The CJA Awards 2025

The Outstanding Individual Award celebrates an individual who has shown exceptional commitment to transforming the criminal justice system through advocacy, leadership or frontline work.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Jemma En Rose, RIFT Social Enterprise
• Runner-Up: Dr. Sarah Lewis, Grow Transform Belong

• WINNER: Nick Corrigan, Media Academy Cymru

Judges:

• Lisa Danby is a Contract Manager at Shelter, the national charity campaigning for housing justice. She manages Shelter’s HMPPS contracts, providing flexible support services aimed at helping people in the criminal justice system reduce reoffending.
• Katrina Ffrench is Founding Director of UNJUST C.I.C. a not-for-profit organisation to address discrimination, particularly that of a racial nature, in policing and the criminal legal system.
• Phil and Michelle Jones are the uncle and mother of Saskia Jones, who was killed in the 2019 Fishmongers’ Hall terror attack in London. Inspired by Saskia’s commitment to justice, they continue her legacy through advocacy and community work.

This award celebrates a large organisation whose work has significantly contributed to criminal justice reform, supporting systemic change and promoting a fairer, more effective system.

Shortlisted nominees:

• We are Survivors
• Runner-Up: Anawim and Black Country Women’s Aid

• WINNER: Centre for Justice Innovation

Judges:

• Laura Dalton is Programme Lead, Anchor & Special Initiatives at AB Charitable Trust, a human rights-focused organisation. She works across migration, access to justice and the criminal legal system, supporting organisations tackling racial injustice. Laura previously co-coordinated the ACF Criminal Justice Network and sits on the Advisory Board of Babylon Migrant Project.
• Helen Berresford is Director of External Engagement and Business Development at Nacro. With a background in Parliament and the voluntary sector, she has influenced government policy on criminal justice, equality, childcare and poverty, and is passionate about empowering disadvantaged people to advocate for themselves.
• Esther Wanjie-Nkeyno Co-Founder and Director of Belong, a charity supporting rehabilitation and recovery for people affected by crime. With over 25 years’ experience and a background in law and psychotherapy, she began her career in Zambian prisons and has participated in numerous expert panels and media features on criminal justice issues.

This award recognises a medium-sized organisation delivering outstanding work to improve criminal justice outcomes regionally or nationally.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Offploy
• Working Chance
• Runner-Up: Media Academy Cymru

• WINNER: Beating Time

Judges:

• Diane Curry OBE is former Chief Executive of POPS, where she championed the vital role of families in the justice system. Drawing on her own lived experience, she has shaped national policy on race, inclusion and diversity, and was awarded an OBE in 2006 for this work. Diane now coordinates the National Families Support Network at Clinks.
• Chris Henley KC is Head of Mountford Chambers and recently led the independent review into the CCRC’s handling of the Andrew Malkinson case, one of the UK’s most significant miscarriages of justice. A former Chair of the Criminal Bar Association, he is also a trustee of the Schools Consent Project.
• Christopher Stacey is Chief Executive of Prisoners Abroad, a UK charity supporting and advocating for the welfare and human rights of British citizens in prison overseas. He previously worked at Clinks as Director of Support and Development and spent eight years as Co-Director of Unlock, the national charity for people with criminal records.

This award celebrates small or grassroots organisations making a significant difference in the pursuit of a fairer criminal justice system.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Justice is Now
• Sentencing Academy
• Runner-Up: Release Mates

• WINNER: The Recruitment Junction

Judges:

• Jon Collins is Chief Executive of Prisoners’ Education Trust (PET), a charity providing distance learning and support for people in prison. He has held senior roles at the Magistrates’ Association, the Restorative Justice Council, the Police Foundation, the CJA, the Fawcett Society and Nacro, and has served on several national advisory groups.
• Paul Yates is counsel and head of pro bono at Freshfields, a global law firm. His specialisms include anti-human trafficking, strategic litigation, the interface between pro bono and legal aid, and the use of technology to promote access to justice. He is also chair of the AIRE Centre, a European human rights charity. 
• Dunia Shafik is Founder and Director of Manhood from Within CIC and A Life of Choices. Drawing on her lived experience as a mother of a son serving a life sentence, she supports men and families affected by the justice system and delivers accredited training as a certified life coach.

