Do you work with the older cohort in a criminal justice setting?
If you work in a prison, in the Criminal Justice sector, or for a voluntary sector organisation working in the Criminal Justice arena, our range of specialist support resources provide a wealth of information.
Member’s Discount
Our members receive 10% off a selection of our services that aim to help support the physical and mental health of those who have been in contact with the criminal justice system, including On Track, Mindfulness, Numeracy booklets and Menopause booklets. Find out how to claim this discount on our Member’s Discount page.
Our support resources
Our resources have been developed with service user consultation and input. The topics and themes have been identified of interest or important to them although this is far from exhaustive!
Currently they include:
More are continually being developed and uploaded. Session plans have been developed so they can be delivered or facilitated by service users to help share learning, mistakes and experiences within the group as well as developing self esteem, confidence as the facilitator. Please utilise them as you see fit.
Important aspects to consider when using our support resources with the older cohort
1) Fear and Anxiety
Some older offenders will not have even started to contemplate living in the community and still be in denial through fear and anxiety, and having not been successful in getting parole on previous occasions. The Cycle of Change model (Prochaska and DiClemente) is a useful tool to help move service-users around to a point of contemplation and to take responsibility for their actions and goals both inside prison and in the community.
2) Cognitive Ability
Consider the pace of any sessions being delivered as the cognitive ability of the older population can slow with age. Be prepared to repeat elements and provide notes or summary documents for later reflection. Good practice font size for resources is 14+.
3) Social Exclusion
It’s important to carefully manage their expectations and the reality of the difficulties they will face living in the community. They will be at a far greater risk of being socially excluded as they suffer from the restrictions, stigmas and aggravating factors of being offenders. Specific age related support for older offenders is hard to find but important as their needs are different.
How do I access the Recoop support resources?
All you need to do is sign up to be a member, it’s completely free and you’ll also receive ‘News in a Nutshell’, our bi-monthly e-newsletter.