Jean Corston, Baroness Corston
Encyclopedia
Jean Ann Corston, Baroness Corston, PC
(born 5 May 1942) is a British Labour
politician.
) on Stiby Road in Yeovil
and the Somerset College of Arts and Technology
. She worked at the Inland Revenue
. At the London School of Economics
, she gained an LLB
in 1989. From 1989-90, she studied at the Inns of Court School of Law
. She also studied with the Open University
. She became a barrister.
(MP) for Bristol East
from April 1992 to 2005. Until stepping down at the 2005 general election
, she was chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party
, the first woman ever to hold that position.
On 13 May 2005 it was announced that she would be created a life peer
, and on 29 June 2005 she was created Baroness Corston, of St George in the County and City of Bristol.
She was commissioned by the Home Office
, to conduct a report into vulnerable women in the criminal justice system of the United Kingdom, published in March 2007. The report outlines "the need for a distinct radically different, visibly-led, strategic, proportionate, holistic, woman-centred, integrated approach". The report is known as the Corston Report and has largely informed government policy on the matter. Progress and improvements by local probation services, the National Probation Service
, Her Majesty's Prison service and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) are regularly compared to the recommendations in this report.
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
(born 5 May 1942) is a British Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician.
Early life
Jean Ann Parkin went to Yeovil Girls' High School (now the Westfield Community SchoolWestfield Community School, Yeovil
Westfield Community School is a secondary school in Yeovil, Somerset, England.The school, which has specialist Science College status, has 870 students aged between 11 and 16 years. In August 2011, it became an academy...
) on Stiby Road in Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
and the Somerset College of Arts and Technology
Somerset College of Arts and Technology
Somerset College of Arts and Technology ' is a community college based in Taunton, in the county of Somerset, England. It was formed in 1974 after the merger of Somerset College of Art and Taunton Technical College. The college provides further and higher education courses, as well as a variety of...
. She worked at the Inland Revenue
Inland Revenue
The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation tax, petroleum revenue tax and stamp duty...
. At the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, she gained an LLB
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...
in 1989. From 1989-90, she studied at the Inns of Court School of Law
Inns of Court School of Law
The Inns of Court School of Law, often abbreviated to ICSL is a professional legal training institution based in London in Gray's Inn...
. She also studied with the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
. She became a barrister.
Parliamentary career
Corston was Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Bristol East
Bristol East (UK Parliament constituency)
Bristol East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
from April 1992 to 2005. Until stepping down at the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, she was chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party
Parliamentary Labour Party
In UK politics, the Parliamentary Labour Party is the parliamentary party of the Labour Party in Parliament: Labour MPs as a collective body....
, the first woman ever to hold that position.
On 13 May 2005 it was announced that she would be created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
, and on 29 June 2005 she was created Baroness Corston, of St George in the County and City of Bristol.
She was commissioned by the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
, to conduct a report into vulnerable women in the criminal justice system of the United Kingdom, published in March 2007. The report outlines "the need for a distinct radically different, visibly-led, strategic, proportionate, holistic, woman-centred, integrated approach". The report is known as the Corston Report and has largely informed government policy on the matter. Progress and improvements by local probation services, the National Probation Service
National Probation Service
thumb|right|100px|NPS logoThe National Probation Service for England and Wales is a statutory Criminal Justice Service, mainly responsible for the supervision of offenders in the community and the provision of reports to the criminal courts to assist them in their sentencing duties...
, Her Majesty's Prison service and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) are regularly compared to the recommendations in this report.
Personal life
She married Christopher Corston in 1961 with whom she had a son and daughter. Her partner from 1980 until his death in 2009 was Peter Townsend, the social economist. They married in 1985 in Bristol.External links
- BBC: City MP to stand down at election
- http://www.parliament.uk see link from peers' section to biography
- The Corston Report: a review of women with particular vulnerabilities in the criminal justice system
- Guardian interview by Alison Benjamin, 3 May 2006: "Reasonable redress: Nine out of 10 women prisoners have been convicted of non-violent offences. Most are mothers and many are vulnerable. Will a government review urge alternatives to incarceration?" (with Curriculum Vitae).
- Guardian article on alternatives to prison for women offenders.
- BBC News article on community sentencing for women instead of prison sentences.