AWARE: Cross-sectoral awareness building on mental health needs in the criminal justice system and on release

Are you AWARE? AWARE was devised as an integrated response to non-discrimination and social integration of those who suffer the dual challenge and stigma of both a criminal record and mental health problems. Both the partnership and the project were designed to narrow the gap between civil society and those suffering mental health issues in the criminal justice context, as AWARE brings together criminal justice and civil society organisations in an exchange of mutual understanding and expertise. Existing research has already flagged that there should be better training available for those working in a prison, probation or civil society context to enable better outcomes for those within the criminal justice system including reducing reoffending. Similarly, it has also been recognised that if families and communities were educated and informed of how prison exacerbates mental health issues, they might be more able to detect and support critical points on a prisoners’ release. For both staff and families/communities, training should raise awareness of this dual stigma, and show how to refer and/or treat mental health issues, and must be conceived as cross-sectoral and integrated to take in all the stakeholders which influence an individuals’ successful reintegration. We would also expect better outcomes for staff and volunteers inside and society outside the prison, as giving them the tools and understanding to think critically and productively about the complex issues of this target group could provide problem solving skills and a clearer path for action, making this group less stressful to engage with. The effectiveness of existing literacy, numeracy and digital skills for this target group will be enhanced if those in contact with them are aware of the barriers which mental health issues create, and the impact which assessment and treatment can have on their learning outcomes. Whilst this training is also designed to learn from and support prison and probation workers, it is also predominantly aimed at civil society through the universities and third sector organisations in the partnership: on release, it is society which will play central role to motivating and guiding a former prisoner so that they can take the positive and realistic steps towards education, training and eventually a job. It has been proven time and again that the day structure and financial stability provided by a job can be a powerful influence against reoffending.We see the applicability of AWARE’s method and training across a wide range of target groups and in a variety of settings. AWARE’s method is fully replicable whether this be with young offenders, with families and children of prisoners, or with victims of domestic violence: -Define a target group for whom mental health issues contribute to stigma and provide an extra barrier to social and economic inclusion -Bring together multi agency workers who service complex needs of this target group-Consult the needs of the service user as well as those of the staff and -Develop training and easy-access awareness raising material based exclusively around these needs. Educating adults about mental health can be adapted to the overall community, schools contexts in order to enhance the early detection and addressing of mental health problems and helping prevent stigma. The AWARE method allows a step by step approach for any of these target groups to identify and leverage existing capacity and make sure that services which purport to support and reintegrate are actually working in harmony to address real, existent needs. We invite you to apply our transnational, cross-sector approach to building awareness necessitates a fresh look at how agencies integrate, what works in supporting their knowledge transfer and how we can help civil society are motivated to use open access tools which improve social inclusion. AWARE is a process, we were excited by this opportunity to think outside the box and look forward to the next steps in sustaining this partnership.