Scottish Prisons Assessment and Review of Outcomes for Women (SPAROW): full report

2. The wider context of women’s imprisonment in Scotland

Women in custody in Scotland

Whilst the overwhelming majority of those convicted and imprisoned in Scotland are men – accounting for 83 per cent of all convictions in 2022-3, a similar proportion as each year in the past ten years (Scottish Government 2024), there has been concern about the rate of female imprisonment and the impact of imprisonment on criminalised women in Scotland for over 30 years. Scotland saw a steady rise throughout the 1990s in the average daily female sentenced and remand prison population and an increase in sentence length amongst sentenced prisoners. This was attributable largely to an increase in sentences from six months up to two years (McIvor & Burman 2011).

Despite most of women’s convictions being for relatively minor offences, the average daily female prison population almost doubled between 1999/2000 and 2008/9, from 210 to 413 (Scottish Government 2010). Over this period the sentence length for women received into prison under direct sentence increased and, at the same time, there was an 83 per cent increase in the numbers of women received into prison on remand between 1997/8 and 2006/7 (McIvor & Burman 2011). There was no evidence of an increase in women’s criminality during this period. Indeed, the number of women convicted per 100,000 population was identical in 1995/6 and 2004/5 (Scottish Executive 2006). Yet the increases in sentence length suggest that some women who were convicted were being treated more harshly by the courts (McIvor 2007).

While the size of the female prison population in Scotland continued to increase throughout the 2000s, it has seen fluctuation since then. Between 2012-13 and 2016-17 the average daily female prison population decreased to 368 but rose to around 403 in 2019-2020. During the Covid-19 period, the numbers dropped again to 300 in 2020-21 and to 283 in 2021-22 (Scottish Government 2024a)^[1]. Overall, in 2023-2024 women represented 6.5 per cent of the prison population in Scotland with a daily prison population of 318. The daily population represents a 12.8 per cent increase over the previous year, but it is still lower than pre-pandemic levels. Whilst a number of these women were on remand or awaiting deportation, the statistics suggest an increase in non-sexual crimes of violence, this being the largest offence group, with crimes of dishonesty and crimes against society following (Scottish Government 2024b).

Women in custody face unique challenges compared to their male counterparts and risk factors associated with criminal offending are different. Their offences are generally less serious than men’s; they are less likely to have a prior offence history, and they generally recidivate less often than men. International research documenting the characteristics of women in custody has revealed backgrounds of violent and sexual victimisation (Chesney-Lind & Pasko 2012), unmet needs and interrelated problems. These include poor physical health, presenting specific health issues from eating disorders to pregnancy (Plugge et al. 2006); addiction problems (Malloch 2000); backgrounds of poverty (Carlen 1988; Brown & Gelsthorpe 2022), and housing and employment difficulties (Sheehan et al. 2007).

Researchers studying women in custodial settings have highlighted the vulnerabilities related to the troubled and distinct characteristics, life histories, and circumstances that imprisoned women frequently report. These challenges are well documented in the international literature (Baldwin 2017; 2021; Corston 2007; Masson et al. 2021; Quinlan 2003; Quinlan et al. 2022; Wright 2017). In addition, levels of self-harm (Fitzpatrick et al 2022), suicidal ideation and suicide attempts for women in prison are significantly higher than for those outside prison (Ludlow et al. 2015). Women in custody also report a significantly greater incidence of mental health problems and higher rates of drug use than males do (Plugge et al. 2006).

The picture in Scotland is no different to the wider international profile. In their 2012 Report, the Commission on Women Offenders (CWO) highlighted that, compared to the general population, women in prison in Scotland have significantly greater levels of underlying health needs. They also have greater rates of poor mental health; higher lifetime instances of trauma, which includes greater physical and sexual victimisation, and rates of substance misuse which are higher than that of male prisoners (CWO 2012). One fifth of the 213 women surveyed as part of the 2017 SPS Prisoner Survey reported that they had used drugs in the last month whilst in prison, and one third were being prescribed methadone (SPS 2018). Over half (59 per cent) of the women felt that drug taking was a problem for them in the community, up from 38 per cent in 2015. Thirty-eight per cent reported being drunk at the time of their offence and 53 per cent were under the influence of drugs (SPS 2018).

