Over the past decade, there has been growing recognition across research, policy, and practice that a significant proportion of people in prison are neurodivergent. Conditions such as ADHD, autism, learning disabilities, and traumatic brain injury are now widely understood to be over-represented within the prison population (Greater support for neurodivergent offenders in bid to cut crime - GOV.UK; Neurodiversity in the criminal justice system | Catch22; .Understanding and supporting the needs of neurodivergent people in prisons is a human rights issue - Penal Reform International). At the same time, policy initiatives such as the Ministry of Justice’s Neurodiversity Action Plan have sought to improve identification and awareness within custodial settings (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/neurodiversity-action-plan-hmpps). Yet while these developments represent important progress, they also raise a critical question: once someone is identified as having a neurodisability in prison, what happens next?
This question sits at the heart of a new research project that I will be leading at the University of Sheffield, funded through the NIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR). The project, Navigating Neurodisability Through the Prison Gates, explores how social care systems respond to people who are identified with neurodisabilities during imprisonment, and how support continues (or too often fails to continue) when individuals transition back into the community.
The research sits within the broader work of CIRCLE (the Centre for International Research on Care, Labour and Equalities) and the Centre for Care at Sheffield, both of which are committed to strengthening the evidence base for adult social care and ensuring that research engages with the real-world complexities of care systems. Within this context, the project speaks directly to the SSCR’s wider mission: improving how social care works in practice by generating evidence that reflects the lived realities of people navigating services and the professionals working within them.
Why this research matters
A growing body of evidence demonstrates that neurodisabilities are highly prevalent within the criminal justice system. Estimates suggest that around one in four people in prison meet criteria for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), based on meta-analytic findings (Young et al., 2015). Autism spectrum conditions are also overrepresented, with prevalence estimates varying across studies but consistently exceeding those found in the general population (Collins et al., 2022). In addition, traumatic brain injury (TBI) is highly prevalent among incarcerated populations, with systematic reviews indicating that approximately half of prisoners may have experienced a TBI (Durand et al., 2017). These figures point to a population whose needs are often complex and intersect with challenges related to health, education, employment, and social cohesion.
For many individuals, the process of screening in prison represents the first time these needs may be formally recognised. Identification can therefore be a significant and potentially transformative moment, it can open up new understandings of past experiences and provide opportunities for support that may previously have been unavailable or overlooked. However, identification alone does not guarantee access to support. Neurodisabilities can affect a wide range of areas that fall squarely within the remit of adult social care, including maintaining relationships, managing daily routines, accessing education or employment, and living safely and independently. Yet the pathways between prison, probation, health services, and local authority social care systems are often fragmented. As a result, individuals may leave prison with newly recognised needs but without clear routes to the support they may be entitled to under the Care Act. This gap between identification and support is one of the central issues the project seeks to explore.
Understanding the prison–community transition
The transition from custody to community is already recognised as a critical and often challenging period for many people leaving prison. During this time individuals must navigate housing, employment, healthcare, and supervision arrangements, often while re-establishing relationships and rebuilding their lives. For people with neurodisabilities, these challenges can be particularly pronounced. Difficulties with memory, executive functioning, communication, or sensory processing may affect how individuals engage with services or understand complex systems. When support structures are unclear or poorly co-ordinated, these challenges can become even more significant.
This research aims to examine how social care needs are recognised and supported across this transition, focusing specifically on the connections between criminal justice systems and adult social care services. By exploring these connections, the project seeks to identify where support pathways work well and where gaps or barriers remain.
A participatory research approach
A central feature of the project is its commitment to participatory research and lived experience involvement. The study will work alongside individuals who have themselves experienced imprisonment and been identified with neurodisabilities. Some will take on the role of co-researchers, receiving training and support to contribute to the research process.
The co-researchers will be employed to work on the study and will help shape the study design, contribute to data collection, and participate in the analysis and interpretation of finding and dissemination. Their involvement is not simply an additional element of the project but an essential part of how the research is conducted. Research on the criminal justice system is often carried out about people rather than with them. This project aims to take a different approach by recognising lived experience as a form of expertise. The co-researchers will be involved in all stages of the study, including interviews with practitioners working across prisons, probation services, adult social care, health services, and voluntary sector organisations. By bringing together these different perspectives, the research will explore how systems currently operate in practice and how professionals navigate the challenges of supporting neurodivergent individuals.
The project will also follow individuals with neurodisabilities over time as they approach release and transition back into the community. This longitudinal element will allow the research to explore not only how support is planned but how it unfolds in practice during the months after release.
Connecting research, policy and practice
One of the strengths of undertaking this project within SSCR and CIRCLE is the opportunity to connect research directly with policy and practice conversations. Both networks bring together researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and organisations working across social care and related sectors. We are also working with Access Social Care and Revolving Doors to explore how research findings can inform practical improvements in how services are designed and delivered.
As the study develops, we will work collaboratively with practitioners and people with lived experience to develop a practical toolkit designed to support professionals working across prison, probation, and adult social care systems. This toolkit will include short learning resources, guidance materials, and accessible information to support both practitioners and individuals navigating social care entitlements. The aim is to translate research insights into resources that can support everyday practice and improve awareness of social care rights and responsibilities across systems.
The importance of lived experience in shaping change
Another important aspect of the project is the role of the lived experience advisory group, which includes individuals who have experienced imprisonment, neurodisability, or both as well as researchers and practitioners. Their perspectives have already shaped the development of the research proposal and will continue to guide the project as it progresses.
This reflects a wider commitment within CIRCLE and the Centre for Care to ensure that research is not only academically rigorous but also socially grounded. Lived experience brings insights that cannot be captured through policy documents or institutional perspectives alone. It helps ensure that research questions remain relevant and that proposed solutions reflect the realities of those navigating complex systems.
Looking ahead
As awareness of neurodisabilities within the criminal justice system continues to grow, the question of how systems respond becomes increasingly important. Identification within prison is an important step forward, but it must be accompanied by meaningful pathways of support that extend beyond prison walls. By examining how social care intersects with criminal justice systems, and by working collaboratively with those who experience and deliver these services, this project aims to contribute to a more joined up understanding of support for those with neurodisabilities. Through the work of SSCR, CIRCLE, and the Centre for Care, we hope the findings from this study will help inform future policy discussions, support practitioners working across complex systems, and ultimately contribute to more inclusive and responsive approaches to care both within prisons and beyond the prison gates.
