baseline survey in the CCUs, women further reflected on their participation in Ultimate Self programmes.

29 These projects are focused on firstly, social networks in prison which aims to explore the social relations between prisoners within the prison units they are accommodated (see for example Sentse et al 2021), and secondly on cognitive skills and autonomy that examined: “the effect of cognitive skills on (sense of) autonomy and behavioural change during and after imprisonment.”

30 See the references noted for more detail.

31 Also see a recently published Scottish Government literature review on “Understanding family support needs of people in prison custody”. This literature review explores evidence on supporting people in custody to maintain family relationships, and the barriers that exist to do so. The review explores models of family support in Scotland and internationally to support “contact with the outside world” and, offers key considerations for policy and practice to ensure: visiting spaces are child-friendly; models are designed and informed by families and lived experience; digital technology is utilised; financial assistance is available; and, that information and communication is accessible to families, visitors and individuals in custody to maintain contact. The findings resonate with Van Ginneken et al (2018) and Bosma et al (2020).

32 This was either a meeting room or classroom in an older establishment. Most of the baseline study survey interviews were undertaken 1-2-1. On two occasions women participated in pairs, and on one occasion a group of 4 women participated at the same time.

33 The information is based on a non-quality assured data source. It is compiled out of daily snapshots of the Prisoner Records system. It has not gone through the quality assurance checks applied to Accredited National Statistics data. Results should be considered provisional estimates and may be superseded by later publications.

34 The women’s qualitative discussions on their CCU experiences have been analysed together, with all participants qualitative discussion. The baseline study did not explore the complexities around women who had moved to a CCU, who then moved and returned to an older establishment.

35 A request for permission form to use the Prison Climate Questionnaire was submitted by the JAS researcher undertaking the exploratory baseline study. The form documented the word amendments that would be made to the PCQ to reflect the Scottish context. A User Agreement was also completed and signed.