Winner: Katrina Ffrench

Katrina Ffrench is the Founding Director of UNJUST. She has been a powerful advocate for the abolition of the Gangs Matrix and was instrumental in applying the pressure that resulted in the removal of hundreds of names from the harmful database.

‘We’ll continue fighting racism and injustice in policing. … It’s me here, but actually it’s we. … I really look forward to working with people in the future and just keep doing what I can do until I pass the baton on, and that’s what UNJUST is about. It’s about creating a Black led entity that’s not me, it’s we, so that when I can sit down it continues. So thank you everyone and thank you for the Award.’

Runner-up: Diane Curry OBE

Diane Curry OBE is the CEO of Partners of Prisoners and Families Support Group (POPS). Diane was an integral contributor to the Race Review in 2008 and contributed to a review by Lord Farmer on improving family ties. She oversaw the development of the POPS ‘Get It Off Your Chest’ campaign which brought families together in a virtual setting to connect and share their experiences during COVID restrictions.

‘[Being the Runner-Up for the CJA Outstanding Individual Award feels] absolutely fantastic. I think ‘Outstanding Individual’ is a massive title to live up to, but if myself and the team at POPS, everyone in this room and everyone that works in the sector keep doing what we’re doing, we’re all outstanding individuals, so thank you.’

Winner: Disabilities Trust

The Disabilities Trust is at the forefront of international research and pioneering interventions for people with a brain injury. Drawing on learnings, they are providing a Brain Injury Lineworker (BIL) Service at a local male prison in South Wales. Awareness training is also offered to staff. The evaluation found this ground-breaking work lowered risk of suicide or self harm, as well as reductions in adjudications.

‘We were thrilled to take home the CJA Outstanding Local or Regional Organisation Award in recognition of the fantastic work the brain injury linkworker service does. … Our brain injury linkworkers provide education on brain injury and support the person to develop strategies to manage their difficulties. All interventions promote self-management and focus on increasing the mens’ engagement with education and healthcare within the prison.’ Davina Jones, Head of Policy Influencing and Social Change

Runner-up: Belong: Making Justice Happen

Belong: Making Justice Happen provides hope, rehabilitation, and recovery to both victims and perpetrators of crime, inspiring change by providing long term, individualised responses to conflict. This year it has been working in a range of custody and community settings to deliver restorative and trauma-informed programmes.

‘We run restorative justice projects and mentoring in prisons. It’s about using restorative approaches to help those involved in conflict in prison, to give them the skills to take out with them. We’ve seen a real reduction in violence in the prisons we work in, generally from when we’ve done the evaluations.’ Sam Warman, Head of Programmes

Winner: Inside Justice

Inside Justice investigates miscarriages of justice in England and Wales. They are often an innocent person’s last hope for justice after they have been sentenced and are in prison for a crime they did not commit. They are supported by an advisory panel of world-renowned experts who work pro bono. As well as casework, Inside Justice work to identify and improve systemic failures in the system including the importance of evidence retention and storage by the police.

‘We’ve had a fantastic couple years. We’ve overturned a wrongful conviction of murder that had a co-accused and we campaign for the retention of evidence post conviction, so that we have the means to go ahead and do this work. We have an incredible board that give their pro bono time – scientists, lawyers, barristers all doing incredible work … Having additional resources to help with casework and to pay for testing, those sort of things is always great, but to recognise the exceptional work that everyone’s put in to have these cases overturned … it just recognises the work that everyone does.’ Jessica Ritchie, Trustee at Inside Justice

Runner-up: Prisoners’ Education Trust

Prisoners’ Education Trust (PET) offers distance learning courses to people in prison, supporting around 1,500 people each year to study, develop skills and gain qualifications. Founded in HMP Wandsworth in 1989, PET now works with every prison in England and Wales. To date, it has made over 45,000 educational awards to learners. A current learner said ‘Study gives me an opportunity to use my time, rather than simply serving it’. PET’s work has been particularly important during the pandemic. With people in prison in their cells for up to 23 hours a day, their distance learning provision helped to provide meaningful activity during a very challenging time. A learner said ‘PET has been invaluable during lockdown, keeping people occupied and making peoples’ futures so much brighter.’

