Justice
With all UK prisons operating at maximum capacity and key contracts for offender community provision nearing their end, the Justice sector presents a broad range of opportunities to interested organisations.
The urgent need for additional prison spaces means that the new UK government has critical decisions to make about the private sector operation of prisons – whether this be the re-procurement of the existing PFI prisons, or future new build prisons.
Early prisoner release and the use of community punishment rather than short custodial sentences is driving the requirement for more intervention delivery in the community at a time when future requirements for these services is being considered. Although these decisions, and inevitable policy shifts, will undoubtedly bring challenges, experienced providers of all sizes, backgrounds and sectors will be presented with new opportunities to develop and grow their services.
Our track record
Over the last five years we have supported organisations from a range of sectors to secure over £750m of justice sector contracts, including both custodial and community provision. This includes multiple contracts in excess of £100m, including private sector prison tenders, CFO Evolution (support for offenders in custody and community), a range of prison education contracts (including the youth estate and in devolved areas), and digital infrastructure in prisons and community accommodation services.
Our work has extended across the UK, designing services and preparing tenders for Ministry of Justice, HMPPS Wales and the Scottish Prison Service opportunities.
Additionally, we have assisted with the development of a series of complex joint venture and partnership bids, where organisations have come together to blend their expertise to meet complex commissioner requirements.
Our approach
The Justice sector presents a diverse range of opportunities to organisations working to improve prisoner outcomes. Through direct experience, we know that different organisations play very different roles in the offender journey and supporting justice services. We see our role as understanding what an individual organisation has to offer, the impact it can deliver in this challenging space, and then effectively communicating this to commissioners.
Our experience includes working with individual providers over several years to develop their justice sector strategy, designing specific service offers and submitting bids over a long period - as well as contract specific bid support, working as part of a shorter timebound project to develop a solution and capture it within a tender.
“The Team at 50 Degrees has been a great partner for us across multiple bids and tenders in the Justice and Education sectors. They understand bidding well, immerse themselves to understand our business and build strong relationships with our team. Industrious, smart, professional, supportive and friendly – really pleased with the contribution they have made to us securing winning bids.”
Colin Geering, Group Director of Business Development, LTE Group
Helen Holland: Managing Consultant
“The next six months for services providers in the justice sector will be both challenging and interesting. Major decisions are likely to be made over the summer and in the early Autumn which are likely to shape future commissioning over the next three to four years.
“The pressure on prisons means that both custodial and community support for offenders will be under scrutiny and without any tangible budget increases, the challenge to commissioners will be to look for new services that offer both results and value for taxpayers. But alongside this, a new government will be conscious of the social and economic costs of not trying to address the big justice problems. Too many prisoners go back to prison where individual barriers are unaddressed or new problems are acquired. Most offenders, whether in prison or the community, don’t progress into employment.
“New solutions are needed and service providers need to be ready to put forward their views and pursue the commissioning opportunities that will inevitably arise.”
If you’re interested in learning more, we’d love to talk to you about how 50 Degrees can support your organisation. Please use the link above to send us an email and we’ll get right back to you.