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Project Details
The protection of constitutional and human rights is under particular threat when people are deprived of their liberty. This risk extends beyond traditional prison settings to include care-based environments such as nursing homes and psychiatric hospitals. Complaints procedures play a vital role in vindicating these rights, allowing individuals to raise concerns and participate in their resolution. However, research consistently indicates that these systems may be absent, deficient, or perceived as ineffective, with many individuals fearing reprisals.
ComDep seeks to share learning across different sites of liberty deprivation. The project focuses on exploring the legal requirements for complaints systems, capturing the lived experiences of those detained, and developing evidence-based recommendations for reform. By placing the domain of the prison at the centre of the discussion—drawing on extensive existing research—the project will facilitate a knowledge exchange with the psychiatric and elder care sectors to promote human rights standards across all settings.
Research Phases
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Network Establishment (M1-M5): Forming a steering group including experts by experience to co-design workshop themes and establish a formal partnership with the IPRT.
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Workshop (M6): A multi-disciplinary event bringing together academia, practitioners, and those with lived experience to examine domestic and international human rights obligations and the reality of complaining in detention.
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Briefing Paper & Sustainable Network (M7-M12): Translation of workshop insights into a formal briefing paper for political and practitioner audiences, alongside an accessible version for families and detained individuals.