‘A big part of what we do is providing those courses to our learners, but we recognise the whole system is flawed, the whole system doesn’t work as intended … but we also do what we can … to make those big changes that will make prison a little bit better for those  people that are in there, and ultimately fewer people in prison.’ Jon Collins, CEO of Prisoners’ Education Trust

Winner: Tara Ward

Tara is Catch22’s Beacon Family Hub Team Leader. She raises awareness of the impact knife crime has on the young person involved, as well as the families and associates of the victims. This year she featured on the ‘What Do Parents Know’ podcast, discussing youth violence and knife crime as well as writing blogs on the subject. Tara has campaigned tirelessly for support for victims’ bereaved families beyond this narrow criteria and earlier this year she met with policy makers and outlined her case for change, as well as leading a visit to the Beacon Family Hub by the Secretary of State for Justice.

‘I’ve got jelly legs! I’m extremely honoured. I lost my partner in 2018 to an unprovoked knife and gun attack. For me, there were so many flaws in the system that meant I couldn’t access the support I needed to move forward in my journey to cope and recover after such a traumatic event. I felt I should honour his memory to change the system for so many other people. I think I can say that I have done that and will continue to do that as long as I can.’

Runner-up: Dr Nicola Sharp Jeffs OBE

Dr Nicola Sharp-Jeffs OBE is the Founder of Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA). She raises awareness and influences change to professional practice, systems, policy, legislation, and regulation so they recognise economic abuse and better support victim-survivors. SEA has trained thousands of professionals in sectors including money and debt advice, financial services, housing, the police and domestic abuse support services, as well as influencing the Domestic Abuse Act to name and define economic abuse in legislation.

‘Economic abuse often gets left out. Our success as an organisation is a reflection of need and it’s been incredible to see the difference we’ve made nationally in terms of legislation, but also individual women who contact me and tell me the difference its made to their lives. It also feels really special to receive the award in Saskia’s name and I’d like to thank her family who are here.’

Winner: Richard Taylor OBE

Richard Taylor OBE is the Founder of Damilola Taylor Trust, which he established in May 2001 in memory of his son, Damilola Taylor, with the aim of providing a legacy of hope and opportunity for disadvantaged and underprivileged young people, particularly in inner-city south London. Following the 20th anniversary of Damilola’s death, Richard and partners from across the sector came together to form the ‘Hope Collective’, a youth-led movement driven by a shared purpose to establish real change that enables UK’s most vulnerable communities to be free from poverty, violence and discrimination. The annual Day of Hope on 7 December is now supported and officially sanctioned by the Government as a national day of social action.

‘The Damilola Trust was conceived as a result of tragic loss but what we have achieved over the years has been tremendous. We set up the medical programme for students at Kings College London for people from Peckham who didn’t have the qualifications to go to mainstream medical school. Today the programme has cut across the whole of the UK, including here in Birmingham! Our work in schools, the number of children we have changed their lives, helping them move away from drugs and gangs. The King asked me how do you do it after you have lost your son and your wife – I said it is for his legacy. … The Day of Hope on 7 December was launched with the Hope Collective.  This year we are having a light installation in Peckham of Damilola in his memory.’

Runner-up: Jen Harris

Jen Harris is a Criminology PhD Researcher with a focus on Policing, Race Relations and Critical Race Theory. She is also the Founder of the Black Criminology Network, which supports current and prospective criminologists of Black heritage to network, learn and achieve. Jen has almost a decade of experience of working and volunteering across the criminal justice system, and ultimately wants to consult and advocate on policy making to improve the existing tensions between the police and Black communities.

‘When I was accepted into my PhD, I thought, I can’t do this alone, is there something out there for people who look like me? And I couldn’t find anything. So I launched BCN – so everyone has equitable experiences in academia. We are there for academics who have black students in their department to improve cultural competency too. The prize money will mean we can host more events and go full throttle next year to support students and institutions!’

Joint Winner: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (BIJ) is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that holds power to account. Until the Bureau started exploring police attitudes to domestic violence allegations against their own officers, no one had properly examined this subject. The four-year long investigation revealed the scale of the problem by a combination of Freedom of Information requests and interviews with victims of officers from a dozen different forces. It showed that cases were often handled by friends of the accused, there had been a failure to prosecute these offences, and collusion by other officers to cover up abuse and even intimidate victims into dropping charges. The Bureau worked with the Centre for Women’s Justice to put in a joint Supercomplaint on the issue, resulting in the Independent Office for Police Conduct, College of Policing and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary producing a report and a roadmap for change which was presented in June this year. The Home Office and Chief Constables have accepted the report and the Bureau will be scrutinising whether they implement the recommendations in the months to come.

