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	On November 30, 2012, there were 122 females in the women&#39;s prison in Dublin &ndash; the Dochas Centre. On that same day there were 3,588 men in the male prisons throughout the State. The average cost of an available staffed prison space for the calendar year 2012 was &euro;65,404. Twenty years ago in the 1992 Annual Report on Prisons, the number of women in custody on January 1, 1992, was 25.</h2>
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	The recently completed research by the Association for Criminal Justice Research and Development on the needs of women prisoners is a timely reminder of a challenge that as a society we should be able to tackle and control, if not overcome.</p>
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	Entitled &#39;Tracking the Needs and Service Provision for Women Ex- Prisoners&#39;, it is the work of Rosemarie McHugh from the research proposal created by Sarah Sheridan. It is a study that takes a snapshot of the lives of 16 women who were interviewed while in the Dochas Centre in Dublin.</p>
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	These women were serving short sentences &ndash; for some, such short sentences had been served on previous visits. Nine of the 16 women had in excess of 30 criminal charges and seven had been incarcerated more than 10 times, and there were three who had been incarcerated more that 20 times.</p>
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	It is likely that a number of such recidivists can be found in the rest of the female prison population too &ndash; but let&#39;s not give up hope and throw away the key just yet.</p>
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	Remember &ndash; 122 women on November 30, 2012, and 2,560 for the year 2012. Are those numbers so insurmountable that we should feel powerless to effect change?</p>
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	The McHugh study confirms it is that age-old combination of poor educational attainment, poverty and a dash of substance abuse that makes up much of the prison population. There are other ingredients that can be added to the mix to complete the picture &ndash; mental health issues, sexual and physical abuse particularly for women, homelessness and social isolation.</p>
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	For many of the women interviewed, they felt that prison had helped them at some stage.</p>
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	The main benefits of incarceration described by these women were removing them from the cycle of substance abuse; it also provided them with opportunities to access services and support that they may not otherwise have secured; there was significant positive feedback on education and other programmes within the prison; it came as a welcome relief after the situations they had found themselves in immediately prior to arrest.</p>
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		The McHugh Report uses the voices of the women involved in the interviews to enliven what could be dull statistical findings.</p>
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		Anna, who is 26 years old, says: &quot;I&#39;m in a cycle. Like, I hate coming in here at first but, like, I was in here for three months just that time; before that I was getting on grand, I was in school and all. I felt a lot healthier in meself.&quot;</p>
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		The recommendations of the report include alternatives to custody to allow a relatively small group of individuals to address issues in the community. For those who are imprisoned, the report emphasises the need to plan their reintegration.</p>
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		Accommodation on leaving custody &ndash; something more than emergency hostels &ndash; is urgently required. Residential services for drug rehabilitation need to be expanded. The need to rebuild relationships with children for the women who are mothers is crucial, while remaining mindful of the best interests of the children. Education and employment to occupy time and build self-esteem must be part of a move away from crime.</p>
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		Many of the report&#39;s recommendations apply equally to male prisoners. However, as a starting point, working with women should be feasible. Most of them are in for non-violent offending. Many have children, which represents a firm link with the wider community. Addictions can only really be tackled within the community as opposed to the artificial environment of a custodial setting.</p>
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		Crimes committed by women have victims as much as crimes carried out by males. That can&#39;t be overlooked when considering a new way of dealing with women offenders but restorative and reparative justice programmes can offer a real way of confronting some of the consequences of crime on the individuals involved.</p>
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		Judges clearly have a role in the numbers of women in our prisons but the lack of alternatives can tie their hands. The consequences of limited drug rehabilitation provision, increasing challenges in relation to housing and social provision, along with repeat offending, are played out daily in courtrooms.</p>
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		Despite the more than five-fold increase in the number of women in prison over the last 20 years on a given day, we are still dealing with workable numbers. How about a radical suggestion &ndash; take some of the &euro;65,404 cost per prison space and apply that to services for that prison occupant in the community.</p>
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		Her Hon Ms Mary Ellen Ring is a judge of the Circuit Court</p>
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	<a href="http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/judge-mary-ellen-ring-locking-up-women-offenders-is-not-always-best-solution-29458088.html">http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/judge-mary-ellen-ring-locking-up-women-offenders-is-not-always-best-solution-29458088.html</a></p>
