Community justice strategy: delivery plan

Aim 3 - Ensure that services are accessible and available to address the needs of individuals accused or convicted of an offence

Priority Action 7:

Enhance individuals' access to health and social care and continuity of care following release from prison by improving the sharing of information and partnership-working between relevant partners

Deliverables

21. Identify opportunities for supporting continuity of care through the development of suitable Clinical IT solutions to facilitate this via the Prisons Digital Health & Care Systems Provisioning Programme.

Timescale: Main changes to be delivered by 2025 with full implementation by 2028

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Prisons Digital Health & Care Systems Provisioning Programme Board
• In collaboration with - its key stakeholders including Scottish Government, NHS Boards and SPS

Further Detail:

Having considered the recommendations of an Outline Business Case, the Scottish Government will invest in the development of a suite of Clinical IT solutions for prisons that can be used interactively to support improvements to:

• Patient management;
• Prescribing and medicines administration;
• Access to patient history at point of need; and
• Provision of digital continuity of care for external contractors.

This work will commence in June 2023.

22. Develop and implement a revised Information Sharing Agreement between SPS and NHS Boards.

Timescale: April 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - SPS
• In collaboration with - NHS Boards and Local Authorities

Further Detail:

Where data on admissions and scheduled liberations is shared, this should enable community health and social care services to liaise with prison health care on admission and to prepare for and meet individual's needs on release.

Scottish Government is also working with SPS and other stakeholders to identify improvements in processes related to social care in preparation for the National Care Service. This may include data sharing considerations.

23. Amend GP contract regulations to allow the pre-registration of prisoners in advance of liberation.

Timescale: November 2023

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with - NHS Boards

Further Detail:

Work is underway to identify improvements to the GP registration on release from prison process and how these may be implemented.

24. Implement the revised Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between SPS and the NHS.

Timescale: January 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partners - NHS Boards via National Prison Care Network and SPS

Further Detail:

The MoU revision will provide improved clarity on the roles and responsibilities of each organisation and be the framework for partnership working and shared practices.

Priority Action 8:

Ensure that the housing needs of individuals in prison are addressed consistently and at an early stage by fully implementing and embedding the Sustainable Housing on Release for Everyone (SHORE) standards across all local authority areas

Deliverables

25. Explore options for a potential pilot project to enhance the consistency and co-ordination of housing services for individuals leaving prison, in line with the SHORE standards, prior to their release from custody.

Timescale: August 2023

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with - SPS, Local Authorities, including COSLA and ALACHO

Further Detail:

A potential pilot will explore what is needed to facilitate a more consistent approach amongst prisons and Local Authorities to assessing and meeting the housing needs of people in and leaving prison, which could inform future developments for wider co-ordination amongst local authorities and partner agencies.

26. Continue to support the full implementation of SHORE standards across all prisons and LA areas – including the development of multi-agency arrangements amongst local housing providers (and other public services and third sector organisations).

Timescale: August 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with - SPS, Local Authorities, including COSLA and ALACHO, and other relevant justice partners

Further Detail:

These arrangements should aim to address the housing and support needs of relevant individuals prior to release and describe the local processes between community justice partners and prisons.

The development should involve the creation of a standardised template to deliver a more collaborative and consistent approach to housing options advice and support. Arrangements should also use the evidence gathered from Local Authority and SPS mapping exercises, as well as any learning from a potential pilot. This work will feed into future discussions with sector stakeholders.

27. Publish refreshed and updated SHORE standards, which include a focus on a wider range of individuals and articulating what 'best practice' looks like. This will take into account learning from any potential pilot project, and multi-agency arrangements.

Timescale: November 2025

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with - SPS, ,Local Authorities, COSLA, ALACHO, Community Justice Scotland and other relevant justice partners

Further Detail:

Partners that developed the SHORE standards will have the opportunity to contribute to updating the SHORE documents to reflect subsequent developments.

As noted during the development of the SHORE standards, the guidance can be refreshed and developed to better recognise that every individual's experiences and housing needs may be different, and that measures should be in place to respond effectively to an individual's differing housing needs.

Priority Action 9:

Enhance individuals' life skills and readiness for employment by ensuring increased access to employability support through effective education, learning, training, career services and relevant benefit services

Deliverables

28. Develop a strategic framework to assist with the establishment of SPS Employability Advisory Boards. This will take into account technological advances and a refreshed SPS Learning & Employability Strategy.

