Supplementary written evidence from Nacro (SEO00062)

 

  1. Nacro met Margaret McKinnon, Second Clerk of the Work and Pensions Committee on 24 October to further discuss our written evidence for the support for ex-offenders inquiry as well as discuss issues raised as part of the Committee’s oral evidence session. Following on from this meeting, Nacro is submitting additional written evidence which reflects information discussed at this meeting.

 

Employer attitudes and practices

 

  1. One of the main barriers to ex-offenders securing employment is a general reticence to employing people with criminal records - no matter how serious the caution or conviction. Our experience indicates that this reticence is sustained by employer perceptions of ex-offenders. This is often based on skewed assumptions particularly around perceived risk to company security and harm prevention as well as a belief that people with criminal records lack personal attributes such as honesty and reliability. In contrast, research which surveyed employers’ attitudes indicated that employers who have knowingly employed people with criminal records have reported a positive experience characterised by hard work if not harder, than those with no criminal record.[1]

 

  1. The statutory framework which governs criminal record disclosure is complex and has created confusion for employers attempting to make sense of what the criminal record disclosure regime means for their individual business and how to lawfully apply its provisions in their recruitment processes. For example, some employers may mistakenly believe that they cannot employ a person until their conviction or caution is spent. Similarly, some employers believe that the terms of their employer liability insurance is invalidated by employing people with unspent convictions. Within Nacro’s written evidence to the Justice Select Committee inquiry on the disclosure of youth criminal records, we argued that wholesale reform of the criminal record regime is needed in order to achieve meaningful change so that it is adequate, accurate and transparent for individuals and organisations. We also believe that the disclosure regime doesn’t striking the correct balance between public protection and giving individuals who have made mistakes in their past, a fair opportunity to move on with their lives.

 

Nacro’s employment initiatives for ex-offenders

 

  1. In October 2015, Nacro’s Resettlement Advice Service (RAS) launched The Aeneid Project – a unique employer-led intervention piloted in partnership with key stakeholders such as the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. The project has many strands including:

 

 

 

 

  1. In early 2017, Nacro is partnering with the Construction Industry Training Board to develop the Fill the Gap programme for the construction industry. It will address skills gaps in the construction industry by developing training programmes within custody and the community for prisoners and offenders on licence as well as the long-term unemployed. The programme aims to provide meaningful work opportunities in varied roles throughout the construction industry.

 

See Potential

 

  1. Nacro has worked closely with the See Potential campaign since it began in July 2015. The campaign seeks to challenge negative perceptions and attitudes of employers towards candidates from disadvantaged groups including ex-offenders, as well as encouraging local employers to access the vast talent pool within disadvantaged groups. We have supported the work of See Potential by speaking at regional employer events hosted by the former Employment Minister, Priti Patel. The Aeneid project has the same objectives as See Potential and has been incorporated into the campaign as a See Potential programme. We are assisting the development and expansion of the campaign to provide more practical support and resources for employers large and small as well as considering how See Potential can support the current prison reform programme.

 

Ban the Box

 

  1. Nacro is a founding member of the Ban the Box UK campaign led by Business in the Community (BITC). The UK campaign began in October 2013 and is an employer-led initiative (based on a similar model implemented in the United States) which calls for employers to adapt their recruitment processes to ensure they do not inadvertently discriminate against people with criminal records. The crux of the campaign consists of inviting employers to remove criminal record disclosure questions from the start of the recruitment process i.e. on application forms etc. Instead these questions can be asked at a later stage i.e. at the job offer stage. This allows applicants to demonstrate their qualifications and ability to do the job as well as giving applicants the opportunity to provide criminal record disclosure information to the employer in a way which better informs the employer’s risk assessment.

 

  1. Nacro welcomed the government’s decision, under the former Prime Minister David Cameron, to ban the box for the vast majority of roles in the Civil Service. However, Nacro believes that the government could learn further lessons from the United States model where Ban the Box is statutory in many states for government employers and those in their supply chain. It was recognised that the disadvantage created by criminal records, particularly when competing for employment, also created a wider ripple effect that negatively impacted on other aspects such as a difficulty in securing and maintaining adequate housing, increased debt, increased likelihood of developing substance misuse or mental health problems as well as difficulty maintaining positive personal and family relationships.

