Experts to assess needs of women in the justice system
Gender inequality and improving women’s experiences within the justice system will be addressed by a new Scottish Government panel.
Members will examine the experiences of women as both victims and offenders in a range of settings including policing, community justice, criminal and civil courts, tribunals and prisons.
The Women’s Justice Leadership Panel, which met for the first time yesterday, will be chaired by Community Safety Minister Ash Regan.
Membership includes Solicitor General Ruth Charteris QC, academics and representatives from the Scottish Prison Service, Police Scotland, Community Justice Scotland, the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre and the Centre for Women’s Justice.
Key issues for the panel include:
- how women experience the Scottish justice system differently from men, in what ways their needs are not being met and how it impacts on them
- international and UK examples where women’s needs are more appropriately met
- how to address under-representation of women in senior leadership roles and how this impacts on the culture in justice organisations
Ms Regan said: “The Scottish justice system needs to evolve to ensure it serves the needs of women. For example, issues like the impact of caring responsibilities on women or the blurred line between victimisation and offender status are issues which could be understood better.
“Some significant improvements have been made, but often changes are piecemeal and do not provide the fundamental reform needed to embed women’s rights.
“We need to develop a better picture of the evidence to demonstrate how the experience of the justice system differs depending on gender and promote a consistent understanding of the impact of this on women. This will help us deliver better outcomes for women and reflect expectations of what a modern justice system should look like.”
The membership of the panel comprises:
Ash Regan – Minister for Community Safety (Chair)
Ruth Charteris QC – Solicitor General
Jacqueline Clinton – Scottish Prisons Service
Ch Supt Linda Jones – Police Scotland
Rose McConnachie – Head of learning, development and innovation at Community Justice Scotland
Jen Ang – Director of Development and Policy Scottish Women’s Right Centre/Just Right
Harriet Wistrich – Director, Centre for Women’s Justice
Professor Vanessa Munro – University of Warwick, School of Law
Mariam Ahmed – Co-Chief Executive Officer for Amina Muslim Women’s Resource Centre