Criminal Justice System and Mental Health service manager, Sarah Gallagher, was interviewed on BBC News highlighting the value of Anawim’s early intervention programme New Chance.
This is a specialist project for women who have been arrested, with an aim to divert them away from the Criminal Justice System at an early stage.
New Chance offers trauma-informed support, group work, advocacy and the provision of information and advice.
A recent evaluation by the University of Birmingham demonstrates that reoffending amongst New Chance service users with mental health issues was 35-37% lower and those who had substance misuse issues identified had a 51-55% decrease in reoffending.
Find BBC’s news report and watch the interview here.
Anawim would like to point out that the experience of the woman interviewed in this news piece is not an isolated issue. When a system fails to provide women with the support they need, situations such as the one reported on is often the outcome.