Share on Facebook
Share on LinkedIn
RCN Advanced Nurse Practitioner Conference 2026
London
Nursing in Justice and Forensic Health
Use this guide to find information resources about nursing in justice and forensic health including books, reports and journal articles.
Last updated:
21/05/2026
Key Resources
Chief Medical Officers Report (2025) The health of people in prison, on probation and in the secure NHS estate in England. London: GOV.UK
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (2024) The Long wait: a thematic review of delays in the transfer of mentally unwell prisoners.
House of Commons Justice Committee (2021) Mental health in prison: fifth report of session 2021–22. London: House of Commons.
Independent Advisory Panel on Deaths in Custody and The Royal College of Nursing (2020) Avoidable natural deaths in prison custody: putting things right. London: IAPDC
National Offender Management Service and NHS England (2020) Working with personality disordered offenders: a practitioner’s guide.
NHS England (2022) The Mental health nurse’s handbook.
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (2026) Learning and research documents.
-
These publications identify lessons to be learned from Prisons & Probation Ombudsman independent investigations.
View page
Nursing in Justice
CED Joint Working Group (2021) Conducted Energy Device (CED): at a glance guidance for ED Clinicians. London: The Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine.
Criminal Justice Joint Inspection (2021) Neurodiversity in the criminal justice system: a review of evidence. London: CJJI.
European committee for the prevention of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (2025) Healthcare in prison, prison standard. Strasbourg: Council of Europe.
Health and Justice UK - A collaboration between the Royal College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Nursing, and the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales (2025) The Annual report of HM Chief Inspector of prisons from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. London: HMIP
Joint Unions in Prisons Alliance (JUPA) (2025) Safe inside prison charter. London: Royal College of Nursing.
-
The Joint Unions in Prisons Alliance (JUPA) was set up in response to ongoing concerns about the safety of staff working in prison environments to seek improvements to working conditions in prisons so that staff can feel 'Safe Inside'.
View page
NHS England (2023) A review of health and social care in women’s prisons.
NHS England (2022) Health and justice framework for integration 2022-2025: improving lives – reducing inequality.
-
NHS England Health and Justice are responsible for commissioning healthcare for children, young people and adults across secure and detained settings.
View page
NHS England and NHS Improvement (2021) Meeting the healthcare needs of adults with a learning disability and autistic adults in prison. London: NHS.
Northern Ireland Audit Office (2019) Mental Health in the criminal justice system. CDS
-
The report examines the pathways through which offenders will progress when they come into contact with the justice system.
View page
Prison Reform Trust (2026) Bromley briefings: prison factfile February 2026. London: Prison Reform Trust.
Royal College of General Practitioners (2019) Safer prescribing in prisons, guidance for clinicians. London: RCGP.
UK Health Security Agency (2022) Acute respiratory illness, including flu and COVID-19 in prisons.
Forensic Health Care
NHS Scotland: Forensic mental health services managed care network.
Royal College of Psychiatrists (2018) Prison mental health in Northern Ireland (CR219). London: RCP.
Scottish Government: Forensic mental health.
We would like to thank the RCN Nursing in Justice and Forensic Health Care member community for their input into the development of this subject guide.
Nursing in Justice
Brooke J (2023) Nursing in prison. Cham: Springer.
Matheson J, Patterson J, and Neilson L (eds.) (2020) Tackling causes and consequences of health inequalities: a practical guide. London: CRC Press.
Peel M, Smith J, Webb V and Bannerman M (eds.) (2025) Police custody healthcare for nurses and paramedics. Hoboken NJ : Wiley Blackwell 
Phipps E, O'Moore E, Plugge E and Hard J (2024) Prison medicine and health. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Forensic Health books
Blumenthal S, Wood H and Williams A (2018) Assessing risk: a relational approach. Abingdon: Routledge.
Faugno D K, Mitchell S A, Sievers V, Pederson S L, Volz J M and Speck P M (2022) Introduction to forensic nursing: principles and practice. St. Louis: STM Learning, Incorporated.
Scannell J M (2018) Fast facts about forensic nursing: what you need to know. New York: Springer Publishing.
Stark M M (2020) Clinical forensic medicine: a physician's guide. Cham: Springer.
Book subject searches
Use these links to see details of books the RCN libraries hold on each topic.
Nursing in Justice journal articles
Use these links for details of journal articles on each topic.
Forensic Health journal articles
Use these links to see details of journal articles on each topic.
Nursing in Justice journals
Journals of interest for Nursing in Justice.
Forensic Health journals
Journals of interest for Forensic Health.
Exhibitions
RCN exhibition: Prison nursing unlocked: A history of care and justice. -
Explore the fascinating history of health care in prisons, from the work of early reformers like Elizabeth Fry to the vital contribution that nurses make to prisoner health today.
View online exhibition
Special collections
Our Permanent Collection consists of nursing specific core items and rare items, and as such is viewable by appointment only. Here is a small selection of items from our collection.
Rowe J (1927) John Howard: prison reformer and philanthropist. London: The Epworth Press.
Smalley H (1902) Prison hospital nursing: being a manual of first aid and nursing for the prison hospital staff. London: HMSO.
This subject guide relates to:
Lee Kattenhorn
Editor of this guide
RCN Library and Museum
Events
Page last updated - 21/05/2026
