Women’s Justice Board

The Women’s Justice Board has the clear goal of reducing the number of women in prison and addressing the distinct needs of women in the criminal justice system.

Role of the Board

The Women’s Justice Board’s (WJB) purpose is to reduce the number of women in prison and increase the number supported in the community.

It will provide the vision and direction on how to reform women’s justice to address the distinct needs of women in or at risk of contact with the criminal justice system (CJS).

Its initial focus will be on:

  • work to intervene earlier, and divert women away from the criminal justice system where appropriate
  • community solutions, such as residential alternatives to custody
  • improving outcomes for young adult women, pregnant women, and mothers of young children across the CJS

It will also consider how to ensure that women who do need to be in custody are given the best chance possible to tackle the drivers of their offending and to contribute meaningfully to society.

The WJB will oversee the development of a strategy document in 2025.

Current membership

The members of the WJB are external experts selected by Ministers to set the vision for work to address the needs of women in the criminal justice system.

  • Chair - Lord Timpson, Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, Ministry of Justice
  • Dame Vera Baird DBE KC
  • Michaela Booth, National Lead for Patient and Family Engagement at Practice Plus Group
  • Bernie Bowen-Thomson, Chief Executive of Safer Wales
  • Anne Fox, Chief Executive, Clinks
  • Kate Green, Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester for Safer and Stronger Communities
  • Lady Edwina Grosvenor, founder/now trustee of One Small Thing charity
  • Dr Tom McNeil, CEO JABBS Foundation
  • Dr Shona Minson, Research Associate, Centre for Criminology, Oxford
  • Pia Sinha, Director of Prison Reform Trust
  • Katy Swaine Williams, freelance consultant, including for Centre for Women’s Justice

Meetings

Lord Timpson will chair the meeting and the MOJ will provide the Secretariat. The WJB will meet four times a year.

The Terms of Reference will be published shortly.

Partnership Delivery Group

The Women’s Justice Board will be supported by the Women’s Justice Partnership Delivery Group (PDG), which will be made up of senior officials from key government departments and external experts. The PDG will come together to deliver on actions agreed by the WJB.

Specialist external stakeholders

The recruitment of specialist external stakeholders to the Women’s Justice Partnership Delivery Group has now concluded. The MOJ is pleased to confirm the following appointees for each specialist area:

  • Kate Morrissey, Regional Head of Health and Justice for East of England, NHS England (Women’s health, including substance misuse)
  • Liz Mack, CEO of Advance (Community services for women (including Whole Systems Approaches, local partnership working, and co-commissioning and procurement of services))
  • Baljit Banga, CEO of Hibiscus (Organisations led by or focused on racially minoritised women)
  • Sarah Louise Home, Director of Care for Willowdene (Accommodation and residential services)
  • Naomi Delap, Director of Birth Companions (Pregnant women and mothers with young children in the CJS)
  • Natasha Finlayson, CEO of Working Chance (Education, Training and Employment for women)
  • Cherryl Henry-Leach, CEO of Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse (Violence against women and girls, particularly women as victim and offender)

The first meeting of the Women’s Justice Partnership Delivery Group will take place on Monday 24th March.

Membership of the Partnership Delivery Group will include senior officials and representatives from other government departments and agencies, including but not limited to:

  1. Home Office
  2. Department for Health & Social Care
  3. Department for Work & Pensions
  4. Department for Education
  5. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
  6. Welsh Government
  7. His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service
  8. National Police Chiefs’ Council

Contact details

femaleoffenderpolicy@justice.gov.uk

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