Pathways Education Project: Our Initial Observations On The Times Crime and Justice Commission Report

Reform Must Focus On Prevention

A Welcome Spotlight – What the Report Gets Right

The Times Crime and Justice Commission report shines a necessary spotlight on the cracks — and crises — within our justice system.  The recognition that reform is not only overdue, but essential, is welcomed.  The Commission’s call for a more connected, evidence-led, and rehabilitative system, aligns with much of what frontline practitioners have been saying for years.

The rejection of outdated "tough on crime" slogans is particularly welcome. We also welcome the focus on reducing offending and reoffending.  Recommendations which hopefully course correct what has long been an overstretched and reactive justice system.

The Commission has taken on a mammoth task: to investigate and reform the system.  Its efforts to approach justice as an interconnected system — rather than via police, courts, prisons, or probation in isolation — is a step in the right direction.

From a frontline perspective, many of the Commission’s findings ring true. But as with all reports, the solutions must move beyond analysis – to building the capacity for real change.

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Breaking the Cycle of Offending/Reoffending Before It Starts

Education, poverty, substance abuse, peer pressure, mental health, and family conditions all play a role in shaping outcomes.  Consequently, when someone appears before a magistrate or judge, they’ve often been failed by the systems tasked with supporting them.

We see this in the young person who has been excluded from mainstream school and is now being groomed by older peers.  We see it in the parent who, having grown up in care, is now navigating poverty and raising a teenager at risk.

We also see it in custodial sentences which do more harm than good.  The trauma of prison, combined with a lack of post-release support and/or rehabilitative job opportunities, lead many to return to old patterns.  For some, especially those with complex needs, prison becomes a revolving door.

The report mentions the staggering cost of reoffending: over £23 billion a year. Keeping someone in prison is reported to cost the taxpayer over £50,000 a year.  What seems rarely acknowledged is that investing a fraction of this into early intervention/prevention, would not only reduce reoffending but stop many offences from ever occurring.

One of the report’s most urgent findings is the link between persistent reoffending and lack of rehabilitation. Reoffending makes up 80% of all crime.  Traced backwards, what this uncovers, is evidence of early life adversity, unmet needs, and the systemic failing of individuals who needed help/preventative intervention - long before coming in contact with the justice system.

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Prevention Should Not Be An Afterthought – But the Foundation

Effective prevention requires early intervention work with young people at risk of being exploited, disengaged from education, or living with unaddressed trauma.  This requires increased cross sector cooperation. Local partnerships that bring police, teachers, youth workers, community organisations, families, and local authorities together before issues escalate.

It will mean supporting parents/families who are overwhelmed, isolated, and unsure where to turn - before crisis hits. A school referral for a child on the brink of exclusion, or a parent seeking help, are crucial moments at which, with the right intervention, transformation is possible. Too often, these moments are missed.

The most important shift required in our approach to criminal justice reform, may be to stop seeing prevention as a side note. It must be the starting point. Early help should be a right, not a luxury.

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Conclusion - From Slogans to Substance:

Pathways work directly with those affected: children and families navigating complex lives, often long before they ever encounter the justice system, and ex-offenders navigating rehabilitation. What we see reinforces our belief that — if we’re serious about reducing crime, we need to be tougher on the causes of crime.  There needs to be a focus on prevention.

While the report lays out a clear roadmap, it places the emphasis too heavily on system modernisation and policing tactics.  However, true reform requires deeper shifts — in values, in investment priorities, in who is invited to shape the response – how, and why.  

Communities most affected by crime, particularly those with first-hand experience, must be active participants in guiding and implementing reforms, rather than passive recipients.

Prevention takes time. It's not a single session or a headline intervention. It is relational, continuous, and deeply human.

The Times Commission Report gives us a roadmap.  But the destination must be one where fewer people enter the justice system.  Where preventative and/or rehabilitative support is visible, reachable, and dignified. Where prevention isn’t an afterthought — but the first step in shifting the approach away from reacting to harm, to avoiding it.

At Pathways Education Project, we are ready to help shape a future where justice starts not in courtrooms, but in communities.

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