Women's experiences of being in secure forensic inpatient services.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Far from home: Women's experiences of being in secure forensic inpatient services.
IRAS ID
282544
Contact name
Julia Wane
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
School of Psychology, Bangor University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
2020-16762, Bangor University Ethical and Governance Approval
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 0 days
Research summary
The aim of the current study is to explore women's experiences of being in secure forensic inpatient services. Women may reside in these services for a number of reasons including being deemed a risk to themselves or to others, following conviction for an offence and detained for treatment of their mental health difficulties, or being transferred from prison following a deterioration in their mental health. There are three levels of secure forensic services: low, medium and high. In addition, there are community rehabilitation inpatient services which women may reside in as part of their step-down progression towards community reintegration. There are only ten NHS beds in secure services commissioned for women across Wales and there are no NHS beds at any level of security for women within Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) in North Wales. Therefore, all women from North Wales are sent out-of-area, either to South Wales, or across the border into England. The study will interview women who are either currently in out-of-area secure inpatient services, or women who have previously been in such services and have been repatriated to North Wales. The interviews will provide an opportunity for exploration of the women's experiences of being in out-of-area placements, including: the impact on maintaining contact with their families and community of origin; the impact on maintaining relationships with care teams in the Health Board; and the impact on community reintegration when the women are repatriated. It is also anticipated that there may be opportunity to explore the experiences of women who are first-language Welsh speakers, who reside in services in England.
REC name
Wales REC 5
REC reference
20/WA/0227
Date of REC Opinion
25 Aug 2020
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion