Shona Minson Explores Maternal Sentencing in BBC Radio 3 Essay for New Generation Thinkers

Shona Minson, research associate at the Centre for Criminology and BBC/AHRC New Generation Thinker, recently recorded an essay ‘Mothers on trial’ for BBC Radio 3 as part of the New Generation Thinkers programme. Having researched the sentencing of women and written a book ‘Maternal Sentencing and the Rights of the Child’, Shona has seen the effect on women and their children when a mother is sentenced to prison for committing a crime. Her essay considers the 1989 Children Act and what she sees as contradictory approaches to motherhood in British law. 

Shona has a particular interest in sentencing, the purpose of punishment, and the rights of children impacted by their parents’ involvement with the criminal justice system. Her work, funded by the ESRC and the British Academy, has influenced the development of policy and practice on the sentencing of primary carers in the UK and internationally. She has also been appointed to the newly created government advisory body, the Women’s Justice Board. 
 
Listen to the essay now