People in prison are disproportionately affected by neurodivergence , and many of them struggle to engage with or be reached by existing pathways . That ’ s why our team has been at the forefront of developing an innovative pathway for neurodivergent people to access support in prison settings . By making our services in prisons more accessible to neurodivergent people , they will feel more able to engage and to progress with their recovery .

As we enter a new phase of this project , we wanted to share the learnings we ’ ve gathered so far , and explore how these can create a road map for breaking down barriers and encouraging more people into life-changing support .

A NEW APPROACH A 2021 evidence review into neurodiversity in the criminal justice system , led by HM Inspectorate of Prisons , suggested that more than 50 per cent of people in adult prisons had a neurodivergent condition . Since then , anecdotal estimates among professionals supporting neurodivergent prisoners believe this is more likely to be 70-80 per cent . This is compared to the 15-20 per cent of neurodivergent people living in the community .

Typically , neurodivergent service users have at some point interacted with the police and many get caught in a cycle of addiction , imprisonment and reoffending . In the south west this has led to a suite of innovative NHS commissioned initiatives aimed at improving health and justice outcomes for neurodivergent people .

In partnership with NHS England South West Region and Oxleas NHS Trust , Change Grow Live ’ s south west prisons team are proud to be leading

a 12-month neurodiversity service redesign project to improve drug and alcohol access and support for neurodivergent people in ten prisons across the region . The project prioritises the needs of neurodivergent people , but also embraces principles of universal design that will help us to improve service accessibility on a wider scale .

The project builds on Change Grow Live ’ s organisation-wide commitment and celebration of neurodivergent service users , staff and volunteers . Recent investments include the development and implementation of a specialist ADHD diagnostic assessment pathway in Nottinghamshire for adults using substances within the criminal justice system .

At an organisational level , Change Grow Live has invested in building workforce capability to better understand and support neurodivergent people . This includes staff training , skill-share workshops and a dedicated neurodiversity staff /

volunteer intranet page to share resources , personal stories and celebrate diversity .

CORE COMMITMENT At our south west prisons service , we ’ re now making sure this commitment is a core part of our approach . We ’ re being supported in this project by our partner Genius Within , a neurodiversity-led organisation with experience of working across the criminal justice system . The first phase of the project involved a comprehensive audit of key service delivery elements to identify barriers to access . This included assessments , recovery / clinical interventions , and Through the Gate processes and support for people leaving prison .

Through focus groups facilitated across four prisons , service users and staff spoke about the challenges they experience in accessing and delivering services . Service users told us they experienced stigma because of their substance use , and staff wanted more training

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18 • DRINK AND DRUGS NEWS • APRIL 2024

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