Hindpal Bhui | University of Oxford (original) (raw)
Papers by Hindpal Bhui
British Journal of Social Work, Aug 1, 2001
In April 2001, the Probation Service was reorganized into a centralized, national service, with a... more In April 2001, the Probation Service was reorganized into a centralized, national service, with a national director and chief officers appointed by the Home Secretary. The Service is now more clearly associated with other criminal justice agencies. Its most obviously social work related function, Family Court Welfare work, has been entirely removed from its control and given a new home in a 'Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service' under the Lord Chancellor's Department. These reforms have precipitated increased anxiety about political manipulation of the Service and, in a generally punitive criminal justice climate, heightened fears about the final disappearance of the 'traditional' caring and socially aware aspects of probation work. Such concerns are hardly new (see, for example, Millar and Buchanan, 1995). What appears different about the current administration's approach is its seduct iveness. It alternates between severe criticism and strong support, coupling the demand for a 'tough' Probation Service with a promise of resources for the 'right kind' of service. To assess the effectiveness of this approach and the validity of the fears outlined above, it would be useful to look at two of the most important devel opments over the last few years: the new training arrangements and the focus on accredited programmes. The Diploma in Social Work, abolished as a requirement for probation qualifica tion by Michael Howard, has been replaced by a new qualification integrating a level 4 National Vocational Qualification and an undergraduate degree. The new qualification has many positive features and is in my view a better preparation for probation practice. However, a major concern is its capacity to encourage the hol istic, properly contextualized understanding of offending which was the strength of social work training. Newly trained probation officers might know how to run a prescriptive, 'effective' programme, but will they understand it, critique it and thus be able to improve upon it? Will they have a good comprehension of wider relevant
European journal of probation, Mar 1, 2011
In November 2008, the Council of Ministers of the European Union adopted a Framework Decision on ... more In November 2008, the Council of Ministers of the European Union adopted a Framework Decision on custodial sentences, which national governments are required to implement by the end of 2011. Its objective is greater consistency between EU states dealing with the likely greater movement of EU prisoners across national jurisdictions who can now be repatriated without their consent. Historically, repatriation of prisoners has been difficult to achieve, partly because of the problems of reconciling the needs of each national bureaucracy, and partly because different rules applied across countries could lead to considerable unfairness, either to prisoners or victims: the former might be transferred to serve harsher sentences than they could reasonably have expected at the point of sentence, and the latter might see people who have offended against them treated with more leniency than expected.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, 2009
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 2005
Probation Journal, Sep 1, 2006
The greater emphasis on punishment, restriction of liberty and monitoring of offenders has been w... more The greater emphasis on punishment, restriction of liberty and monitoring of offenders has been well documented in this Journal. There is also an increasing literature on the impact of such trends on positive working relationships between probation staff and the people they supervise. This edition reflects on these themes in relation specifically to Approved Premises, the Think First programme and, to some extent, work with imprisoned drug users. Also of some relevance to the debate is the high profile release of some foreign prisoners without being considered for deportation, and the media frenzy which accompanied it. These events have led, understandably, to an unprecedented drive to identify foreign nationals under supervision and to improve communication with the Immigration and Nationality Department. However, there are associated dangers for the probation role, especially to the development of constructive working relationships with the considerable number of foreign nationals under supervision. Relationships may be jeopardized by the assumption that foreign offenders have ‘something to hide’ about their immigration status. If a culture of suspicion develops, the rehabilitative purposes of supervision could be given less emphasis with foreign nationals seen primarily as ‘potential immigration cases’ rather than legitimate recipients of probation intervention. In prisons, the lack of effective work with foreign national prisoners has long been a concern, and such outcomes should be resisted in the community. The undermining of relationships and rehabilitative purpose is a theme addressed by Sally Cherry and Len Cheston in ‘Towards a model regime for Approved Premises’. The authors suggest that face-to-face work with residents of Approved Premises is in danger of being lost as the objectives of surveillance and monitoring become dominant. They urge a more balanced approach, arguing that a lack of attention to the rehabilitative function of hostels undermines effective risk management and ultimately is not in the interests of public protection. The value of relationships which demonstrate ‘both continuing care and continuing surveillance’ is highlighted by Keith Davies in ‘Case management and Think First completion’. He considers the findings of a small scale study looking at what helped individuals to complete the Think First offending behaviour programme, and concludes that effective case management cannot be an impersonal process.
