Forensic Psychology and Mental Health

In 2017, the National Audit Office estimated that 10% of the prison population in England was receiving treatment for a mental health problem. Further, that 37% of people in prison had reported mental health problems to HM Inspector of Prisons. In this course, you will have the opportunity to study the types of mental health disorders commonly found in prisons, and be taught how to assess and work with individuals in forensic settings, including understanding appropriate treatment programmes and the psychological challenges that can be faced by staff working in the prison service.

The course has been designed to cover the British Psychological Society’s Division of Forensic Psychology's (“DFP”) core curriculum, which includes foundational topics such as the theoretical basis of forensic psychology across a range of settings and risk assessment, as well as focusing on mental health issues in forensic settings. The aim of the course upon successful completion is for you to have gained an understanding of the influence mental health can have on how offenders and victims think, feel and act, as well as the opportunity to consider how our criminal justice system can respond to such individuals.

Our current staff for this course have over 100 years’ worth of combined, varied professional psychological experience, either as British Psychological Society Chartered/Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) Registered Members themselves, and/or as active researchers.