BUSY in the Justice Sector

The BUSY Group is an experienced provider of in-prison and post-custody services. We use internationally recognised behaviour change approaches, underpinned by trauma-informed practice, to help users of our services to shape positive futures and to minimise reoffending.

We understand that positive engagement is key to changing mindsets and creating relationships of trust. That’s why our work in the Justice sector is based on the principle that what you did does not define who you are.

Our experience with Justice sector services include:

  • Delivering in-prison information and training services for offenders, preparing individuals for release and re-entry into the community and the employment market.
  • Delivery of the Workforce Australia Ex-Offender Program to over 8,000 Australian clients since 2022.
  • Working with young people at risk of offending and their families to resolve family conflict, modify aggressive behaviours and reduce the likelihood of offending or recidivism.


Our not-for-profit status together with our range of specialisms -across justice, employment, education, family support and skills – makes The BUSY Group an ideal partner of choice to work with commissioners, to lead consortia and supply chains, and to collaborate with other providers on designing solutions and developing evidence-based propositions that will reduce the risks of offending.

Our services

In-prison and post-custody

Youth diversion

Family support

Talk to us

In-prison and post-custody services

The BUSY Group provides a range of services for people with lived experience of the justice system. These include Ex-Offender Specialist Services, providing individualised training, mentoring and support as part of the Australian Government’s Workforce Australia program, and in-prison services for offenders preparing for release.

Over a quarter of the adults we support through our custody and post-custody services have a mental health condition, and our direct delivery experience leads us to estimate that around 75% of our customers have experience of primary or secondary mental health conditions. That knowledge gives us an in-depth understanding of the unique and complex needs of this cohort.

Central to this understanding is our use of a trauma-informed approach:

  • Training staff in trauma-informed principles and empirically supported trauma-informed practices.
  • Establishing clear boundaries of practice and competence for each service we deliver.
  • Recognising that many individuals we support in these programmes have been victims of crime and trauma themselves, often as part of intergenerational trauma.


Our in-prison and post-custody services prioritise well-informed action reflecting the stages of change outlined in the Transtheoretical Model of Behaviour Change. This ensures that our communication method and language is matched to the individual’s current readiness for behaviour change.

A person is sitting cross-legged on the floor in a modern office space, surrounded by cardboard boxes and papers. They are smiling while using a label maker, with a laptop open nearby and a calculator on the floor. With support by The BUSY Group, their task seems organised and efficient.

In the UK

In the UK, the BUSY Group family of organisations provide specialist mental health and wellbeing support for a range of service users including ex-offenders as part of both DWP and regionally commissioned programmes, including Restart and the Work and Health Programme. Our delivery partners include Reed in Partnership, Shaw Trust, Jobs 22, Seetec Pluss and Ingeus.

We also provide intensive and personalised support for individuals, as part of DWP’s Access to Work Mental Health programme, including a significant number of ex-offenders who are at risk of falling out of work.

A group of four individuals is seated around a table in a light-filled room. One person is holding a notepad, while the others are smiling and engaged in conversation. Sunlight streams through large windows in the background, with support by The BUSY Group.

Youth diversion

The BUSY Group deliver Step Up, an internationally recognised youth intervention program designed to help young people at risk of offending to reduce violent and aggressive behaviours.

The BUSY Group’s Step Up Program is designed for young people aged 11 to 17 who:

  • Have a history of violent or aggressive behaviour towards a family member or intimate partner.
  • Are willing, along with their parents or carers, to engage with the program to address and modify their behaviour.


Step Up is a curriculum-based intervention in which young people learn and practice non-violent, respectful ways of communicating and resolving conflict with those they have been abusive towards.

Delivered by trained social workers and youth workers, the Step Up programme adopts a skills-based approach using cognitive behavioural therapy and motivational interviewing techniques partnered with restorative practice to divert young people from violent and abusive behaviours.

A woman wearing a pink top and glasses is showing a clipboard to a young man in a grey shirt. They are seated in a classroom. The young man appears attentive, leaning forward with his hand on his face for support, with help and support by The BUSY Group.

Family services

The BUSY Group provides family support in Australia to address youth recidivism and reduce violence in the home, supporting parents and carers as part of the Step Up programme as a way of fostering safety and stability within families and the wider community.

BUSY’s programme has been designed to:

  • Increase the capacity of parents or guardians to identify and manage challenging behaviours;
  • Support parents or guardians to maintain safety and stability in the home and the community.
Two individuals are seated on a sofa: an adult and a teenager with headphones resting around his neck. They are having a conversation with another person, who is holding a clipboard and is comfortably seated in an armchair nearby. A glass of water and a plant adorn the table. This interaction is facilitated by The BUSY Group.

Talk to us

Are you looking to work in partnership with a leading not-for-profit organisation, experienced in the Justice sector around Youth Diversion, In-prison and post-custody support, Employment, or Family Support services?

Whether you are a commissioner, a potential partnering organisation, a devolved administration or a local authority, we’d love to hear from you!

Contact us for a chat and let’s see what we can achieve together.

Email avril.bankesfay@thebusygroup.org.uk  or mark.harrison@thebusygroup.org.uk  or call 07356 121934