For some women, structural factors, combined with gendered life experiences lead to extremely difficult lives. At the point of coming into prison, women may be dealing with multiple issues, such as homelessness, involvement in prostitution or sexual exploitation, mental health problems, domestic abuse, and addiction. A cross-sectional study of 109 women across four prisons in Scotland revealed high levels of poor mental health, in particular anxiety, depression, or both. Additionally, 78 per cent of women assessed reported a history of Significant Head Injury (SHI), of whom 40 per cent had an associated disability (McMillan et al. 2021). Literacy and numeracy levels can be low. Twenty-three per cent of the women who were assessed in the same study lacked functional literacy. Sixty-one per cent of women were assessed as requiring significant literacy support. The high levels of learning need and brain injury demonstrate a requirement for access to appropriate specialist supports to enable the women to have better life chances.

Housing, employment, addiction, ill-health, social relationships, motherhood and mothering are rendered more difficult, and, in some cases, impossible, by imprisonment. It is estimated that approximately 65 per cent of women in prison in Scotland are mothers; of those around 70 per cent had childcare responsibilities prior to imprisonment, and most intend to resume that care on release (Scottish Government 2022). Around a third of mothers in prison describe themselves as single parents (SPS 2016). However, this is likely to be an underestimate as many women are reluctant to disclose that they have children. Separation anxiety, coupled with concerns about their childrens’ wellbeing, can raise already high stress levels of mothers in custody who are sole caretakers, particularly when the custodial facility is far from home (Sheehan & Flynn 2007).

While it is important that imprisoned women are not defined by these vulnerabilities these are, nonetheless, the fundamental realities for many. Even short periods of incarceration – a sentence of six months or less (Baldwin & Epstein 2017; Masson 2019) can significantly exacerbate women's already disadvantaged lives.

Gender-specificity

Until relatively recently gendered issues affecting women in prison have largely been ignored by penal institutions, primarily because prisons have been designed ‘for men, by men’ (Menis 2021; MoJ 2023). Contemporary gender-specific approaches acknowledge that women have distinct histories, pathways to offending, and gendered experiences at each stage of the criminal justice process that are different to men (Brown & Gelsthorpe 2022; Crowley 2021; Covington 2022; Petrillo 2016; 2021; Petrillo & Bradley 2022).

Gender-specific approaches aim to address issues that may contribute to women’s involvement in the criminal justice system, such as domestic abuse, victimisation, family and relationships; marginalisation, trauma; and poverty, mental ill-health, and illicit substance use as well as abusive relationships with coercive or controlling men. Women also often require specific health, welfare and social care interventions that take account of their gender as well as their circumstances and their needs, not only whilst in prison but also on returning to the community. Addressing these needs call for a response which is gender-sensitive and takes account of women’s distinctive gendered circumstances.

Trauma-informed practice

King (2017) describes trauma as an individual’s experience of an event that considerably and negatively affects their ability to cope with or recover from it, evoking emotions such as fear, hopelessness and a sense of violation. The experience of trauma – whether from a one-off event or a cumulative and ongoing series of events – can have lasting implications on an individual’s social, physical and emotional wellbeing (Felitti et al. 1998; Perry et al. 1995). Women in, or ‘at risk’ of contact with criminal justice systems are widely considered to have experienced high levels of victimisation and abuse, parental conflict or separation, bereavement and loss, all of which can result in traumatisation (Sharpe 2012; Prison Reform Trust 2017; Karatzias et al. 2018; Petrillo 2022; 2023; Brown & Gelsthorpe 2022; Burman et al. 2023; Kelman et al. 2024). There is an established evidence base concerning both the immediate and long-term effect of trauma on individuals (McCann & Pearlman 1990; Perry et al. 1995; Van der Kolk et al. 1996; Breslau 2012).

Because of their past experiences, many women enter prison traumatised. Existing backgrounds of trauma can be deepened at each stage of the criminal justice process. The processes of arrest and awaiting trial amid a paucity of information can re-traumatise – leading to feelings of fear and helplessness (Levenson & Willis 2019). Prisons are not only trauma-inducing but can be a catalyst for previous trauma to re-emerge (Crewe et al. 2017; Thomas 2023).

There is now a strong recognition of the role played by practitioners, services, and institutions in exacerbating trauma (Bloom & Farragher 2010; Chard 2021; Agenda & Alliance for Youth Justice 2022). Almost 25 years ago, Harris & Fallot (2001) called for a ‘paradigm shift within service delivery systems’ (2001: 21). They argued that organisations should reconfigure their service systems, taking into account the past trauma in a way that would encourage the service user to engage with them (Harris & Fallot 2001).