This award recognises an individual who has used their personal experience of the criminal justice system to drive meaningful change.

*The CJA adopts a broad definition of lived experience, and includes, for example, experience of people who have been over-policed, have served a prison/community sentence, have been a victim of crime, and/or have family members in prison.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Kam Stevens, Grow Transform Belong
• Runner-Up: David Dunn, Release Mates

• WINNER: Julia Margo, Fair Hearing

Judges:

• Anne and Dave Merritt are the parents of Jack Merritt, who was killed in the 2019 London Bridge terror attack. Jack was committed to improving the criminal justice system through systemic reforms and was passionate about reducing inequality and unfairness for those in prison from minority ethnic backgrounds. Since his death, Jack’s legacy has inspired people to set up initiatives to help formerly incarcerated individuals find accommodation and employment, and to push for law reform and policy changes. 
• Lilly Lewis-James is Women’s Involvement Advisor at One Small Thing, championing the voices of women affected by the criminal justice system. A survivor of domestic abuse and former prisoner, she also writes the organisation’s blog, sits on the board of Soul Sisters, and founded her own CIC, Watering Your Soul, supporting women with multiple unmet needs.
• David Breakspear is a guest speaker and advocate working to end the school-to-prison pipeline. Since his release from prison in 2017, he has rebuilt his life, is studying a master’s in applied forensic psychology, and shares his experiences with staff and residents in prisons to inspire change and hope.

This award recognises an organisation that meaningfully centres lived experience in its leadership, design, and delivery of criminal justice work.

*The CJA adopts a broad definition of lived experience, and includes, for example, experience of people who have been over-policed, have served a prison/community sentence, have been a victim of crime, and/or have family members in prison.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Release Mates 
• User Voice
• Runner-Up: Unseen Victims

• WINNER: Offploy

Judges:

• Polly Rowe is Head of Programmes & Engagement at City & Guilds Foundation, Polly leads cross-sector initiatives that empower communities and drive inclusive change. She works closely with charities that champion lived experience, ensuring that voices from diverse backgrounds shape decision-making and drive meaningful outcomes. 
• Paula Harriott is Chief Executive of Unlock and co-hosts the Radio Academy award-nominated podcast, The Secret Life of Prisons. She holds a lived experience seat on Clinks’ RR3 Advisory Group and previously led prisoner involvement and policy work at the Prison Reform Trust, User Voice, and Revolving Doors
• Peter Stanford has been director of the Longford Trust since 2002 and is Lord Longford’s official biographer. An award-winning journalist, writer and broadcaster, his biographies and other books have been published in 12 languages. He is known for his biographies and writings on the history, theology and cultural significance of religious ideas. 

This award celebrates a journalist or media outlet that has challenged misconceptions and enhanced public understanding of the criminal justice system in England and Wales through their work.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Emily Dugan
• Sian Norris
• Runner-Up: Andrew Wilkie

• WINNER: Phoebe McIndoe, County Lines podcast

Judges:

• Lucy Brisbane-McKay is a Community Organiser at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and a freelance media and campaigns professional. She works with people facing injustice to share their stories, having previously led media at INQUEST and co-created the podcast Unlawful Killing. She also trains activists and charities on campaigning and media.
• Sarah Haque is an award-winning writer, essayist, and features journalist. Her writing has appeared in the New York Review of Books, British GQ, British Vogue, Financial Times Weekend Magazine, The New Statesman, The Telegraph, The Guardian, Wired, The Fence and ELLE, among others. In 2021, she was shortlisted for a British Journalism Award and in 2022 she won the CJA award for Outstanding Journalism. 
• Yvonne Roberts has been an award–winning journalist in print, television and radio since the 1970s. A former Chief Leader Writer at The Observer and the first political writer in residence at the University of Sussex, she has campaigned against violence against women and girls for many years. She is an ambassador for Solace Women’s Aid and a former chair of trustees of Women in Prison. She has written four non–fiction books on feminism and masculinity and is working on her fifth novel. 

