2025 was a busy year in justice policy. In this episode, Penelope and Rob reflect on the reforms, debates and missed opportunities that shaped the past year then look ahead to how current policy work and political priorities are likely to influence the justice landscape in 2026. We talk prisons, courts, criminal records and more.

Further Resources

Read David Gauke's Independent Sentencing Review, part 1: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67c583a868a61757838d2196/independent-sentencing-review-part-1-report.pdf

Read David Gauke's Independent Sentencing Review, part 2: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/682d8d995ba51be7c0f45371/independent-sentencing-review-report-part_2.pdf

Read the Leveson Independent Review of the Criminal Courts: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/686be85d81dd8f70f5de3c1f/35.49_MOJ_Ind_Review_Criminal_Courts_v8b_FINAL_WEB.pdf

Transform Justice

Twitter: ⁠⁠@TransformJust1⁠

⁠⁠⁠BlueSky: ⁠⁠@transformjustice.bsky.social⁠⁠

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

Sharing a cell built for one, fearing for your safety, and freezing through the winter—are these really the right conditions for rehabilitation? In this episode, our hosts are joined by Andi Brierley, Senior Lecturer at Leeds Trinity University, and Andrea Coomber, CEO of the Howard League. They discuss what prison life looks like today, whether our prisons doing more harm than good, and what people truly need to move away from offending. Spoiler: it’s not being locked in a cell for 22 hours a day.

Andi Brierley

Find Andi's memoir here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Your-Honour-Can-Tell-Story/dp/1909976644

Andrea Coomber

Read more about The Howard League's concerns: https://howardleague.org/why-are-prisons-overcrowded/

Further Resources

Read the Justice Select Committee report: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/8678/rehabilitation-and-resettlement-ending-the-cycle-of-reoffending/

Read host Rob's latest podcast on prison population projections: https://reformingprisons.blogspot.com/2025/12/courting-trouble.html

Transform Justice

Twitter: ⁠@TransformJust1

⁠BlueSky: ⁠@transformjustice.bsky.social⁠

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

What happens when the government turns protest into a crime? New laws aren’t just tightening the rules, they’re redefining who gets to speak out and even who has the right to a defence in court. With thousands of protesters waiting to hear if they’ll be charged with a crime, the message seems clear: dissent now comes at a cost.

In this episode, Penelope is joined by Sarah Lunnon, an organiser with Just Stop Oil, and Audrey Mogan, a criminal barrister who has defended protesters in court. Together, they unpack how these new laws are being applied in practice and the impact on direct action groups, individual rights, and the future of protest.

Audrey Mogan @acmogan

Find out more about Audrey's work at Garden Chambers here: https://gardencourtchambers.co.uk/barrister/audrey-cherryl-mogan/

Sarah Lunnon @slunnon

Further resources

Read the parliamentary briefing on police powers regarding protest: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn05013/

Transform Justice

Twitter: @TransformJust1
BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social
Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

The sentence of imprisonment for public protection was outlawed in 2012, but more than 1,000 people are still serving indefinite sentences in prison. Andrew Morris, former IPP prisoner, and Matthew Parris, journalist, join us to discuss why people are still being held under IPP, what impact this sentence has on those who receive it, and what must be done to rid us of the legacy of IPP once and for all.

Andrew Morris

Read the Howard League's expert recommendations on ending the detention of IPP prisoners: https://howardleague.org/publications/ending-the-detention-of-people-on-ipp-sentences/

Matthew Parris

Read Matthew's work here: https://www.thetimes.com/profile/matthew-parris

Further resources

Read the parliamentary briefing on IPP sentences: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn06086/

Transform Justice

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: @TransformJust1

BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

Women are the fastest-growing prison population globally, but most offend to survive or to protect their children. In this episode, our hosts are joined by Dr Sarah Waite, Leeds Beckett University, and Lucy Campbell, founder of Flip of the Coin CIC, to discuss how the prison system is failing women and what could be done to improve how society responds when women are in crisis.

Dr Sarah Waite

Find our more about Sarah's work and see her latest publications here: https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/staff/dr-sarah-waite/

Lucy Campbell

Learn more about Lucy's arts organisation here: https://www.flipofthecoin.scot/

Further resources

Learn more about problem-solving courts for women: https://clinks.org/publication/problem-solving-courts-women

Transform Justice

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: @TransformJust1

BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

Please note that this episode discusses suicide and self harm.

Should someone with schizophrenia stand trial? Can they be held responsible for their actions if their behaviour isn't rooted in reality?

Our hosts are joined by Dr Bradley Hillier, forensic psychiatrist, and Rhona Friedman, solicitor, to discuss how people with serious mental illnesses are treated in the justice system; the legal questions surrounding their participation at court; and the role of forensic hospitals.

Dr Bradley Hillier

Find out more about Bradley here: https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/doctors/roles-doctors/psychiatry/forensic-psychiatry/real-life-story-dr-brad-hillier

Rhona Friedman

Find out more about Rhona's innovative firm Commons Legal here: https://www.commons.legal/

Transform Justice

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: @TransformJust1

BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

Ten years ago, the Single Justice Procedure (SJP) was introduced to make the magistrates’ courts more efficient. Designed to handle minor offences swiftly and cheaply, it allows cases to be decided by a single magistrate behind closed doors, often without the defendant’s knowledge or participation. Guilty pleas and mitigation can be submitted online, and most cases are processed in weeks rather than months. But at what cost?

In this episode, host Penelope Gibbs is in the hot seat alongside barrister Kirsty Brimelow KC to discuss how the SJP works and what it means for people facing charges.

Penelope Gibbs @PenelopeGibbs2

Read Penelope's report on the Single Justice Procedure here: http://bit.ly/4o5bOjG

Kirsty Brimelow KC @Kirsty_Brimelow

Find out more about Kirsty's work here: https://www.doughtystreet.co.uk/barristers/kirsty-brimelow-kc

Transform Justice

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: @TransformJust1

BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.

Custody is supposed to be used as a last resort when a child gets in trouble. But that's not always the case. In this episode, our hosts are joined by Dr Anne-Marie Day, youth justice researcher at Manchester Metropolitan University, and Dr Laura Janes KC (Hon), solicitor. They discuss why children are detained, how they are treated in custody, and what the experience of imprisonment is like for a child.

Dr Anne-Marie Day

Read more about Anne-Marie's work here: https://www.mmu.ac.uk/staff/profile/dr-anne-marie-day#t-tabs_staff_profile-3

Dr Laura Janes KC (Hon)

Find out more about Laura's work here: https://laurakjanes.co.uk/

Transform Justice

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

BlueSky: @transformjustice.bsky.social

Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠policy@transformjustice.org.uk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Transform Justice podcast is hosted by Penelope Gibbs and Rob Allen and produced and edited by Alexandra Kimmons.