FOCUS IRELAND CONFERENCE 2014
The Revolving Door of Prison and
Homelessness: How do the Prison InReach Services work and what can we
learn from them?
Sinead McGinley
Research Officer, Focus Ireland
25th September 2014
HOMELESSNESS & OFFENDING
BEHAVIOUR
• Prisoners are at risk of homelessness upon
release – can struggle to secure accommodation
• Cycle of homelessness, re-offending and
imprisonment
• Variety of reasons why people experiencing
homelessness commit offences
• Patterns and types of offending behaviour
PRISON & HOMELESSNESS
• Complex links between homelessness, offending
behaviour and release from prison
• At risk of losing accommodation during period in
prison – e.g. owner-occupier, PRA, family home
• Substance abuse issues and mental health
problems can intensify a person’s homeless
situation & influence likelihood of re-offending
ADDRESSING THE GAP
• Focus Ireland recognised the need for a common
approach to address the accommodation &
support needs of those at risk of homelessness in
prisons
• Approached Probation Service in 2006
• Seamless service response between prisons,
homeless services & accommodation to plan a
pathway out of homelessness
• Cloverhill, Wheatfield, Cork and Limerick Prisons
HOW DOES IT WORK?
•
•
•
•
•
Preventative service
Target group & level of need
Intensive case management model
A partnership approach
A flexible, adaptable service
WHAT DIFFERENCE HAS IT MADE?
• September 2007 to end of 2013 – over
550 individuals have been supported
140
120
130
130
2012
2013
108
91
100
78
80
60
30
40
20
8
0
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
WHAT DIFFERENCE HAS IT MADE?
• Initial target group did not reflect the profile
of offenders/persons in custody in
Cloverhill
• Link found between addiction and
homelessness & offending
• Link between relationship breakdown and
homelessness
• Category of offences
WHAT DIFFERENCE HAS IT MADE?
• Desired outcome – reduction in recidivism
levels
• Not possible to definitively causally link
trend in recidivism to In-Reach services
• ‘Return to prison’ data
• Housing situation post-release
• Disengaged for a variety of reasons
• Reduced likelihood of re-offending
WHAT CAN WE LEARN?
• Nature of prison system – unplanned
releases
• Partnership approach is crucial
• Interagency working
• Lack of appropriate accommodation –
Housing First project
• Evaluation findings support previous
studies
THANKS TO…
•
•
•
•
Dr. Kiran Sarma, NUI Galway
Partner organisations
Funders
Service-users who shared their stories