Probation Journal, Mar 1, 2003
Social Science Research Network, 2018
This briefing paper is one of a series written as part of an ESRC-IAA funded project on immigrati... more This briefing paper is one of a series written as part of an ESRC-IAA funded project on immigration detention and human rights-based monitoring of detention in Greece and Turkey. The project initially looked at these issues in four countries - Greece, Turkey, Hungary and Italy (Bhui, Bosworth and Fili, 2018). This paper outlines the methodology used by HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP), which inspects places of confinement in the UK, including prisons, police and court custody, and military detention. HMIP has been routinely monitoring immigration detention since 2004 (see Bhui 2017). As well as sites of immigration detention HMIP inspects the process of removal by accompanying flights to destination countries. HMIP, which was established in its modern form in 1982, is part of the UK National Preventive Mechanism (NPM). As such, under the terms of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), it has functional independence and a separate budget. It appoints its own staff and designs its own methodology. HMIP may request information necessary to perform its role, such as numbers of people detained and should be kept informed of locations of all sites of detention. During inspection visits, team members have unhindered, private access to detainees and to staff. Reports of the inspections are usually published within 3-4 months and an annual report is laid before Parliament.
Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks, Oct 13, 2017
Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, May 1, 2006
This article considers the implications for anti-racist practice 2 in probation and prisons of th... more This article considers the implications for anti-racist practice 2 in probation and prisons of the development of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). The development of anti-racist work is considered in the context of an increasingly managerialist approach to criminal justice. Essentially, it is argued that the histories of racism and anti-racist work in the prison and probation services, and the underpinnings of such work-that is, the individual and organisational characteristics that have influenced the respective identities of those agencies-are critical and undervalued factors in the current change process. This in turn has concerning implications for the development of an anti-racist identity for NOMS.
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 2007
This article explores the experiences of foreign national prisoners both before and after April 2... more This article explores the experiences of foreign national prisoners both before and after April 2006, when it was discovered that over 1000 had been released without first being considered for deportation by the Immigration and Nationality Department (IND).2 It is argued that negative representations of this group of prisoners have exaggerated the threat they pose to society, masked their individuality and encouraged unequal treatment within the prison and immigration systems. The article draws largely on interviews conducted during two major investigations by HM Inspectorate of Prisons. 3 A central consideration of the article is the impact of immigration problems on other issues such as resettlement, rates of self-harm and the experience of prisoners' families.
Oxford University Press eBooks, Mar 22, 2018
This chapter discusses how narratives about security, extremism, and migration may be influenced ... more This chapter discusses how narratives about security, extremism, and migration may be influenced by racist stereotyping, thereby undermining positive engagement between prison staff and Muslim prisoners in England and Wales. It argues that wider discourses about Muslim prisoners are dominated by a narrative of threat that draws strongly on anti-migrant feelings and racism, encouraged by growing scepticism about British multiculturalism and essentialist conceptualizations of minority groups. The chapter suggests that the damaging impact of this narrative can be challenged through better incorporation into practice of the insights of empirical research involving foreign and Muslim prisoners.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, Oct 5, 2012
Theoretical Criminology, Nov 1, 2014
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 2007
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 1995
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 2003
Public and sentencer attitudes to probation P ublic attitudes towards crime and punishment have a... more Public and sentencer attitudes to probation P ublic attitudes towards crime and punishment have arguably been as influential in shaping probation service reform as the 'official' objective of reducing reoffending. Against the backdrop of overcrowded prisons, the government's strategy has been to toughen up community penalties in order to encourage public and sentencer confidence in them. This strategy seems to embody a clear and defensible position for anyone concerned about reducing the prison population. It implicitly accepts that while the language of 'alternatives to imprisonment' has been pushed out of probation discourse, community penalties are still compared (by sentencers and the general public) with the ultimate punishment of imprisonment. In this context, talking up the punitive aspects of probation may seem sensible. The MORI research reported in this edition (see Research/Reports section) provides some critical insights into the wisdom of this strategy. It won't surprise many readers of this Journal that the public has a limited awareness of the probation service's role in the first place, although this is no different from awareness of many other public agencies. Interestingly, there is a considerably greater association of the service with supervision and rehabilitation (over 40% for both) and reducing reoffending (11%) than with punishment (2%), public protection (2%), and enforcement (4%). Members of the public also rate the service as being best at the things with which they most associate it (see also HORS 245, 'Improving public attitudes to the criminal justice system', reported in the March 2003 Research/Reports section). There are two obvious responses to this information: i) build upon the strong associations, and ii) address the weaker associations (for example, through the kind of re-branding that has seen the advent of the community punishment order). The Prison Reform Trust report 'Sentencing and the prison population' (also in the Research/Reports section) suggests that the latter approach might have had some success in changing sentencers' perceptions; they were aware of improvements in the probation service over the last few years, highlighting better enforcement practice. So why does the prison population continue to increase? The PRT report concludes that it can only be because of sentencers deciding, for reasons that remain unclear, to sentence more people to prison and for longer. The figures cited 331