Trauma-informed approaches have since developed and multiplied (Berliner & Kalko 2016; Hanson & Lang 2016; Johnson 2017). For justice-involved women in particular, such approaches are premised on the understanding that many of these women have experienced multiple or cumulative traumatic experiences throughout their lives. Therefore the approach to working with them needs to recognise this as a key consideration (Covington 2017, 2022; Petrillo & Bradley 2022). Trauma-informed practices are those that realise the impact of trauma and potential paths for recovery, recognise the signs and symptoms of trauma, respond by integrating knowledge about trauma into their approach, and resist retraumatisation (SAMHSA 2014). A main goal is to minimise the extent to which service users are re-traumatised or triggered by aspects of the way they experience the service (SAMHSA 2014; Kelman et al. 2024). Crucially service providers need to understand the impact and prevalence of trauma amongst those with whom they work. Essentially this involves ensuring that working with traumatised individuals and groups is sensitive to trauma and adopts, as a minimum standard, what Miller and Najavits (2012) describe as a ‘do no harm’ approach.

The development of trauma-informed work is based on considerable expertise and a strong commitment by professionals to transform this into practice (Auty et al. 2022). The influence of US psychologist Stephanie Covington, who introduced the trauma-informed practice approach into criminal justice settings and prisons in the UK, is marked in Scotland (2019; 2023). Indeed, she visited Scotland to advise SPS on the value of ensuring trauma-informed practice across the prison estate, and how to embed this way of working in the transformed female estate. Her influence can be seen in the SPS Strategy for Women in Custody. Additionally, in Scotland, trauma-informed practice is enshrined in the Transforming Psychological Trauma: A Knowledge and Skills Framework for the Scottish Workforce (NHS Education for Scotland 2017). This is designed to support and develop trauma-related knowledge and skills across the entire Scottish workforce, not just among those practitioners with a direct remit to work with trauma. This framework aims to equip practitioners to identify the impact of trauma and adapt practice to minimise distress, maximise trust, and promote engagement and recovery (NHS Education for Scotland 2017).

While implementation of new and innovative approaches, such as trauma-informed approaches, may be challenging, it is of note that there is some oversight of impact by the Prisons Inspectorate for Scotland (HMIPS). Shortly after the opening of the two CCUs, HMIPS conducted full inspections: Lilias between 27 and 29 of February 2024 (HMIPS, 2024a) and Bella between 5 to 7 March 2024 (HMIPS, 2024b). These inspections took place during the fieldwork on which this report is based.

Policy and practice context

Scotland has seen a raft of policy reviews and reports highlighting the need to limit the use of female imprisonment and to make use of alternative and gender-appropriate community-based services (Social Work Services and Prisons Inspectorate for Scotland 1998; Scottish Executive 2002; Scottish Consortium on Crime and Criminal Justice 2006; Scottish Prisons Commission 2008). This was prompted initially by a series of suicides in the 1990s. At the same time there have been numerous political pledges to reduce the numbers of women in prison, with limited effect (Burman, Malloch & McIvor 2015; Armstrong & Malloch 2024).

Nevertheless, ongoing concerns about the size and composition of the female prison population have led to many attempts to identify different ways to respond to women who encounter the criminal justice system. The Scottish National Party (SNP) 2011 election manifesto committed to ‘address the explosion in the female prison population’ despite the number of females committing offences staying the same. They commissioned ‘a review of female offending, including the rise in female incarceration’ (SNP 2011: 18). That same year, the Scottish Parliament Equal Opportunities Committee emphasised the importance of recognising the distinctive needs of women and ensuring that criminal justice responses took gender differences into account. In June 2011, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) undertook a follow-up inspection of HMP & YOI (Young Offender Institution) Cornton Vale, once again pointing to serious overcrowding and the adverse consequences on women living there.

The Scottish Government subsequently announced the establishment of a Commission on Women Offenders (CWO) to find a more effective way of responding to women in the criminal justice system. The remit of the Commission was: ‘to consider the evidence on how to improve outcomes for women in the criminal justice system; to make recommendations for practical measures in this Parliament to reduce their reoffending and reverse the recent increase in the female prisoner population’.