This award recognises innovative use of digital or creative media to transform perceptions of the UK criminal justice system and advocate for change. Includes but is not limited to podcasts, digital campaigns, theatre, exhibitions.

Shortlisted nominees:

• In it Together – The Joint Enterprise Podcast, Ear Worm Productions in collaboration with the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies and JENGbA
• Penned Up, The Hal Company and Synergy Theatre
• Runner-Up: Woodhill, LUNG Theatre

• WINNER: We Roar, Faye Claridge

Judges:

• Michelle Bonnard is an actress, writer and director known for Unforgotten, House of the Dragon and Law & Order: UK. She is Joint Head of Screen, Audio and Innovation at LAMDA and has developed original TV projects for Motive Pictures, Warp Films, Other Productions and Working Title.
• Jon Holloway is a photographer and videographer with over 15 years’ experience creating portraits, events, campaigns and long-form projects. He has also managed large-scale productions, including a £2.2 million LED virtual production and motion capture integration for a London drama school.
• Tobi Bakare is an actor known for Death in Paradise, Kingsman: The Secret Service and The Golden Circle. Trained at Identity Drama School, he champions representation in British film and TV and founded Wrought Artisan, a 1-to-1 actor coaching company.
• Keir Monteith KC is a part-time Criminal Court Judge, Honorary Professor of Law at the University of Manchester and leading criminal barrister. He acted for Ade Adedeji in the historic Manchester 10 appeal and is a founding member of Art Not Evidence. Keir is also a SHiFT trustee, a member of the JUSTICE Council, and jointly authored the report Racial Bias and the Bench.

This award celebrates a powerful documentary or film (short or feature) that has illuminated key issues in the criminal justice system and inspired change.

Shortlisted nominees:

• The Impact of Long-Term Imprisonment, Prisoners Abroad
• Limbo, Imogen Harrison and SAFE!
• Runner-Up: The Wrong Man: 17 Years Behind Bars, Two Step Films

• WINNER: Holloway, Daisy-May Hudson, Sophie Compton, Polly Creed, Alice Hughes

Judges:

• Ian Priest is CEO of the charity Onwards & Upwards, which trains, mentors and employs prison leavers. With over 40 years in advertising, he co-founded VCCP, served as President of the IPA in 2013, and previously held senior roles at IMP and Campaign’s ad agency of the 90s.
• Dr Jon Robins is a journalist and lecturer in criminology at Brighton University. After a 25-year career reporting on justice issues, he focuses on miscarriages of justice, prisoners’ rights and access to legal aid, and serves as special adviser to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Miscarriages of Justice. He is also editor and founder of Justice Gap.
• Theo Young-Smith is a producer at Goalhanger Podcasts and The Sound Bank, best known for producing The Rest Is History, the UK’s top-ranked history podcast. Theo previously worked as Creative Strategist at Meet & Jam.  

This award showcases groundbreaking research that has advanced knowledge and led to/influenced policy or practice change in the criminal justice space.

Shortlisted nominees:

• Effective Women’s Centres Partnership
• Professor Layla Skinns, University of Sheffield
• Runner-Up: Suffering for Justice research project, Victim Support

• WINNER: The Lost Mothers Project, University of Hertfordshire

Judges:

• Professor Shadd Maruna is Head of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology at the University of Liverpool and Past President of the American Society of Criminology (2022–2024). He has previously worked at Cambridge, Queen’s University Belfast and Rutgers University, and is author of Making Good, recognised as an Outstanding Contribution to Criminology.
• Dr Ed Schreeche-Powell is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Greenwich and Programme Leader for the BSc Criminology and Criminal Psychology. Drawing on his own experience of imprisonment, he researches peer-led interventions in prisons and has published widely on penal power, prisoner experiences, and lived experience methodologies.
• Dr Morwenna Bennallick is Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Westminster and Chair of PLAN. She completed her PhD at Royal Holloway, University of London, and previously set up networks linking universities and prisons while working as Senior Research and Policy Officer at Prisoners’ Education Trust.