Gendering police custody

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In 2018, a team of researchers from the Universities of Sheffield, Warwick and Cardiff came together to explore their shared interests in police custody/power/dignity (Dr Layla Skinns); detainee treatment/rights (Prof Jackie Hodgson); gender/ criminal justice (Prof Vanessa Munro), vulnerability/Welsh criminal justice (Dr. Roxanna Dehaghani), police custody/criminal justice statistics (Dr Angela Sorsby); campaigning for women detainee dignity (Katie Kempen/Sherry Ralph, CEO of the Independent Custody Visitors Association (ICVA)).

This led to a small-scale scoping study of women detainees’ experiences of police custody carried out by the research team in 2018. Brief surveys were administered by Independent Custody Visitors with 26 women detainees in 5 police force areas and interviews were conducted with 5 Independent Custody Visitor Scheme Managers. A key finding was that police practitioners were reluctant to recognise gender as a significant feature of the detainee experience, preferring instead to recognise the “individual needs” of all detainees. In addition, the scoping research showed that male-dominated custody blocks created challenges for staff, for example, when dealing with women detainees who may also be victims of male violence or exploitation, some of whom may prefer to be dealt with by female staff. Findings from this scoping study were presented at the National Custody Forum in May 2019.

This scoping research helped identify some potentially critical elements of women detainees’ lived experiences of police custody. These included the need to consider the potential vulnerabilities and specific needs of female detainees (e.g. also as victims), including for dignity in their interactions with police custody staff, in the context of a largely white and male space. Subsequent examination of the existing literature pointed to the importance of also considering race/ethnicity/intersectionality, recognising that white women’s experiences of police custody may differ from those of black women, for example.

This scoping research will hopefully be the basis for future collaborative research projects.