Probation and mental illness Charlie Brooker a *, Coral Sirdifield a , Robert Blizard b , David Denney c and Graham Pluck d a Criminal Justice and Health Research Group, University of Lincoln, Lincoln, UK; b Department of Mental Health Sciences, University College London, London, UK; c Centre for Criminology and Sociology, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, UK; d Faculty of Policy Studies, Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan (Received 12 January 2012; final version received 15 June 2012) Levels of mental illness amongst prisoners are high, but little is known about the situation of those serving community sentences. More information is needed at a time when the UK Department of Health is seeking to improve mental health service access for all offenders. To estimate the prevalence of both current and lifetime mental illness, an epidemiological survey was conducted on individuals under probation supervision in Lincolnshire, England. Assessment included the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Inventory and other measures of mental health. We estimate that around 39% of individuals in this probation population are suffering from current mental illnesses, anxiety disorders being the most common. Furthermore, around 60% have substance abuse problems and around 48% have personality disorders. Lifetime mental illness, co-morbidity and dual diagnosis were also found to be high. In common with other groups of offenders, the prevalence of mental health problems in those serving community sentences is high. Keywords: probation; offender; mental illness; psychiatric illness; dual diagnosis; personality disorder The relationship between mental illness and offending is complex and arguably is not yet fully understood. However, UK criminal justice policy highlights ‘health’, including mental health, as a pathway out of offending (Social Exclusion Unit, 2002). In addition, from a practical perspective, the presence of mental illness influences recidivism and is an important aspect of risk assessment (Ansbro, 2010). In order to better understand this relation- ship, we first need to be able to identify individuals with mental illness in the criminal justice system. A systematic review of research on the prevalence of mental health disorders in prison has demonstrated that a wealth of studies has been conducted on this topic worldwide (Fazel & Lubbe, 2005; *Corresponding author. Email: cbrooker@lincoln.ac.uk The Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology Vol. 23, No. 4, August 2012, 522–537 ISSN 1478-9949 print/ISSN 1478-9957 online Ó 2012 Taylor & Francis http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14789949.2012.704640 http://www.tandfonline.com