Giving Back : Do Community Service Activities Promote Desistance from Crime? Reintegration Puzzle Conference Auckland 2

Giving Back : Do Community Service Activities Promote Desistance from Crime?Reintegration Puzzle Conference Auckland 2013Steve Graham reintegration is a process not a program Department of Justice TASMANIA PRISON SERVICE

Contextof the research • Practitioner working in prison. • Collaborating with range of NGO‘s. • 2012: Working and studying - Masters of Criminology & Corrections thesis research project with the University of Tasmania. • Voices of practitioners and volunteers. • Focusing on Tasmanian prisoners’ experiences. They all come back into society – Travis (1999)

Themes & Aspectsof the research • Role of community agencies pre-release • Pro-social relationships open doors to change • Community Service Activities vs. Community • Service Orders • “We don’t want all the good work to stop” “We have an ongoing relationship with them after they get out …”

Desistance & Generativity Desistance: “…the long-term abstinence from criminal behaviour among those for whom offending had become a pattern of behaviour” (McNeill et al., 2012: 3). Generativity:“concern for and commitment to promoting the next generation”; forms of meaningful giving and reciprocity (Maruna, 2010: 118). More: See Fergus McNeill, Shadd Maruna, Stephen Farrall The distilled wisdom of Desistance scholarship in 9 pages: http://iriss.org.uk/resources/how-and-why-people-stop-offending-discovering-desistance

Community Service Activities Community Garden Partner: Risdon Vale Neighbourhood Centre and Christian Family Centre 1 garden, 3 places Spud crop 2012 Minimum garden area The Big paddock SecondBite’s 760 kg

Community Service Activities Community Garden Partner: Risdon Vale Neighbourhood Centre and Christian Family Centre Spud crop 2012 Minimum garden area The Big paddock SecondBite’s 760 kg

Community Service Activities Dog Training at Tasmania Prison Service Partner: Dogs Homes of Tasmania and Canine Utility Service Partners (CUSP) Tall Sefton Media from CUSP

Community Service Activities Hand Made With Pride Partner: UnitingCare Tas, Cancer Council Tasmania, and Launceston General Hospital teddies & baby doonas Caps and turbans Teddy with scarf

Community Service Activities Hand Made With Pride Partner: UnitingCare Tas, Cancer Council Tasmania, and Launceston General Hospital Teddies & baby doonas Caps and turbans Teddy with scarf

Community Service Activities Bushfire Recovery Community Assistance Partner: Residents and farmers of Dunalley and other fire affected areas Helping recovery efforts after the fires

Community Service Activities Bridge & Creek Renovation, Risdon Vale Partner: Risdon Vale Neighbourhood Centre and Clarence City Council Our guys made this

Community Service Activities Bluff Restoration & Land Care Partner: Coastcare Stonewall construction and environmental restoration initiatives

Community Service Activities The Lea Scout Camp Partner: Scouts Tasmania The big flying fox. Building and environmental restoration and maintenance work when the site is empty.

Community Service Activities Artists with Conviction Annual Exhibition Partner: Tasmanian Museum Art Gallery and University of Tasmania 100+ entries from prisoners: photography, sculpture, glass art, painting, installations etc. Art contributions and collaboration with staff and volunteers.

Community Service Activities On the Mission Truck Partner: City Mission Furniture pick-up & delivery

Community Service Activities Family Visits Area Reno by Inspire Partner: Inspire City Church and 130 volunteers and tradies ANZAC Day makeover: 3 days, $20,000+ donated, prisoners and prison staff working alongside volunteers 130 people on site

Community Service Activities Family Visits Area Reno by Inspire Partner: Inspire City Church and 130 volunteers and tradies ANZAC Day makeover 130 people on site

Community Service Activities Taste of Tasmania Partner: Hobart City Council Setting up and packing up the great food hall eating area at the Taste

Community Service Activities Government House & Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens Partner: Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens and Government House 100 years of service and horticulture at RTBG Government House

Community Service Activities Other activities in Tasmania also include: Partners: Barista coffee services Cricket umpiring Football umpiring Educative school group tours of prison

Featuresof community service activities • New identity for prisoners • Relationships & pro-social bonds to community • Reverse reinvestment of community in prisoner; new opportunities (‘changing lives and life chances’) and restored sense of citizenship • Builds/recognises human capital, work ready skills • Not typical community service orders “They appreciate being seen as an individual instead of a prisoner - having to do the project”

Community service activities with social contexts thataiddesistance “It’s a natural thing to do these projects; the prison can [only] do so much and together we can achieve what we are after”

Don’t wait for generativity to happen • Community punishment or a desistance focussed reintegration activity? • Qualitative measuring of my activities

Virtue doesn't happen in a Vacuum • Moral performance of corrections • “Prisoners can change.” • Is casework enough to promote change? • Not just a bridge but a journey

Summary of ‘Do Community Service Activities promote Desistance?’ • Some CSA‘s are better at aiding desistance than others. • The findings of this study show that community service activities do have a positive impact at a number of levels. • This research challenges the notion of allowing prisoners to contribute to broad categories of community service without first measuring the potential value of the project, social and human capital and the relationships gained. • Need to recognise the policyimplications of including community partners in reintegration planning. • Further questions arising from the research.

reintegrate.info– for reintegration & transition resources • Discovering Desistance blog: http://blogs.iriss.org.uk/discoveringdesistance/ • McNeill, F., Farrall, S., Maruna, S., & Lightowler, C. (2012) Discovering Desistance: How and Why People Stop Offending, IRISS Insights 15 (http://www.iriss.org.uk) • Thesis online: Graham, Steve (2012) Paying It Back: Does Community Service Activities Promote Desistance In Prisoners?Masters of Criminology & Corrections Thesis, School of Sociology & Social Work, University of Tasmania: Hobart. http://eprints.utas.edu.au/16706/2/whole-Graham-thesis-2013.pdf • Email - steve.graham@justice.tas.gov.au References& Contacts reintegration is a process not a program Department of Justice

Giving Back : Do Community Service Activities Promote Desistance from Crime? Reintegration Puzzle Conference Auckland 2