Guidance

Expression of Interest guidance

Published 6 August 2018

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) is seeking to appoint up to 12 stakeholder members to the Advisory Board on Female Offenders. The Board is responsible for oversight of the delivery of the Female Offender Strategy, and provides expert advice and challenge on the development of wider female offender policy.

The Advisory Board is chaired by the Minister for women in the Criminal Justice System, Edward Argar MP.

1. Background

The Advisory Board on Female Offenders was established in 2013 to bring together government departments, criminal justice agencies and key stakeholders to provide expert advice and challenge to the government on the delivery of its strategic priorities for female offenders. It has supported the development of female offender policy over the last 5 years. In particular, through the expertise and knowledge of the members, the Board helped to shape the content and aims of the Female Offender Strategy, which was published on 27 June 2018.

The Female Offender Strategy sets out the government’s commitment to a new programme of work for female offenders, driven by our vision to see:

• fewer women coming into the Criminal Justice System
• fewer women in custody, especially on short-term sentences, and a greater proportion of women managed in the community successfully; and
• better conditions for those in custody.

The strategy committed to reform of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders; increasing its effectiveness further by giving the Board responsibility for monitoring and advising on the delivery of commitments in the Strategy. It also committed to “ensuring that we have relevant expert representation by regularly refreshing stakeholder membership through an application process”.

2. The role

Members of the Advisory Board are senior representatives of government departments, criminal justice agencies and other organisations, particularly in the third sector, with an interest and expertise in improving outcomes for female offenders and women at risk of offending. Members are responsible for:

• oversight of the implementation of the Female Offender Strategy
• advice and challenge on the development of female offender policy and operational issues
• national leadership on the female offender agenda

Please read the draft Advisory Board Terms of Reference (updated following publication of the strategy and for approval by the Board) for further information about the role of the Board.

We are looking for stakeholder members with expertise and knowledge in addressing the complex needs of female offenders and women at risk of offending. Bids are welcome from third sector and statutory organisations such as health and local government, as well as people with backgrounds in research, lived experience etc. Successful applicants are likely to be Chief Executive/Directors or senior members of their organisation, or similar.

The Board meets 4 times a year at MOJ in central London. Additional meetings may be called, where necessary. Posts are not remunerated.

3. Person specification

3.1 Commitment

Members should be prepared to:

• attend quarterly meetings, and any ad hoc meetings that may be called
• contribute actively to discussions at the Board
• be involved in setting agendas and any preparatory work ahead of meetings
• examine and provide comments on documents under discussion
• bring issues and papers to the Board
• provide advice and challenge on the government’s female offender policy, including offering insights from “lived experience”, where appropriate

3.2 Experience and knowledge

We want to ensure that the Advisory Board has a wide range of expertise relating to women in contact with the criminal justice system including, but not limited to:

• service delivery in relation to women in contact with the Criminal Justice System, both in the community and in custody.
• evidence based practice in supporting desistance for women in contact with the Criminal Justice System.
• expertise and experience in research within the field of criminal justice.
• knowledge relevant to commissioning, funding and investment models and mechanisms.
• expertise in working with and knowledge of the specific needs of people with other protected characteristics.

4. Application process

Please send a CV, including contact details, and an Expression of Interest (EOI) to the female offender policy team at cjwst@justice.gov.uk. The EOI should set out, in a maximum of 500 words, your reasons for applying and how you meet the person specification, with reference to the Female Offender Strategy and the Advisory Board Terms of Reference. Please note that any text in excess of 500 words will be disregarded.

5. Selection Process

The selection procedure shall consist of an assessment of the applications against the selection criteria.

In appointing members of the Advisory Board, MOJ will aim at ensuring a high level of expertise, as well as a balanced representation of relevant areas and interests. They will take into account the role of the Board, the type of expertise required, as well as the relevance of the applications received. The Ministry of Justice may ask applicants to participate in a short telephone interview.

6. Deadline for applications

The deadline for applications is Wednesday 12 September 2018. We regret that any applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

Applications, and any queries about this process, should be sent to the Female Offender Policy Team at cjwst@justice.gov.uk.