Evaluations

Write to be Heard: Supporting Offender Learning through Creative Writing

The report explores the impact of a creative writing programme developed to engage ‘hard to reach’ learners in prison.   The mechanism was a creative writing competition, incorporating a schedule of workshops in 28 prisons, encouraging entrants to write pieces for broadcast on National Prison Radio (NPR).  Using qualitative and quantitative ... read on →

Authors Jane Hurry, Patrice Lawrence, Jessica Plant, Anita Wilson (Arts Alliance)

Published March 2014

Artform Creative Writing

Organisation Arts Alliance   Project venue Prisons around the UK

Participant type Male and Female Adult Offenders

Family Man: 2012-13 Evaluation Scope

The purpose of this evaluation is to demonstrate the long-term impact and cost-effectiveness of Family Man to policy makers, funders, prisons and practitioners; and to complement Gwyneth Boswell’s qualitative study of the revised Family Man and other previous evaluations. read on →

Published 2013

Artform Drama

Organisation Safe Ground   Project venues Belmarsh, Birmingham, Bristol, Dovegate, Highpoint, Leeds, Parc, Wandsworth

Participant type Male and Female Adult Families of offenders, Male and Female Juvenile Families of offenders, Male Adult Offenders, Male and Female Adult Prison Staff

Sample size: 500

Good Vibrations: Music and social education for young offenders

This evaluation looked at the project from the point of view of music education, identifying individual and social factors generated through musical development that also are attributed to desistence from crime. These were divided into two categories:- Individual Agency:Personal Identity Diversity Motivation Hope Self-determination Personal strengths  Social Interactions: Professional relationships ... read on →

Author Jennie Henley (Institute of Education, University of London, University of London)

Published August 2012

Artform Music

Organisation Good Vibrations   Project venue Swinfen Hall

Participant type Male Young Offenders

Sample size: 19

An Evaluation of a Pilot Study of a Literature-Based Intervention with Women in Prison

This study investigated whether ‘Get Into Reading’, a literature-based intervention, which had been established in other custodial contexts and non-custodial mental health settings in the UK transposed to a female prison; HMP Low Newton, and whether any of the benefits identified in custodial and non-custodial contexts elsewhere were reported by ... read on →

Authors Josie Billington, Jude Robinson (University of Liverpool)

Published 2012

Artform Creative Writing

Organisations National Personality Disorder Team, The Reader Organisation, University of Liverpool   Project venue HMP Low Newton

Participant type Female Adult Offenders

An evaluation of the Artist in Residence at HMP Grendon

Through observation and interviews with inmates and staff,this report documents the process of developing an artistic residency in a Therapeutic Community prison and provides an evaluation of the impact on those taking part. Based on observations across four prison wings and interviews with sixteen inmates, this report is able to conclude that ... read on →

Author Laura Caulfield (Birmingham City University)

Published October 2011

Artform Visual Arts

Project venue Grendon

Participant type Male Adult Offenders

Sample size: 16

Inspiring Change: Final Project Report of the Evaluation Team

An evaluation of a series of arts-based interventions across the Scottish criminal justice system, focusing on the impact of engagement in these programmes on offenders’ attitudes and behaviours as well as their ability to learn.The findings concentrate on examining the quality of the arts experience, the people and processes involved, ... read on →

Authors KIrstin Anderson, Sarah Colvin, Fergus McNeill, Mike Nellis, Katie Overy, Richard Sparks (Scottish Centre for Crime & Justice Research, University of Glasgow, University of Glasgow)

Published February 2011

Artforms Creative Writing, Drama, Music, Visual Arts

Organisation Motherwell College   Project venues Barlinnie, Greenock, Open Estate, Polmont, Shotts

Participant type Male Adult Offenders, Male Young Offenders, Female Adult Offenders

Sample size: 219

The Great Escape: exploring the rehabilitative dynamics involved in 'Changing Tunes'

The goal of this report is to develop a 'logic model' that can account for how Changing Tunes (CT) works as a rehabilitative strategy, outlining both the dynamic processes involved and their immediate/short-term and medium/longer-term impacts on the lives of participants. This analysis identified seven, key elements of the CT ... read on →

Author Shadd Maruna (Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Queen's University Belfast, Queen's University Belfast)

Published 2010

Artform Music

Organisation Changing Tunes   Project venues Bristol, Bronzefield, Eastwood Park, Erlestoke, Exeter, Gloucester, Guys Marsh, Kingston, Leyhill, Parkhurst, Shepton Mallet, Winchester

Participant type Male and Female Adult Offenders

Sample size: 87

Developments in the HM Prison Service and Safe Ground Family Man programme, and the Safe Ground Network during 2007-8: An independent review

The purpose of this evaulation was to examine the developments Safe Ground had made to one of its prison interventions, Family Man, and to the Safe Ground network during the period 2007-08 following recommendations made in previous reviews. It utilised semi structured qualitative face to face interviews, telephone interviews and questionnaires ... read on →

Authors Gwyneth Boswell, Fiona Poland

Published October 2008

Artform Drama

Organisation Safe Ground   Project venues Belmarsh, Wandsworth

Participant type Male and Female Adult Families of offenders, Male Adult Offenders, Male and Female Adult Staff

Sample size: 258

Beats & Bars - Music in Prisons: An Evaluation

The report evaluated a series of five-day music projects which took place in eight men’s prisons across England from October 2007 to July 2008. The evaluation was aimed at understanding the impact of the project on its participants’ engagement with purposeful activities whilst in prison. In particular the impact of ... read on →

Authors Alexandra Cox, Loraine Gelsthorpe (Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge , University of Cambridge)

Published

Artform Music

Organisation The Irene Taylor Trust (Music in Prisons)   Project venues Brixton , Edmunds Hill, Littlehey, Manchester, Wandsworth, Wayland, Whatton

Participant type Male Adult Offenders

Sample size: 69

Evaluation of Dancing Inside: a creative workshop by Motionhouse Dance Theatre_yr 2 programme

This present study examines year two of the Dancing Inside project:Motionhouse Dance Theatre workshops conducted with prisoners in HMP Dovegate’s Therapeutic Community.  Its aim was to provide evidence for the short term impacts of participating in the workshops and also to examine the longer term gains made by dance participants. ... read on →

Author Jennifer Brown (Forensic and Clinical Psychology Research Group, University of Surrey, University of Surrey)

Published November 2004

Artform Dance

Organisation Motionhouse Dance   Project venue Dovegate

Participant type Adult Offenders

Sample size: 13

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