It is now widely acknowledged that progression from persistent offending to desistance from crime is the outcome of a complex interaction between subjective/ agency factors and social/environmental factors. A methodological challenge for desistance researchers is to unravel the differential impacts of these internal and external factors and the sequence in which they come into play. Towards this, the present investigation draws on a prospective study of 130 male property offenders, interviewed in the 1990s (the Oxford Recidivism Study), and followed up 10 years later. The analysis supports a `subjective—social model' in which subjective states measured before release have a direct effect on recidivism as well as indirect effects through their impact on social circumstances experienced after release from prison.

For decades, the relationship between the officer and offender (variously labelled as the ‘casework relationship’, the ‘supervisory relationship’ or ‘one-to-one work’) was the main channel for probation service interventions. In the modernized probation service in England and Wales, this relationship element has been marginalized, on a policy level at least, by accredited groupwork programmes and case management approaches involving referrals to specialist and other services. However, there are now promising signs that policy makers are re-instating the ‘relationship’ between the practitioner and offender as a core condition for changing the behaviour and social circumstances associated with recidivism. This article traces the factors behind the paradigm shift from casework (in its broadest sense) to case management (more recently termed ‘offender management’) in order to identify why an element of practice once regarded as vital became discredited. It then briefly draws on findings in the mental health field and desistance research to relocate the relationship element within a practice model that is focused on supporting desistance from crime.

A 1992 study, The Dynamics of Recidivism, was cited by the Home Secretary of the Conservative government during the 1990s to support the political doctrine that 'prison works'. This claim drew on qualitative data from pre-and post-prison interviews of 130 male offenders to uphold a narrow rational choice perspective that emphasised the perceived 'costs' of imprisonment to the offender. A ten-year reconviction study was carried out as a follow-up to the 1992 study. The subsequent criminal careers of the majority of the sample contradict an assumption that imprisonment has a deterrent impact. In the light of these findings, and an analysis of the differential impacts of subjective and social factors in the experiences of these ex-prisoners, this article reviews the limitations of 'rational choice theory' as a basis for understanding recidivism and desistance from crime. r Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004,

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In recent years, there has been rising concern that allegations of sexual abuse, particularly non‐recent abuse, have not received an appropriate response. From this has emerged a new determination to correct past and prevent further injustices, with police operations focusing considerable resources on the identification and prosecution of child abusers. Police and other services have reached out to encourage reporting, and developments in the trial process related to the rules of evidence have eroded due process protections for suspects. This article considers this changed legal and social context, and the processes entailed in responding to allegations of abuse, before presenting original empirical data, gathered from the accounts of 30 men and women who were wrongly accused of abuse related to their employment in occupations of trust. It demonstrates the considerable and lasting harms done to those who face allegations of such heinous crimes.

The National Offender Management Service (NOMS), intended to integrate the Probation and Prison Services of England and Wales and to provide an operational framework for the end-to-end management of offenders throughout their sentences, was introduced in summer 2004. This major innovation came fast after a period of immense change to probation services which had culminated in the formation of the National Probation Service (NPS) in 2001. The present study, in which 41 probation practitioners from four probation areas were interviewed, sought to gain insight into frontline perspectives on the impact of NOMS. The study indicates that communication to frontline staff about NOMS has not been wholly effective and many practitioners are experiencing 'initiative confusion' and 'change fatigue' in endeavouring to meet an increasing range of demands from an expanding range of 'masters'. While many remain open to the possible benefits of NOMS, particularly for offenders, considerable uncertainty remains about the implications of NOMS for themselves and the Probation Service. The 'ogre of contestability' is linked with fears about future job security, whilst other aspects of the NOMS agenda are adding to a sense of demoralization and increasing alienation from the values that brought some into the service.

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This article explores the notion of so-called 'strengths-based' offender reintegration for prisoners returning to the community. First, we briefly explore the normative and empirical theory underlying this approach. Next, we present evidence from a case study the authors have undertaken on a particularly interesting example of strengths-based resettlement in action. 1 It illustrates the tensions that occur when risk-based policies collide with strengthsbased opportunities. The lessons learned in this case study are then used to develop further the theoretical understanding behind a strengths-based resettlement approach.