What is the biggest challenge facing the criminal justice system? Increasing violence within the prison estate? A growing backlog in the courts? Ongoing failure to tackle reoffending?

Virtually every step an offender takes through the criminal justice system past the point of arrest, from charge to trial, from sentence to supervision, is still managed, financed and directed centrally. And yet we know most of the levers for preventing crime and reducing the cycle of reoffending lie locally – within housing, health, education and back to work services.