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 1997
Probation Journal, Mar 1, 2003
British Journal of Social Work, Aug 1, 2001
In April 2001, the Probation Service was reorganized into a centralized, national service, with a... more In April 2001, the Probation Service was reorganized into a centralized, national service, with a national director and chief officers appointed by the Home Secretary. The Service is now more clearly associated with other criminal justice agencies. Its most obviously social work related function, Family Court Welfare work, has been entirely removed from its control and given a new home in a 'Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service' under the Lord Chancellor's Department. These reforms have precipitated increased anxiety about political manipulation of the Service and, in a generally punitive criminal justice climate, heightened fears about the final disappearance of the 'traditional' caring and socially aware aspects of probation work. Such concerns are hardly new (see, for example, Millar and Buchanan, 1995). What appears different about the current administration's approach is its seduct iveness. It alternates between severe criticism and strong support, coupling the demand for a 'tough' Probation Service with a promise of resources for the 'right kind' of service. To assess the effectiveness of this approach and the validity of the fears outlined above, it would be useful to look at two of the most important devel opments over the last few years: the new training arrangements and the focus on accredited programmes. The Diploma in Social Work, abolished as a requirement for probation qualifica tion by Michael Howard, has been replaced by a new qualification integrating a level 4 National Vocational Qualification and an undergraduate degree. The new qualification has many positive features and is in my view a better preparation for probation practice. However, a major concern is its capacity to encourage the hol istic, properly contextualized understanding of offending which was the strength of social work training. Newly trained probation officers might know how to run a prescriptive, 'effective' programme, but will they understand it, critique it and thus be able to improve upon it? Will they have a good comprehension of wider relevant
European journal of probation, Mar 1, 2011
In November 2008, the Council of Ministers of the European Union adopted a Framework Decision on ... more In November 2008, the Council of Ministers of the European Union adopted a Framework Decision on custodial sentences, which national governments are required to implement by the end of 2011. Its objective is greater consistency between EU states dealing with the likely greater movement of EU prisoners across national jurisdictions who can now be repatriated without their consent. Historically, repatriation of prisoners has been difficult to achieve, partly because of the problems of reconciling the needs of each national bureaucracy, and partly because different rules applied across countries could lead to considerable unfairness, either to prisoners or victims: the former might be transferred to serve harsher sentences than they could reasonably have expected at the point of sentence, and the latter might see people who have offended against them treated with more leniency than expected.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, 2009
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 2005
Probation Journal, Sep 1, 2006
The greater emphasis on punishment, restriction of liberty and monitoring of offenders has been w... more The greater emphasis on punishment, restriction of liberty and monitoring of offenders has been well documented in this Journal. There is also an increasing literature on the impact of such trends on positive working relationships between probation staff and the people they supervise. This edition reflects on these themes in relation specifically to Approved Premises, the Think First programme and, to some extent, work with imprisoned drug users. Also of some relevance to the debate is the high profile release of some foreign prisoners without being considered for deportation, and the media frenzy which accompanied it. These events have led, understandably, to an unprecedented drive to identify foreign nationals under supervision and to improve communication with the Immigration and Nationality Department. However, there are associated dangers for the probation role, especially to the development of constructive working relationships with the considerable number of foreign nationals under supervision. Relationships may be jeopardized by the assumption that foreign offenders have ‘something to hide’ about their immigration status. If a culture of suspicion develops, the rehabilitative purposes of supervision could be given less emphasis with foreign nationals seen primarily as ‘potential immigration cases’ rather than legitimate recipients of probation intervention. In prisons, the lack of effective work with foreign national prisoners has long been a concern, and such outcomes should be resisted in the community. The undermining of relationships and rehabilitative purpose is a theme addressed by Sally Cherry and Len Cheston in ‘Towards a model regime for Approved Premises’. The authors suggest that face-to-face work with residents of Approved Premises is in danger of being lost as the objectives of surveillance and monitoring become dominant. They urge a more balanced approach, arguing that a lack of attention to the rehabilitative function of hostels undermines effective risk management and ultimately is not in the interests of public protection. The value of relationships which demonstrate ‘both continuing care and continuing surveillance’ is highlighted by Keith Davies in ‘Case management and Think First completion’. He considers the findings of a small scale study looking at what helped individuals to complete the Think First offending behaviour programme, and concludes that effective case management cannot be an impersonal process.
