No One Knows (Prison Reform Trust, 2008) is concerned with people with learning disabilities and difficulties who come into contact with the police and who enter the criminal justice system. The terms ‘learning disabilities’ and ‘learning difficulties’ are often used interchangeably to describe people with an intellectual disability, excluding those who, for example, have dyslexia. No One Knows, however, has adopted a more inclusive approach, and has included in its remit offenders with learning disabilities as defined by the World Health Organisation as well as those with a broader range of learning difficulties. Although there is some disagreement on prevalence, it is clear that a large number of people with learning disabilities and difficulties are caught up in the criminal justice system. Once in the criminal justice system, people with learning disabilities and difficulties, because of their impairments, struggle to cope. At worst this can affect their right to a fair hearing in court and, if they are sentenced to custody, may mean longer in prison. UK criminal justice agencies do not recognise, let alone meet, the particular needs of people who have learning disabilities or difficulties.
Accessible summary Nobody knows how many people with learning difficulties get into trouble with the police. This article is about a project called No One Knows. It is finding out what happens when people with learning difficulties get into trouble with the police. Sometimes when people with learning difficulties get into trouble with the police they have to go to court. Sometimes they are sent to prison or have to visit a probation officer. Young people with a learning difficulty might have to go to a youth offending team. Some people with learning difficulties find it hard to understand what is happening. This can be upsetting. When people talk about the police, courts, prison, probation and youth offending they call it the criminal justice system. People who work in the criminal justice system do not always know how to support people with a learning difficulty. We want to know what people with a learning difficulty think about this. We want to know what people who work in the criminal justice system think as well. At the end of the project we will write a report about what people have told us. The report will tell the government what they should do to make things better for people with learning difficulties when they get into trouble with the police. Summary The prevalence of offenders with learning difficulties and learning disabilities is not agreed upon. What is clear, however, is that, regardless of actual numbers, many offenders have learning difficulties that reduce their ability to cope within the criminal justice system, for example, not understanding fully what is happening to them in court or being unable to access various aspects of the prison regime, including some offending behaviour programmes. Offenders with learning difficulties are not routinely identified and, as a result, often do not receive the support they need. No One Knows is a UK wide programme led by the Prison Reform Trust that aims to effect change by exploring and publicizing the experiences of people with learning difficulties who come into contact with the criminal justice system. The article highlights the aims of No One Knows and describes what, for the purpose of the programme, we mean by ‘learning difficulties and learning disabilities’. Problems in identifying precise numbers of offenders with learning difficulties and learning disabilities are discussed and attention drawn to recent research on prevalence. The context and some of the challenges of ‘prison life’ are identified and a number of early research findings from No One Knows are presented.
No One Knows is concerned about people with learning disabilities and difficulties who get into trouble with the police and who enter the criminal justice system. The terms 'learning difficulties' and 'learning difficulties' are often used interchangeably to describe people with an intellectual disability, excluding those who, for example, have dyslexia or Asperger syndrome. No One Knows, however, has adopted a more inclusive approach and has included in its remit offenders with learning disabilities as defined by the World Health Organization as well as those with a broader range of learning difficulties. Although there is some discrepancy on prevalence, it is clear that high numbers of people with learning disabilities and difficulties are caught up in the criminal justice system. Once in the criminal justice system it is unlikely that an individual with learning disabilities or difficulties will be identified or that their support needs will be met. This causes difficulties for the individual concerned and for the staff who work with them, who receive little or no training for working with this group of people. The question of whether people with learning disabilities (meaning intellectual disabilities) should be diverted from the criminal justice system is considered.
Working for Justice Group comprised members with learning disabilities who had an offending history and were able to talk about relevant issues from their own experience; the second advisory group comprised professionals, practitioners and academics from the statutory and voluntary sectors.Over a three-year period, 2006 to 2009, No One Knows consulted with professionals and practitioners from criminal justice, health and social care and offender learning and skills; interviewed offenders with learning disabilities and difficulties; and undertook relevant literature and
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