Introduction

There is widespread agreement across the developed world that links exist between poor educational achievement, unemployment and criminal recidivism (see, for example, the work of the European Offender Employment Forum which brings these threads together). In the UK, offender assessment tools, relating to both adult and juvenile offenders, identify education, training and employment as one of a range of potential offence-related needs requiring exploration and assessment. Once a practitioner has identified such needs in relation to a specific individual, these may then be addressed through employment and/or literacy and numeracy programmes tailored to the particular circumstances of offenders. For young offenders an emphasis is placed upon facilitating school attendance for all young people, sometimes irrespective of whether or not their educational experience is connected to their offending behaviour. The rationale for this almost universally applicable approach is that:

The broadness of this belief in the intrinsic value of education is rarely challenged. It is regarded as a fundamental right in many parts of the world, essential to both personal and societal development. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), for example, regards education as one of its four priority areas of activity in encouraging the “harmonious development of every child” along with health, equality and protection (UNICEF, 2007: 1).

This chapter explores the challenges and dilemmas for practitioners in the criminal justice system of promoting the acquisition of basic skills in a context where the emphasis is increasingly upon offencefocused work and the management of risk. The chapter will draw upon the increasing body of research, both national and international, which is beginning to enhance understanding of the links between poor basic skills, social exclusion, restricted life opportunities and the risk of becoming entrenched in an offending lifestyle. In doing so, it will explore the implications for practice of the twin notions of human capital and social capital, at the heart of which is education and, by inference, literacy and numeracy.