Olivia Henry & Nicky Herron

Providing Accredited Programmes at Scale: The System-Aware Biopsychosocial Model of Change and Building Choices

When to watch:
14th May | 09:30 - 10:30


Keynote Abstract

For over three decades, Accredited Programmes (AcPs) have shaped rehabilitation in His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS). Yet evaluations show modest impact on general offending and limited evidence for offence-specific programmes, particularly sexual offending. The Core SOTP evaluation (Mews et al., 2017) found no measurable reduction in sexual reoffending; a pivotal moment prompting scrutiny and reform. This keynote introduces the System-Aware Biopsychosocial Model of Change: a conceptual framework bridging the gap between evidence-based design and scalable delivery. It reframes rehabilitation as a systemic capability rather than isolated programmes, integrating three interdependent layers – biopsychosocial design principles, fidelity infrastructure, and system support – linked by feedback loops for continuous learning and adaptation. By combining insights from rehabilitative theory and implementation science, the model offers a scalable pathway for aligning design, delivery, and organisational conditions. Its practical application is illustrated through Building Choices, HMPPS’s flagship AcP, which consolidates offence-specific interventions into one person-centred, trauma-informed, needs-led framework addressing the criminogenic needs of people convicted of sexual offences. Supported by the Healthy Sex Programme – our specialist AcP for individuals in prison with atypical offence-related sexual interests – this streamlined framework enables concentrated focus on fidelity, system support, and robust feedback loops, including one of the most ambitious evaluation strategies in HMPPS to date. We argue that Building Choices, underpinned by a System-Aware Biopsychosocial Model of Change, works with scale and complexity rather than against it, offering the best prospect of realising our core purpose: to change lives, reduce harm, and create safer communities.

Biography

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