Timescale: April 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - SPS
• In collaboration with - Local Authorities, Skills Development Scotland and third sector

Further Detail:

The establishment of Employability Advisory Boards will promote a more strategic approach to the provision of employability and learning support to people who are leaving custody.

To support this approach, a pilot will be launched across multiple areas which will involve prisons mapping available employability and learning services and undertaking needs assessments within local areas.

Local Authorities currently deliver Scottish Government funded employability services through No One Left Behind, which is an all age employability service working with partners at a local, regional and national level to deliver a person-centred service. All parties will work together to provide this inclusive service approach to individuals upon release from custody.

29. Community justice partnerships, Local Employability Partnerships and Employability Leads within Local Authorities should ensure that they are effectively integrated and aligned to ensure individuals are able to effectively access education and employability services.

Timescale: April 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Local Authorities
• In collaboration with - community justice statutory partners, including Skills Development Scotland and Social Work Scotland

Further Detail:

This will mean that a partner has a clearly defined and understood ambassadorial role within the employability pipeline and will be responsible for encouraging appropriate learning, employability and careers services referrals from community sentences and upon release from custody.

A key worker model is used by employability to ensure a holistic, person-centred approach to delivery. This approach works jointly with Local Authority staff who administer community sentences.

Individuals serving community sentences can access the Scottish Government Employability service No One Left Behind, and Skills Development Scotland have a number of resources which could be promoted to individuals serving community sentences and upon release from custody.

Aspects of this deliverable are also reflected within the Community Justice Improvement Tool.

30. Skills Development Scotland and SPS to develop and implement a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

Timescale: April 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partners - Skills Development Scotland and SPS

Further Detail:

The purpose of this MoU is to clearly identify the roles and responsibilities of each party in the delivery of services to young people within HMYOI establishments at a national level across a 3 year timeframe (2022-2025).

Skills Development Scotland and SPS will work together to prioritise the following key areas:

• Re-establishment of face-to-face career service delivery to young people, prioritising 16–18 year olds who are under the care of HMYOI Polmont and Stirling
• Collaborate on community Justice approaches and initiatives as appropriate to young people within HMYOI establishments, as Skills Development Scotland and SPS are both statutory justice partners
• Plan and deliver relevant joint CPD activity to develop the skills and knowledge of Skills Development Scotland and SPS colleagues
• Explore and develop remote delivery options
• Raise awareness of Skills Development Scotland services available to the wider (adult) prison population in their home areas, which are accessible on release using digital media systems/kit/approaches.

Priority Action 10:

Enhance community integration and support by increasing and promoting greater use of voluntary throughcare and third sector services

Deliverables

31. Publish and embed updated operational guidance to Justice Social Work for the delivery of throughcare services.

Timescale: February 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with – relevant justice partners including Community Justice Scotland, RMA, third sector, Social Work Scotland and community justice statutory partners, including Local Authorities and SPS

Further Detail:

This guidance will promote a more consistent approach to pre-release planning and the subsequent support offered to all individuals on their release from prison, by local authorities and partner agencies. It will focus on public protection, positive community reintegration and a reduction in further offending.

32. Review the provision of third sector Voluntary Throughcare services. This will inform decisions for the future grant funding process for third sector voluntary throughcare provision and the way the provision will be organised in the future.

Timescale: April 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Community Justice Scotland
• In collaboration with – relevant justice partners including Scottish Government, third sector and community justice statutory partners, including Local Authorities and SPS

Further Detail:

This project will review current third sector voluntary throughcare provision by consulting and engaging with key stakeholders, service users and service providers. The project will also use research data and gathered evidence to ensure that future processes promote partnership working and consistency, whilst ensuring an individual's needs are met on release.

33. Continue to promote and enhance multi-agency pre-release planning and co-ordination of activities in support of throughcare. This requires more consistent information sharing practices and consideration of the movement of people between local authority and health board areas.

Timescale: December 2024

Responsibility:

• Lead partner - Scottish Government
• In collaboration with - relevant justice partners including Community Justice Scotland, third sector, RMA, SPS, NHS Boards, Local Authorities and Social Work Scotland

Further Detail:

The review of guidance, as well as the commissioning project for third sector delivered voluntary throughcare service provision, will highlight where any improvements are required.

Work within the Bail and Release from Custody Bill, relating to pre-release planning, will also guide the development of practice and co-ordination during sentence and in the lead up to release from custody.