The resultant report (CWO 2012) pledged a strong desire to reduce the number of women in custody for minor offences and remand. It found that service provision for women in the community and upon leaving custody was ‘highly variable and disjointed’; that interventions delivered in prison were rarely followed up in the community and performance measures relating to women’s outcomes were considered inappropriate. It also found that funding arrangements favoured activity over outcomes, making it difficult to measure the impact or effectiveness of programmes being undertaken (CWO 2012).

The CWO was particularly struck by the high levels of trauma, anxiety and mental health problems as well as underlying physical health issues experienced by women in the criminal justice system in Scotland, and made a strong case for the value of co-ordinated working to ensure a holistic approach to women’s mental health and addiction needs. They proposed a set of 37 recommendations across seven broad areas for improving outcomes for women in the criminal justice system and reducing their reoffending. These were: service redesign, alternatives to prosecution, alternatives to remand, sentencing, prisons, community reintegration, and leadership structures and delivery (CWO 2012). These included recommendations proposing service redesign through an interconnected and collaborative framework of support and direction for women offenders. One of which was the establishment of Community Justice Centres, envisaged as ‘one-stop’ centres that would coordinate and deliver a consistent range of services to reduce reoffending. ‘One-stop’ centres were very much endorsed by the Corston Report (2007), following the Westminster Government’s experiment with ‘Women Together’ in England and Wales (Hedderman et al. 2008).

The idea was that the Community Justice Centres in Scotland could include interventions for supervision and management. These would be suited to the needs of women; challenging women’s offending behaviours and attitudes; addressing the root causes of reoffending; and, simultaneously providing practical advice and support on matters such as housing, benefits, employment, and childcare. The CWO was convinced of the importance of women-specific programmes and solutions to deal with the problems that women with convictions face. It was therefore considered important that the Community Justice Centres would be available and involved at every stage of the criminal justice system, and that services would be ‘proactive and persistent’ in engaging with women (CWO 2012).

Radical recommendations were made in the CWO Report regarding the existing prison estate. Primarily that HMP & YOI Cornton Vale (the only purpose-built women’s prison in Scotland) should be demolished and replaced by a smaller national prison for women serving long-term sentences (i.e. 4 years and over) and who were considered to present a significant risk to the public. This specialist prison would have the capacity for what was described as ‘meaningful and consistent work’. It would include an adequate medical centre, a young women’s unit, a purpose-built mother and baby unit, an appropriate and family friendly visitor centre, and a Community Integration Unit to help women access community services and support networks prior to release.

The use of local prisons for remand and short-term prisoners was also recommended with the aim of improving reintegration to the community and with improved links to services following release as well as improved links with families and children through the extension and expansion of video technology. Gender-specific training for all those working with women was also recommended.

The Scottish Government accepted 33 of the 37 recommendations, of which six were specifically for the SPS to implement. It announced its intention to close HMP & YOI Cornton Vale and develop HMP Inverclyde as a new 300 capacity national prison for women. However, in early 2015, the then Cabinet Secretary for Justice announced that the plans for the latter would not proceed; and that a ‘bolder’ and ‘more radical and ambitious approach’ was needed.

Following consultation to rethink the approach to the custody of women, and an international symposium to discuss ‘best practice’ (Scottish Government 2015), plans were announced for the future of the custodial estate for women in Scotland. It was confirmed that there would be a new national facility for women (HMP Stirling) to be built on the site of HMP & YOI Cornton Vale, for up to 80 women with higher security requirements or more complex needs, and up to five regional Community Custody Units (CCUs) to be located across Scotland. Along the way, the CWO recommendation for the Community Justice Centres was dropped in favour of custodial units, with a vision that these would support women’s rehabilitation nearer their home, family and community.

The SPS took forward the development of the redesign of the custodial arrangements for women. The re-design was intended to ensure that the physical environment and services were gender-specific, trauma-informed and that conditions were based on safety, respect and dignity, incorporated within the specificities of the risks and needs of women in prison.

The building of the CCUs was undertaken in a phased approach, although as yet only two of the five that were proposed have been built. Interviews with senior SPS personnel indicated that views have changed as to whether more CCUs for women should be created. HMP Bella in Dundee eventually opened in August 2022 (with capacity for 16 women) and HMP Lilias in Glasgow opened in October 2022 (with capacity for 24 women). A key aim of the CCU model is that women can access activities and services that will assist them in the development of skills for reintegration into the community.