Probation Journal, Mar 1, 2003
Social Science Research Network, 2018
This briefing paper is one of a series written as part of an ESRC-IAA funded project on immigrati... more This briefing paper is one of a series written as part of an ESRC-IAA funded project on immigration detention and human rights-based monitoring of detention in Greece and Turkey. The project initially looked at these issues in four countries - Greece, Turkey, Hungary and Italy (Bhui, Bosworth and Fili, 2018). This paper outlines the methodology used by HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP), which inspects places of confinement in the UK, including prisons, police and court custody, and military detention. HMIP has been routinely monitoring immigration detention since 2004 (see Bhui 2017). As well as sites of immigration detention HMIP inspects the process of removal by accompanying flights to destination countries. HMIP, which was established in its modern form in 1982, is part of the UK National Preventive Mechanism (NPM). As such, under the terms of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), it has functional independence and a separate budget. It appoints its own staff and designs its own methodology. HMIP may request information necessary to perform its role, such as numbers of people detained and should be kept informed of locations of all sites of detention. During inspection visits, team members have unhindered, private access to detainees and to staff. Reports of the inspections are usually published within 3-4 months and an annual report is laid before Parliament.
Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks, Oct 13, 2017
Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, May 1, 2006
This article considers the implications for anti-racist practice 2 in probation and prisons of th... more This article considers the implications for anti-racist practice 2 in probation and prisons of the development of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). The development of anti-racist work is considered in the context of an increasingly managerialist approach to criminal justice. Essentially, it is argued that the histories of racism and anti-racist work in the prison and probation services, and the underpinnings of such work-that is, the individual and organisational characteristics that have influenced the respective identities of those agencies-are critical and undervalued factors in the current change process. This in turn has concerning implications for the development of an anti-racist identity for NOMS.
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 2007
This article explores the experiences of foreign national prisoners both before and after April 2... more This article explores the experiences of foreign national prisoners both before and after April 2006, when it was discovered that over 1000 had been released without first being considered for deportation by the Immigration and Nationality Department (IND).2 It is argued that negative representations of this group of prisoners have exaggerated the threat they pose to society, masked their individuality and encouraged unequal treatment within the prison and immigration systems. The article draws largely on interviews conducted during two major investigations by HM Inspectorate of Prisons. 3 A central consideration of the article is the impact of immigration problems on other issues such as resettlement, rates of self-harm and the experience of prisoners' families.
Oxford University Press eBooks, Mar 22, 2018
This chapter discusses how narratives about security, extremism, and migration may be influenced ... more This chapter discusses how narratives about security, extremism, and migration may be influenced by racist stereotyping, thereby undermining positive engagement between prison staff and Muslim prisoners in England and Wales. It argues that wider discourses about Muslim prisoners are dominated by a narrative of threat that draws strongly on anti-migrant feelings and racism, encouraged by growing scepticism about British multiculturalism and essentialist conceptualizations of minority groups. The chapter suggests that the damaging impact of this narrative can be challenged through better incorporation into practice of the insights of empirical research involving foreign and Muslim prisoners.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, Oct 5, 2012
Theoretical Criminology, Nov 1, 2014
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 2007
Probation Journal, Jun 1, 1995
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 2003
Public and sentencer attitudes to probation P ublic attitudes towards crime and punishment have a... more Public and sentencer attitudes to probation P ublic attitudes towards crime and punishment have arguably been as influential in shaping probation service reform as the 'official' objective of reducing reoffending. Against the backdrop of overcrowded prisons, the government's strategy has been to toughen up community penalties in order to encourage public and sentencer confidence in them. This strategy seems to embody a clear and defensible position for anyone concerned about reducing the prison population. It implicitly accepts that while the language of 'alternatives to imprisonment' has been pushed out of probation discourse, community penalties are still compared (by sentencers and the general public) with the ultimate punishment of imprisonment. In this context, talking up the punitive aspects of probation may seem sensible. The MORI research reported in this edition (see Research/Reports section) provides some critical insights into the wisdom of this strategy. It won't surprise many readers of this Journal that the public has a limited awareness of the probation service's role in the first place, although this is no different from awareness of many other public agencies. Interestingly, there is a considerably greater association of the service with supervision and rehabilitation (over 40% for both) and reducing reoffending (11%) than with punishment (2%), public protection (2%), and enforcement (4%). Members of the public also rate the service as being best at the things with which they most associate it (see also HORS 245, 'Improving public attitudes to the criminal justice system', reported in the March 2003 Research/Reports section). There are two obvious responses to this information: i) build upon the strong associations, and ii) address the weaker associations (for example, through the kind of re-branding that has seen the advent of the community punishment order). The Prison Reform Trust report 'Sentencing and the prison population' (also in the Research/Reports section) suggests that the latter approach might have had some success in changing sentencers' perceptions; they were aware of improvements in the probation service over the last few years, highlighting better enforcement practice. So why does the prison population continue to increase? The PRT report concludes that it can only be because of sentencers deciding, for reasons that remain unclear, to sentence more people to prison and for longer. The figures cited 331
Probation Journal, Dec 1, 1997
Probation Journal, Mar 1, 2003