Our Recommendations – Supported by Bishop Marcus

We wanted to find ways that our Diocese could better help people in the criminal justice system. To this end we made a series of detailed recommendations.

The recommendations are informed by the many interviews we conducted for the inquiry, where we asked them how the church could better serve them.

Here’s an example of what people at a rehabilitative housing project said would help the church help ex-offenders more effectively:

OFFICIAL RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INQUIRY

This Inquiry was not meant to be a purely academic exercise, but an action research project designed to discern ways in which the Catholic Church can raise awareness and promote positive change. As such, our recommendations are presented to the Bishop, Clergy and Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Leeds as practical proposals for action in the coming months and years.

Promote actions that raise awareness and inspire more Catholics to work for positive changes in the criminal justice system.

To achieve this recommendation, it is proposed that the following actions should be prioritised:

The Caritas Leeds Criminal Justice Forum to support taking forward the recommendations and proposals for action from this report.
Promote Prisoners’ Sunday and Prisons Week as an annual focal point for prayer, liturgy, volunteering and educational opportunities related to the criminal justice system.
Promote and convene a regular meeting of prison chaplains for shared learning, peer support and planning activities. The promotion of a conference for prison chaplains, prison visitors and community chaplaincy staff should also be considered.
Promote and arrange opportunities for people with lived experience of the criminal justice system to share their testimonies with parishes and diocesan organisations, and build relationships for possible future support.

Encourage participation of parishes or deaneries in practical local action.

To achieve this recommendation, it is proposed that the following actions should be prioritised:

Encourage parishes or deaneries to consider ‘adopting’ at least one public agency or third sector organisation working within the criminal justice system and develop an ongoing partnership with them.
Encourage parishes to provide meeting spaces for criminal justice charities, and peer support groups for related issues (e.g. addiction, mental health).
Encourage parishes and diocesan organisations to register for Giving Time, Tempus Novo and other schemes that create volunteering opportunities for people who have criminal convictions.
Encourage lay Catholics who are business leaders to register for Giving Time, Tempus Novo and other schemes that create volunteering opportunities for people who have criminal convictions.

Foster training and capacity building activities to equip clergy and lay people with the skills and confidence to act as champions for justice and mercy, and ensure that the Catholic Church is an effective partner for organisations working within the criminal justice system.

To achieve this recommendation, it is proposed that the following actions should be prioritised:

Foster the provision of guidance and training on how to access Restorative Justice and signpost parishioners to local services for victims, ex-offenders and families.
Foster opportunities for catechists and parish volunteers to access training on issues such as addiction and mental health, to enable better inclusion and support for ex-offenders, victims of crime and their families in church activities.
Foster the provision of training for lay Catholics in campaigning, media engagement and community organising to give them the skills and confidence to participate in local decision-making and scrutiny forums and advocate for positive change in the criminal justice system.

Support reforms which build a criminal justice system that delivers both justice and mercy.

To achieve this recommendation, it is proposed that the following actions should be prioritised:

Work in partnership with existing Diocesan charities, other Christian and faith communities, to develop a campaign strategy to build local support for change in a number of areas, including:
- Making the caring of victims, prisoners and ex-offenders a higher priority for politicians.
- Improved quality and access to mental health services for prisoners.
- Ensuring parity of healthcare between every prison and its local community, and continuity of care for people entering prison or being released.
- Increased public funding for Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (particularly for prison staff and probation officers), rehabilitation activities and restorative justice schemes.
- Reduced use of short custodial sentences and increased use of alternative community sentences.
Support the Business in the Community Ban the Box campaign to give ex-offenders a fair chance to compete for jobs by removing the tick box from application forms and instead asking about criminal convictions later in the recruitment process.
Encourage lay Catholics who are business leaders to support the Business in the Community Ban the Box