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Howard League Blog

Informal comment from our Chief Executive, Andrea Coomber KC (Hon.), and other contributors.

  • 4 Oct 2023
    Renting prison cells overseas

    Broken promises. Embarrassing delays. Spiralling costs. A colossal planning failure that will hold the country back. Most of the headlines from the Conservative party conference have been about HS2, but these stinging criticisms better describe the mess that the government has got itself into with prison overcrowding.  Read more

  • 29 Sep 2023
    Letters from prison: Lifting the lid on a system in crisis

    On 14 September 2023, our Chief Executive, Andrea Coomber KC (Hon.), gave a lecture at the City Law School in London about the letters we receive from our members and people in prison.  Read more

  • 12 Sep 2023
    What IMBs tell us about prisons today: summer update

    For most people, summer offers a chance to wind down. Many of us will have entered September refreshed after spending time on holiday and with family. This is not the case for those in prison.  Read more

  • 7 Aug 2023
    Know your rights: An animation on licence and recall

    We hope the video below will be helpful for anyone wanting to know more about licence and recall. It will be accessible to young people in prisons on their in-cell laptops, and to practitioners and the public, who may be unfamiliar with much of the recall process.   Read more

  • 31 Jul 2023
    A one-off podcast on remand

    We commissioned a one-off podcast produced by Transform Justice to explore the issue of remand, aimed at lawyers and criminal practitioners working with children.  Read more

  • 18 Jul 2023
    Dr Martin Wright: What’s wrong with criminal justice?

    On 12 July 2023, we held a special event at City, University of London to celebrate the achievements of Dr Martin Wright, a former Director of the Howard League. Martin's speech at the event, titled 'What's wrong with criminal justice?' is reproduced with his permission.  Read more

  • 3 Jul 2023
    What do IMBs tell us about prison today?

    As part of the Howard League’s work to lift the lid on prisons, we look at Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) reports to identify recurring themes or emerging trends across the estate. Recent reports offer evidence of shortcomings around personal property, regimes, and healthcare.   Read more

  • 16 Jun 2023
    HDC and solutions to prison overcrowding

    The last 12 months have brought a population explosion in prisons in England and Wales. There are 5,060 more people in cells today than there were at this point last year. The crisis has become so extreme that police forces have been asked to make room for people who can no longer be kept in jails. And a long line of inspection reports has shown how overcrowding, combined with chronic staff shortages, has contributed to dire conditions behind bars.  Read more

  • 26 May 2023
    Problems at Cookham Wood

    As Cookham Wood receives an Urgent Notification, the Howard League questions whether young offender institutions are ever the right response to children in trouble with the law.   Read more

  • 12 Apr 2023
    Racial disparities in youth justice – from policing to custody

    It is only early April, but this year has already laid bare alarming trends in youth justice.  Read more

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