• Roundtable 1: Services and interventions – what is out there in the Women’s estate?

APL is hosting a series of roundtable discussions designed to make sure legal representatives understand specific issues affecting women in prison.

The online roundtables will take place via Teams between 17:30 and 18:30 on three Tuesdays between September and November 2024.

Each session will focus on a particular issue affecting women in custody and involve contributions from HMPPS psychology to ensure that delegates are up to speed with current thinking, services and initiates. They will provide an opportunity to discuss each topic and share knowledge.

We will be joined by Jude Kelman, Registered Forensic Psychologist and Gillian Sutcliffe, Chartered and Registered Forensic Psychologist for each of the sessions, along with colleagues working on the issues. Their bios are below.

• This session will provide an overview of the range of services and interventions now available across women’s prisons to meet the needs of women in custody. This will include safety-related interventions and services (designed to meet the needs of women in crisis), as well as offending-related services and interventions designed to address offence-related risks and needs. There will be ample time for questions and discussions.

Cost:

• £10 for APL members ( for information about how to join or renew your membership please visit our website here).
• £20 for non-members.

About Jude Kelman:

• Jude is a forensic psychologist with almost 30 years experience of working in prisons. For the past eight years Jude has been the Women’s Group Lead Psychologist and has grown a team of psychologists from nothing to more than 70 staff working across all 12 women’s prisons. Jude has just completed a PhD examining trauma-informed care within women’s prisons and has published her research. She is passionate about finding ways to use the findings from her PhD to positively change practices and systems across women’s prisons, to improve conditions and outcomes for women in prison as well as for prison staff.

About Gillian Sutcliffe:

• Gillian is a chartered and registered forensic psychologist with 23 years of clinical experience working in prisons across the UK. She has experience in working with men and women who have entered the criminal justice system, and for the last four years has specialised in understanding the safety needs of women across the Women's Group. She has a range of experiences in risk assessment, research, consultancy and training across HMPPS. Her passion centres on the development and implementation of evidence based, trauma informed therapy services for women in custody which aim to de-shame, and help improve safety outcomes for them, and the wider public. Gillian is currently pursuing research which explores the impact and influence of hormones on women in custody, to help shape and influence policy. She has published articles on therapeutic interventions in custody, as well as an academic book chapter exploring the nuisance of women convicted of sexual offences. All with the overarching aim to improve outcomes for women in custody and reduce reoffending.