ABSTRACT
The female prisoners who agreed to participate in the study provided a sample which was self-selecting, and were reporting what they recalled of their use of programmes and services, and how effective they perceived these to be. While some caution must be exercised in the generalisation of such findings, the data reported by the participants are broadly reflective of the overall female prison population, their pathways into offending and recidivism. The complex life courses that women involved with the justice system experience was evident in this study. The women in this study often benefitted from programmes but believed there needed to be more relevant prison-based support programmes which helped them learn different strategies for managing the life problems that influenced their offending. Many of the women talked about issues with transition from prison to community – from a situation where everything was decided for them to a situation with so many decisions and temptations.
