Offending
Building financial capability through support services for offenders
Why?
Re-offending costs society at least £11 billion every year (NOMS, 2006). There are many factors that contribute to re-offending, including debt, disrupted benefits advice and insufficient funds. Good budgeting and money management skills are key in helping overcome and address these problems. In recognition of this, one of the Government's key pathways in its National Reducing Re-offending Delivery Plan in England and Wales is Finance, Benefit and Debt.
What we are doing
In partnership with the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), we are funding NOMS Wales and the South East region to deliver financial capability services to offenders and prisoners as well as prison and probation staff. As part of these projects, new approaches will be developed and evidence of their effectiveness collected.
We are also funding Nacro, the crime reduction charity, to deliver free 2-day training. Delivered at prison college Newbold Revel, this training is aimed at prison staff looking to deliver financial capability to prisoners and will run until March 2010.
We have previously funded the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to produce guidance to help those working with offenders and ex-offenders to address their financial issues, signpost them to other services for help, or do both.
We will also continue to build on the ‘Working Money’ toolkit, which we funded and which was developed by Lincolnshire Action Trust. We are delighted that the Scottish Government awarded funding to Apex Scotland to produce the second edition ‘Working Money’, launched in May 2009.
Improving the Financial Capability of Offenders in Custody in South Wales
The Director of Offender Management in Wales, in conjunction with the Financial Services Authority (FSA), commissioned the Vale of Glamorgan Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) to address the financial capability needs of offenders in custody in Wales. In the report just pulished an evaluation of delivering financial capability in HMP Cardiff and HMP Parc was undertaken.
Executive Summary [PDF]
Full Report [PDF]