The Effectiveness of Support and Rehabilitation Services for Women Offenders

There is a large body of research which suggests that support, rehabilitation and supervision programs can help offenders to reduce recidivism. The effectiveness of services is, however, dependent on the extent to which the workers who deliver them comply with „what works‟ principles and practices. Most of this research has been conducted with men and this study examines the extent to which these principles and practices apply to women. The study focuses on services offered to a group of women in prison in Victoria and following their release to the community. It examines the relationship between the women‟s views about the services, recidivism and characteristics of services. The results are generally consistent with earlier research. They favour services which are delivered by workers who are reliable, holistic, collaborative, understand the women‟s perspective and focus on strengths. They do not support services which challenge the women, focus on their offences or things they do badly.