For Better or Worse? Improving the Response to Domestic Abuse Offenders on Probation

Renehan, Nicole; Gadd, David

Abstract

As the Ministry of Justice looks to develop a ‘new generation’ of programmes to reduce reoffending, we reflect on what can be learnt from the only accredited domestic abuse programme in England and Wales, Building Better Relationships (BBR). Findings from an ethnographic study of BBR are situated within the Probation Inspectorate’s recent inspection of domestic abuse work within the newly unified Probation Service which revealed a fractured and overstretched workforce. Our central argument is that if we are to avoid making matters worse, practitioners must be equipped with the time, supervision and skill needed to maintain something akin to a ‘therapeutic alliance’, that will endure in moments of crisis in their own lives as well as those of their clients.

Citation

Renehan, N., & Gadd, D. (2024). For Better or Worse? Improving the Response to Domestic Abuse Offenders on Probation. The British Journal of Criminology: An International Review of Crime and Society, 64(5), 1171–1188. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azae003

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 19, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Feb 8, 2024
• Publication Date: Feb 8, 2024
• Deposit Date: Feb 9, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 9, 2024
• Journal: The British Journal of Criminology
• Print ISSN: 0007-0955
• Electronic ISSN: 1464-3529
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 64
• Issue: 5
• Pages: 1171–1188
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azae003
• Keywords: Law; Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous); Social Psychology; Pathology and Forensic Medicine
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2230839