Following the demolition of HMP & YOI Cornton Vale, the new national women’s prison HMP & YOI Stirling opened in October 2023; it has the capacity to hold a maximum of 117 women, along with a separate mother and baby unit. Women are housed in house-style accommodation and HMP & YOI Stirling receives admissions from court and has an assessment centre. The remit of the Governor extends to oversight and governance of the two CCUs, with overall responsibility for the progression/transfer of women to the CCUs.

Scottish Prison Service Strategy for Women in Custody

Alongside the redesign of custodial facilities, the SPS formulated a four-year Strategy for Women in Custody (2021-2025) (SPS 2021). The SPS Strategy sets out an overarching plan for all women in custody in Scotland. It outlines how SPS intends to work with partners, stakeholders and the women themselves to ensure that ‘women’s time spent in custody will contribute to better outcomes for them, their families and their communities’.

Recognising that women and their needs are different to those of men, the SPS Strategy for Women is founded on the principles that all aspects of the care of women in custody should be designed for women (gender-specific) and take account of their likely experience of trauma and adversities (trauma-informed). Central to the approach are the health and wellbeing of the women, the quality of the relationships established within all the new custodial establishments, the skills and knowledge of staff, and the services, approaches and tools that will be available to help to address the individual needs and risks of the women. All aspects of the approach are therefore intended to be gender-specific and trauma-informed, recognising the effects of trauma on women’s lives.

The SPS Strategy for Women incorporates six core values:

1. Belief that women have the capacity to change.

2. Respect for individuals, their needs and rights.

3. Integrity, high ethical, moral and professional standards.

4. Openness to work with others and innovate to achieve best results.

5. Caring for people in distress, understanding that fear can result in behaviours that challenge.

6. Humility to be able to learn from others and from evidence.

Highlighting the commitment to women’s distinctive needs and circumstances, the SPS Strategy for Women and the new models of custody that it underpins are designed to be aligned with the United Nations (UN) standards for the treatment of women in prison. The UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Noncustodial Measures for Women Offenders (the ‘Bangkok Rules’) were adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. They provide standards which give guidance to policy makers, legislators, sentencing authorities and prison staff to reduce the imprisonment of women, and to meet the specific needs of women in prison.

The SPS Strategy for Women was also designed to align with recommendations made by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT). This group visited Scotland in 2019 and 2020 and raised serious concerns about the wellbeing of women with mental ill health in HMP & YOI Cornton Vale (Council of Europe 2020). Specifically, these were in terms of the provision of appropriate accommodation, access to activities, hygiene and health care, gender-sensitive prison management, staffing and training, and contact with the outside world. In addition, the SPS Strategy was designed to align with ‘Equally Safe’, Scotland’s strategy to prevent and eradicate violence against women and girls (Scottish Government 2023).

The SPS Strategy for Women was also tasked to take account of the requirements of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) for the children of women in custody and, for female children aged 16 or 17 who are in SPS custody.^[2] As such the accommodation, approaches and services provided to women in custody are required to be designed to acknowledge and reflect women’s distinctive gendered needs and circumstances.

In its adoption of a trauma-informed approach embodying the principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration and empowerment, the Strategy states that the design of the physical prison environment, staff approach and organisational policies and procedures need to take account of women’s likely experience of trauma and the potential for re-traumatisation. Further, that the harmful effects of custody are minimised and that women’s opportunities for growth and wellbeing are maximised.

Encapsulating all of this, the Strategy incorporates nine key gender-sensitive and trauma-informed principles. These focus on a recognition of:

• women’s distinctive needs and circumstances;
• women’s potential;
• the importance of positive relationships to support women’s journeys through the penal system;
• the effects of trauma and the potential for re-traumatisation;
• the development of women’s agency to encourage engagement and participation;
• the importance of an evidence-based approach to interventions known to promote desistance from crime and improve life chances;
• the wellbeing and rights of children with others in custody, and;
• a culture of continuous improvement based on evaluation, evidence and lived experience.

The principle and fundamentals of the approach are intended to be consistent across all of the SPS women's estate, although SPS acknowledges that there may be differences on how these are put into operation in different establishments.

Drawing on these concepts, the intention for the CCUs was that they embody an organisational shift to be more gender-specific and trauma-informed, in their physical design, their organisational ethos, and in the approach of staff and partners delivering services into them. The rest of this report discusses the evaluation of this Strategy as operationalised in the CCUs.