Study into young offenders’ lands company accolade (From York Press)

Study into young offenders’ lands company accolade

1:33pm Wednesday 10th December 2008 in Search

QA, the York-based research company, is celebrating after winning a national award for its work with young offenders.

Regarded as the Oscars of the research industry, the annual Market Research Society (MRS) Awards recognise excellence, effectiveness and innovation.

QA received the MRS Award For Public Policy/Social Research at the awards ceremony at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel.

The honour was given for QA’s work with young offenders and the criminal justice system – research conducted on behalf of The Prince’s Trust and government agencies.

QA’s goal was to establish how offenders could break the so-called “cycle of offending”.

Led by Angela Browne, of QA, the research began in 2006 when young offenders attended discussion groups to talk about their experiences of the criminal justice system.

The research was unveiled at a young people’s summit hosted by Prince Charles at Clarence House. This meeting was the platform for a number of initiatives dedicated to reducing youth offending levels.

QA was then asked to carry out extra research for a government taskforce into criminal justice.

This research asked former and current offenders whether measures, such as giving families greater involvement in sentencing and resettlement activities, could actually cut reoffending rates and improve life chances.

Launched in London in June, the Unlocking Potential report is expected to have a major impact on criminal justice policies over the next decade.

The judging panel decided QA’s submission best demonstrated “the positive impact of research on decision-making within the public policy or social arena.”

Richard Bryan, QA Research managing director, said: “Our work with young people is inspiring policy makers to think of new ways to help them. We hope this continues into the future.”