Prologue (Kate Asher)

My experience of working with women offenders began in Bristol in 2002, when my first case as a trainee probation officer was a woman. I can still recall the scene – me sitting really rigidly and nervously at the edge of my chair in the interview room, scared that I wouldn't know what to say. However, if I was anxious, just imagine how petrified the woman concerned must have been, to be sitting there talking to a complete stranger about her most personal and difficult life experiences. Staff should never underestimate how hard it is for a woman offender to expose all of her flaws.

In my first interview, I also thought that I didn't really know what to say or do to make her situation better, as I was new to the job. I remember feeling really uncomfortable, but years down the line, with knowledge and experience behind me, I now know that the journey for her started the moment she was just simply heard by me. Empathetic listening continues to be such an important skill that should always underpin practice with women.

Introduction

Probation policy and practice with women offenders in Wales was strongly influenced by the recommendations in the Corston Report (Corston, 2007). A groundswell of interest drew on the academic literature (for instance Worrall and Gelsthorpe, 2009) and research findings (for example McIvor, 2004), and prompted staff within Wales Probation to review and re-evaluate practice in this area. This engagement gained momentum over the period following Corston and had an impact on the assessment, treatment and management of women offenders in Wales. Of significance were the widespread acknowledgement and acceptance that women offenders have different needs from their male counterparts, leading to the recognition that effective interventions required a new approach, with women's individual needs being at the centre of new plans and projects. These developments took on board Corston's proposals for a ‘radical new approach, treating women both holistically and individually – a woman-centred approach’ (Corston, 2007: 2).

This chapter outlines the situation relating to women offenders supervised by Wales Probation: it starts by indicating the scale and scope of these developments and then moves on to discuss and critically review the underpinning ethos and impact of these new approaches.