Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund - The Work Continues

Home
News
Fund backs calls for better support to vulnerable

Fund backs calls for better support to vulnerable adults and children in the court system

The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund supports the recommendations of a report launched today by partner Prison Reform Trust (PRT), which reviews the provision of support in the court system for adults with learning disabilities or learning difficulties and for children.

Vulnerable Defendants in the Criminal Courts assesses existing provision and identifies gaps in services. It concludes that despite defendants in both groups being known to be vulnerable, a lack of planning and support for their needs means they are routinely unable to understand and participate effectively in criminal proceedings, which is crucial to the right to a fair trial enshrined in the Human Rights Act.

Produced as part of PRT's No One Knows programme, to reveal the experiences of people with learning disabilities or difficulties in contact with the criminal justice system; and their Out of Trouble programme to reduce child and youth imprison, both of which are supported by the Fund, the report presents a set of recommendations for improving provisions for vulnerable defendant. These include:

Providing equivalent support for vulnerable defendants as that offered to vulnerable witnesses.
Judges and magistrates should receive training on the range of impairments (including learning disabilities) that defendants can display, the implications of these impairments for the criminal justice process, and methods by which vulnerable defendants' participation in court proceedings can be enhanced.
There should be greater and more flexible use of the community order in sentencing vulnerable defendants, ensuring full compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act and particularly the Disability Equality Duty.
The Government commitment to developing a young defendants' pack should be revived and implemented. The pack should provide clear, factual information about the various components of the criminal justice process, including what happens at court, and the rights and responsibilities of defendants within that process.
The age of criminal responsibility in England & Wales should be reviewed with a view to raising it at least to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended minimum of 12 years and preferably to the European norm of 14 years.

Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said: "There is nothing fair about a system where things are not explained or understood and vulnerable people are not represented or protected. A single high profile miscarriage of justice catches the headlines but literally thousands of children and people with learning disabilities are ill served by a system that is blind to their needs."

Samantha Rennie, Head of Partnerships at the Fund, said: "It is crucial that adults with learning disability or learning difficulties and children are given the appropriate support and care when going through the courts, and within the criminal justice system in general. We are pleased that the Prison Reform Trust's crucial programmes, Out of Trouble and No One Knows, continue to lead the way in highlighting vital recommendations aimed at securing improvements for vulnerable individuals."