Policy Press

Women, Relationships & Criminal Justice

The Personal and Professional

Edited by Sarah Waite and Natalie Rutter

This edited collection offers diverse perspectives on the central role of relationships for criminalised women, from research, lived experience and frontline practice.

Women who have been criminalised by the state typically encounter gendered experiences and challenges and are affected by complex and intersecting layers of system failure, marginalisation and stigma. Bringing together diverse perspectives from research, lived experience and frontline practice, this collection considers the central role of relationships for criminalised women, including motherhood, family, peer, romantic and professional relationships.

The collection offers critical insights into women’s relationships with the often oppressive system which they are required to navigate. Through different forms of expression, the collection allows us to hear a range of voices that offer alternative visions for the present and future. It makes a powerful case for policies and practices that are more responsive to women’s distinct needs within the criminal justice system.

Natalie Rutter is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Leeds Trinity University.

Sarah Waite is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Leeds Beckett University.

I Feel Happy - Cherry, MASH

My Supports - Joanne Le Grove

Home - Pinkie, MASH

Introduction: Rise Together, Move as a Collective and Maintain Solidarity - Natalie Rutter and Sarah Waite

1. Recognising Solidarity: A Necessary for Building Relationships - Paula Harriott and Danica Darley

Part 1: The Personal

Drum - Cherry, MASH

2. Trauma to Triumph - Caroline Ddembe-Williams

3. The Intergenerational Impacts of Maternal Imprisonment - Sophie Mitchell

4. ‘I felt like trash...I needed help!’: A Discussion of Black Women’s Activism in the Carceral Space - Paula McLean

5. Imprisonment is a Women’s Issue - Nancy Loucks

6. A Mother’s Love - Melissa Smith

7. Reflections from Birth Mothers in the Criminal Justice System - Susannah Bateson

I was Once Alive - Miss Bucket, MASH

8. “We started going together in the jail. And then we carried it on outside": Navigating Love and Friendship In and Out of Prison - Marguerite Schinkel

9. Calm Heart - Melissa Smith

10. My True Authentic Self: A Narrative Reflection - Ayesha Hunte

Part 2: The Professional

Magpies at the Window - Stella, MASH

11. Don’t Call Me a Survivor - Kierra Myles and Shelley Vibert

12. Alternative Journeys: Discovering Different Paths” - MASH

13. Beyond the Uniform: Navigating Identity, Power and Emotion as a Women’s Prison Officer - Prison Officer (Anonymous)

Moths to a Flame - Delyth,MASH

14. Empathic Intuition: Working Outside of the State? - Kavya Padmanabhan

Control - Opal, MASH

15. Are we Responding to the Needs of Women? Practitioner Perspectives - Julie Eden-Barnard and Jennifer Walmsley

16. Motherhood in Focus: An Evolution of Our Researcher Identities - Isla Masson and Natalie Booth

17. So, What Now? A Call to Action: From the Heart of Together Women - Rokaiya Khan and Claire Vilarrubi

Joyful Daily - Jewels, MASH

Conclusion: Rising Strong, Moving Forward and Maintaining Momentum - Sarah Waite and Natalie Rutter

Dreams - Melissa Smith

Haikus - Stella, MASH