 

  1. Instead of criminal record declarations, employers in the United States are encouraged to consider the ‘Green Factors’. These factors look at the nature and seriousness of the conviction or conduct, length of time since the offence, conduct or completion of the sentence, nature of the job held or sought.

 

  1. At a time when many employers complain of chronic skills shortages, we believe that the UK government should adopt a similar approach.

 

Indirect discrimination

 

  1. The obligation to declare unspent convictions may amount to a form of indirect discrimination. Research indicates that individuals who have protected characteristics such as disability and race are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system and therefore have a criminal record. If the circumstances which led to a person’s criminal record were connected to a protected characteristic, there may be an argument to show that this amounts to indirect discrimination.

 

Work and Health Programme

 

  1. The Work and Health Programme (WHP) is being introduced to replace the Work Programme (WP) as a way to support claimants with health conditions or disabilities and those unemployed for over two years, into work.  WHP is much smaller in comparison to WP, both in budget and scope. Nacro is concerned that a smaller number of ex-offenders will be eligible for support than they would have been under WP. The reduced budget could further affect the ability to provide adequate interventions which are tailored to the specific challenges faced by ex-offenders. It is also important that ex-offenders who do not have health conditions or disabilities do not fall through the cracks and we believe a distinct programme is necessary to assist ex-offenders not eligible for WHP. Any separate programme should be designed to tackle offender-specific barriers linked to having a criminal record i.e. increasing motivation and confidence that may be affected due to the prospect of having to disclose a criminal record, engaging employers and addressing attitudes towards employing ex-offenders.

 

Youth obligation

 

  1. Nacro has concerns that the Youth Obligation for those on Universal Credit may have a disproportionate negative impact on young adults who have criminal records. The Youth Obligation places an expectation on unemployed 18 to 21 year olds to apply for an apprenticeship or traineeship, gain work-based skills, or go on a mandatory work placement after six months. We know that employers can be reticent about employing people with convictions as can educational institutions in respect of some convictions. As there is no legislation to prevent the use of a conviction to reject applicants outright, we believe that young adults are at a significant disadvantage in finding placements or work experience. This could lead to sanctions being imposed unfairly on this group. Therefore statutory agencies such as DWP and Ministry of Justice should make sure that employers are supported to provide these young adults with meaningful opportunities as part of the Youth Obligation.

 

  1. In addition, effective case management is needed between probation services and local jobcentres which takes into account that a young adult may be subject to supervision requirements if they are on license in the community. These factors may mean that the young adult cannot enter certain locations, has to meet a curfew or is required to do unpaid work. All of these considerations need to be factored into their Youth Obligation commitment.

 

 

 

Universal Credit

 

  1. Our experience of working in partnership with the DWP employment team in Manchester has indicated that Universal Credit will be rolled out in prisons in April 2017. We understand that the majority of their clients who are released currently make claims for Employment and Support Allowance rather than Jobseekers Allowance. DWP teams that work in prison are able to start Employment and Support Allowance claims prior to release but this often consists of arranging appointments for assessment which take place upon release in the community. We believe more of this process could take place prior to release. When the fully digital system of Universal Credit is introduced, provision should be made for claims to be started prior to release. This is important to ensure adequate financial support is available on release to minimise the risk of reoffending. It is also important to recognise that ex-offenders may lack IT literacy skills and may need additional support.

 

Prison reform programme

 

  1. Nacro welcomes the focus on employment in the government’s prison reform programme, however we have concerns that parts of the plan, as set out in the white paper, may have unintended adverse consequences. Firstly, its success is dependent on local organisations and businesses being allowed inside the prisons. However, due to security concerns, staff resources, time-constraints, and technological barriers etc. some organisations and businesses have found it difficult to gain access. Prison governors need to reconfigure their prison regimes so that they align better with business needs as well as introducing more effective policies on connecting the outside with inside prisons.

 

  1. Getting prisoners ready for life on the outside, particularly employment in the community requires an increased use of release on temporary license (ROTL). However, we are concerned that publishing league tables may inadvertently make prison governors more risk averse and less likely to use ROTL.

 

National housing shortage and impact on housing options for ex-offenders

 

  1. We know that there are strong links between offending and homelessness; as many as a third of prisoners lose their housing on imprisonment. The national housing shortage means that when individuals are released from custody they have extremely limited housing options. Entering the private rented sector is extremely difficult; private rental prices, particularly in London, have reduced the pool of housing which prison leavers can meaningfully access. We also know anecdotally that some landlords will not rent to people with unspent criminal records, especially in a high demand private rented market  

 

  1. The decreasing amount of social housing stock means local authority staff have to take hard decisions when deciding who should receive housing within their limited stock. The general housing shortage means that individuals leaving custody can be the last cohort to be allocated accommodation, as they are not considered as vulnerable compared to other people needing housing. Some individuals leaving prison can find themselves staying in unsuitable, temporary accommodation which can be chaotic and can often lead to reoffending. However, for many individuals, this is the only option available to stop them from becoming street homeless. Given the importance of accommodation for offenders, we believe there needs to be a national offender housing strategy which effectively addresses some of these issues.

 

Interpretation of Housing Act 1996: priority need and intentional homelessness

 

  1. Local authorities have duties to house people deemed as in priority need. The lack of local authority housing has led to some housing staff interpreting the obligation on priority need (as set out in the Housing Act 1996) narrowly. The Act sets out the definition of a household in priority need as:

 

a)      a pregnant woman or a person with whom she resides or might reasonably be expected to reside;

b)      a person with whom dependent children reside or might reasonably be expected to reside;

c)      a person who is vulnerable as a result of old age, mental illness or handicap or physical disability or other special reason, or with whom such a person resides or might reasonably be expected to reside;

d)      a person who is homeless or threatened with homelessness as a result of an emergency such as flood, fire or other disaster

 

  1. Historically, ex-offenders have been classed in category c - a person who is vulnerable. Many ex-offenders meet the vulnerability part of the test but the interpretation of vulnerability is increasingly interpreted narrowly. There have been a number of cases taken to court to test the vulnerability definition and there is still a lot of discretion as to how local authorities interpret the clauses, with no clear idea as to how far this goes. Nacro has heard of cases where local authorities have deemed ex-offenders to be ‘intentionally homeless’. Even if the individual is in priority need, housing decisions have stated that because the individual committed a crime they intentionally made themselves homeless and this therefore relinquishes the local authority’s duty to provide accommodation.

 

Supported housing and local housing allowances

 

  1. Nacro delivers just under 100 services through our commissioned and non-commissioned housing projects. Around a third of Nacro’s tenants are ex-offenders and our projects help individuals access the right support and services to move on to an independent future. In September 2016, the government announced that supported housing services like Nacro’s would be subject to a 1% rent reduction as of April 2017. As an organisation operating on very small margins, this rent reduction affects our ability to deliver quality services, having already made significant efficiency savings.

 

  1. Further, the government has announced that as of 2019, the way supported housing is funded will change. While the government has committed to protecting the current amount of funding available for supported housing services like Nacro, we are concerned that the imposed Local Housing Allowance (LHA) cap will significantly affect our ability to deliver quality services. The government has stated that any shortfall imposed by the LHA cap will be topped up at a local level; however, we are concerned that in reality ex-offenders may be at the bottom of the list, especially where no ring fences exist over how the money is spent. This could have a devastating impact upon our service users and may lead to some services closing. It is crucial that funding for supported housing is protected – our services provide vital support for people leaving custody that need the tools to build positive, independent futures away from offending.

 

November 2016

[1] Working Links (2010) Prejudged: Tagged for life London: Working Links