ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the formulation process and describes recent work in which it is being subject to close scrutiny. Formulation has been placed at the heart of the psychologically informed management of high-risk personality disordered offenders in prisons and probation services in England and Wales. The chapter describes in detail the work ongoing to support the development of good practice in formulation, which is as relevant to prison officers and probation staff as it is to mental health practitioners and their clients. It also discusses the purpose of formulation in forensic services and a description of what formulations could look like and why. The formulation process allows the opportunity to organize often quite disparate information about a client in order to expose the key elements of the case. Formulation plays a key role in the work of forensic services, that is, prisons, secure psychiatric hospitals, and community services for offenders, and has done for many years.