Runner-up: Greg McKenzie

Greg McKenzie is one of the UK’s most trusted news correspondents and documentary filmmakers, as well as being the founder of Inside Out Clothing, the UK’s first clothing line designed, and hand produced by young ex-offenders. Inside Out project participants get the opportunity to hone their business, fashion, employment, and personal development skills. The project aims to help thousands of young people over the next five years who have struggled since being released from prison, by creating job opportunities in business through fashion and design, to help with reintegration into society.

‘I left the BBC last month after 17 years to start the Inside Out project helping young ex-offenders to get a second chance. I’m still doing freelance work, including a Panorama documentary out soon, but now I’m focused on young people getting a second chance.’

Winner: Second Chance podcast by Raphael Rowe

Raphael Rowe is a British broadcaster and journalist that spent 12 years in prison for crimes he did not commit. Having experienced injustice and what prison can do to human beings first hand, became a journalist and broadcast reporter for BBC 4, before moving to make documentaries for BBC 2. Raphael currently hosts the ‘World’s Toughest Prisons’ for Netflix. In his podcast series, ‘A Second chance’ he explores the questions: Who deserves a second chance?, Who decides who gets a second chance?, and what a second chance actually means, while shining a light on people with lived experience who are leaders for change. Recently, he set up the ‘Raphael Rowe foundation’ to end the dehumanisation of prisoners and build safer societies on a global scale.

‘Second chance the podcast started during Covid. The work you guys do, you are giving people a second chance. My platform is about changing the narrative. I was given a second chance and I took it and it’s a made a difference in other people’s lives. I talk to all people from all walks of life about their second chance because it really does matter and the work you all do matters.’

Runner-up: The Law in Action podcast for BBC4 by Joshua Rozenberg

Law in Action is presented by Joshua Rozenberg, the UK’s most experienced legal commentator, having spent 15 years as the BBC Legal Affairs Correspondent and further 8 years editing the Daily Telegraph’s legal coverage. The programme regularly talks to leading legal figures at home and abroad but also hears from the people in contact with the law about how it affects their lives. It challenges some very important topics that relate to everyone, such as challenging the UK Bill of Rights, analysing education in prisons, and why so few rape cases go to court.

‘It’s very kind of you to honour my radio programme. I presented first edition forty years ago, before most of you were born I imagine. It’s a great programme trying to explain complicated issues of law in a way people understand.’

Winner: ‘Two Daughters’ by True Vision and Little Dooley

A year after the murders of her daughters Bibaa and Nicole in a North London park, retired Archdeacon Mina Smallman invited Stacey Dooley to help her tell her story through both the trial of her daughters’ killer and the trials of two Met police officers who took photographs of their bodies and shared them on WhatsApp. The ‘Two Daughters’ documentary, made over the course of a year, is a frank portrayal of the family’s grief and the failings of the police. Mina’s faith is central to her very being, but the documentary explores what happens when faith is confronted by unimaginable tragedy. The documentary shows how Mina’s faith has played a pivotal role throughout an unimaginably difficult time, helping her to cope with her grief and anger, and her relationship with God has strengthened her resolve to fight to end violence against women so her daughters did not die in vain.

‘We’re really proud of the film, but it was also the type of film you hope you never have to make. I personally took away seeing that strength from Mina. And her advocacy to make sure her daughters’ names were not only remembered, but that they meant something. That’s why she continues to fight for young women and for policing reforms that need to happen. Mina and her husband are incredible people and through the documentary their voices were heard. We’d like to dedicate this award to Bibaa and Nicole.’

Runner-up: ‘Can the Police Keep Us Safe?’ series by Baroness Helena Kennedy KC and Assistant Commissioner Rob Beckley

Helena Kennedy QC with Police Assistant Commissioner Rob Beckley explore our expectations of policing today and changing ideas of safety – in public, in private and online. Talking to all ranks of the police across the UK, to criminologists and critics, Helena and Rob consider what we expect from the police now. They ask if this is the moment for a new kind of social contract between public and police, where other institutions, both public and private – as well as citizens themselves – take more responsibility for safety and care in our communities, independent of policing. Helena and Rob turn to the question of safety and harms in the domestic sphere, especially violence against women and girls, and whether the publication of the Police’s new Race Action Plan help secure consent and trust in the UK’s Black communities.

‘Police, like so many people in this room, are dealing with the symptoms of other failures in society. Because of that, people are rightly challenging and critical of policing and expect high standards. But some of the time the police are trying to do an impossible job. Dealing with mental health shouldn’t be left to the police. We should not try to resolve the ills of society by enforcement. So many ways we could do things better. We should all work together better.’