Criminal justice

Our research assesses the performance of criminal justice services and how to improve them.

Criminal justice is a key priority for any government. Our research, events and commentary analyse changes to funding and demand for criminal justice, and the impact of government policies on its performance and on the workforce that delivers it.

We assess how performance has changed over time, model the future demand facing the criminal justice sector and explain how the system operates.

14 MAR 2025 Comment

Focusing on education and training in prisons could save money in the long term

12 NOV 2024 Comment

Independent review of sentencing: How to turn manifesto promises into tangible results

10 SEP 2024 Comment

Overflowing prisons are just one aspect of deep dysfunction across our failing criminal justice system

Inside England and Wales's prisons crisis: Performance Tracker Local

More work and education and increasing access to open prisons could turn around over a decade of strikingly poor prison performance in England and Wales.

Read our report

An aerial view of HMP Manchester, Strangeways Prison, Manchester

07 MAR 2025 Analysis paper

The criminal justice system: Is there a way to fix it?

Lord Timpson OBE, Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, joined us at our public services conference to discuss the challenges in the criminal justice system.

Watch the event