9.    Ask a representative of the local John Howard and/or Elizabeth Fry Societies to provide you with a written or oral presentation of any programmes they have in your area for identifying or ameliorating problems of literacy among people in conflict with the law. Can you facilitate their interaction with people coming into the legal system? Since low education (and literacy) is linked with both unemployment and legal difficulties, are there programmes that you could consider as part of some probation orders? To avoid stigma and lack of participant co-operation, should the programmes have neutral names (such as "Educational Enhancement" instead of "Overcoming Illiteracy") which are nevertheless understood by local lawyers, probation workers and judges to be aimed at illiteracy?
Conclusion
		In these times, all judges would consider it unacceptable to force someone through a court process which he or she did not fully understand. Unfortunately it appears that each judge who has been sitting for any reasonable length of time has unwittingly done that very thing. The recognition of the problem, and its consideration in the contexts set out by the other judges in this John Howard Society initiative, should result in efforts by the judiciary to minimize the gap in understanding caused by varying degrees of illiteracy.

Previous	Table of Contents	Cover