Bradley Report on Mental Health an Ambitious Plan

Nacro, the crime reduction charity, has welcomed Lord Bradley’s report on mental health and the criminal justice system.

Commenting, Dave Spurgeon, Lead policy officer in Nacro’s mental health unit, said:

“Lord Bradley’s report is an ambitious plan which creates the opportunity for a national framework of liaison and diversion services across the whole offender journey. If implemented well this could greatly improve the outcomes for offenders with mental health needs or learning disabilities.

“Nacro has been putting out similar messages about diversion for some years, and has conducted a lot of research to find out what makes an effective service; we have also produced a directory of such schemes in England and Wales. As our work shows, liaison and diversion schemes do play an important role, but Nacro is concerned about the gaps in current provision, and the ability of existing schemes to do all that Lord Bradley intends.

“The emphasis on Partnerships for Change, and involving Regional Offender Health Teams in developing a strategy is a sound approach. However, this will rely on adequate resourcing and full co-operation across health and criminal justice agencies. Existing services could be smarter with using their resources, but additional funding will also be required if this ambitious plan is to be put into effective use.

“Nacro’s Mental Health Unit has been working with the regions for some time to develop policy and practice around offender mental health. This makes us ideally placed to work with the Regional Offender Health Teams and other agencies to assist in taking Lord Bradley’s recommendations forward effectively. We urge the Programme Board to take quick and decisive action to implement the valuable recommendations of the Bradley Report.”

ENDS

The Bradley Report: Lord Bradley’s review of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities in the criminal justice system is published today.