Project Results

PR1. Project management and coordination
Description​​
Project management activities include all the necessary administrative steps to ensure quality, coherence and accountability to program regulations, contractual obligations, project goals, fulfilment of milestones and deadlines (including reporting to the European Commission).
Activities
T1.1. Develop the project’s management methodology
As Project Coordinator, IGO-IFJ will ensure the efficient operationalisation of J-CAP, along  with  the achievement of its objectives, the enforcement of the project’s timeline, and respect to the Grant Agreement's conditions. This task comprises the development of a QAP, a central guidance element for the overall project implementation tasks. This document will ensure the quality of the produced work, coordinate technical details, govern and monitor the project partners’ engagement and correct fulfilment of their respective tasks and activities, with a particular emphasis on the deliverables. This task will also entail an internal evaluation plan, including the production and enforcement of protocol and internal and external reporting guidelines. This plan foresees the production and submission of a Progress Report, as well as of a Final Evaluation Report for EC submission. Lastly, a Risk Mitigation Plan will be developed as well – which has been preliminarily developed in the present application. 
 
T.1.2. Transnational project meetings
An exploratory virtual Kick-off Meeting, guided by the project coordinator, will allow partners to determine the Kick-off Meeting’s definite date, as well as organise and coordinate the work for the planned tasks during the first months of J-CAP. 

T.1.3. Administrative management
As project coordinator (PC), IGO-IFJ will fulfil administrative and managerial tasks which ensure the proper rolling out of the project.  In this sense, IGO-IFJ will maintain continuous contact with the administrative monitoring staff of each partner organisation.  Moreover, under this task, the PC will design a template for management reports to be shared with partners and filled by the chosen contact person.  As such, internal reports are meant to be shared with the Consortium every 6 months (totalling 4 internal reports), on which the Mid-term Project Evaluation report and the Final Evaluation report will be based. Furthermore, IGO-IFJ will manage the interactions between the Consortium and relevant external entities (i.e., public and governmental bodies, research organisations, non-governmental organisations).

T.1.4. Financial management 
This task will be structured by the design and employment of J-CAP’s financial monitoring plan,  which will foresee the periodic production of financial monitoring reports, sensibly every 8 months, totalling 3 financial reports, on  which  the  Progress  Evaluation  Report  and  the  Final  Evaluation  report  will  be based. Moreover, IGO-IFJ will be accountable for the production and review of the official documentation (e.g., management of financial statements, provision of the required financial documentation).
Leader
Judicial Training  Institute (IGO-IFJ)
Time-table
01/04/2022- 31/03/2024
PR.2. Field network & research
Description​​
Associated specific objective 1– Ascertain and engage key actors from the project’s target group at early project stages –linked to general objective 1; Associated specific objective 2 – Effectively support judges and magistrates (but also lawyers on a second level) for the execution of FD 2008/947 – linked to general objective 2.
Activities
T2.1. National stakeholder mapping 
This activity will be carried out via a threefold cascade concept, as detailed in the subtasks below.
  • T2.1.1. Identification of top-level national contact points
    Individuals from each partner country’s Superior Council of Magistracy and/or Judicial Training Centre (some of which are already a part of J-CAPs Associated Partners) will be identified. The identification of contact points will prove relevant for T2.2 especially, but for transversally for all project activities as well.
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  • T2.1.2. Mapping of stakeholders in the different partner countries
    A professional network will be created, including at least 3  practitioners  from  each partner country. This first step will be central for T2.1.3 and for the launch of a “snowball model”, through which project activities will be widely disseminated, as each practitioner will accept to share the project initiatives and materials with their professional network. Also, on this task, the Consortium will strive to produce disaggregated data based on gender (and other intersectional criteria, as previously noted) on the number of judges and magistrates using the FD, making sure that this professional network has a balanced gender representation. J-CAP’s network will also include lawyers.
 
  • ​T2.1.3. Organisation of a preliminary meeting
    ​One preliminary meeting per country will be held (either face to face or virtually) to disseminate the project’s goals and how J-CAP could contribute to their professional practice. Non-binding Memorandums of understanding will be signed between the Coordinator and each J-CAP network member. ​

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T2.2. Advisory-board set-up
From the pool of individuals comprised within the stakeholder mapping developed within in T2.1, an Advisory Board (max. 5 experts) will be set up aiming to:
  • Advise the project partners by providing inputs to the workplan;

  • Provide feedback concerning the work being developed in WP3 and WP4;
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  • Support the dissemination of results and mainstreaming into national and EU policies and practice. Each Consortium partner should also appoint one representative per meeting. Similarly, to   other   tasks, the Advisory-board   set-up   will   take   into   consideration   gender mainstreaming measures (e.g., parity in gender representation).


T2.3. Production of informative materials
Looking to offer concrete support to judges and magistrates (and potentially also interested lawyers), the Consortium will focus on collecting central information on how the FD is applied in the different EU Member States, with a special focus on the partner countries.  To that extent, a chapter on each jurisdiction represented in J-CAP will be developed, including information on the step-by-step implementation of probation measures and alternative sanctions, the execution of the FD, authorities’ roles and level of involvement, as well as the measurement of   rehabilitation prospects and achievements.  This task will ultimately result in the production of a contextualised glossary encompassing the different available probation measures and alternative sanctions in the partnership, building on top of the work previously developed by the EU Probation Project.


T2.4. Thematic workshops
Under this activity, dialogue and brainstorming will be promoted among judges and magistrates, regarding:

  • Perceptions of judges and magistrates on probation work (expectations and possible reservations);​
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  • Perceptions and reasons behind a low application of FD 947;
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  • Constructive solutions to the recognised needs of practitioners (judges and magistrates) towards higher usage of FD 947’s instrument;
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  • Discussion of the necessary sensitivity to gender-specific issues and needs.

​The partnership will then carry out a qualitative-based analysis of the focus group results, which shall comprise the findings from the data collection activity, its theoretical and practical implications, as well as much-needed improvements at both national and EU levels.
Leader
Judicial Training  Institute (IGO-IFJ)
Time-table
01/04/2022-31/01/2023
PR.3. Transnational awareness-raising symposia
Description​​
Associated specific objective 2–Effectively support judges and magistrates (but also lawyers on a second level) for the execution of FD 2008/947 –linked to general objective 2; Associated specific objective 3 –Upscale the practitioners’ sensitivity and interest towards the FD –linked to general objective 3; Associated specific objective 4 –Foster increased awareness on the advantages of transferring probationers for their resettlement and reintegration –linked to general objective 4.
Activities
T3.1. Design J-CAP’s awareness-raising plan
This task will focus on conceptualising the awareness-raising intervention the Consortium will implement during the cross-professional transnational awareness-raising symposia (T3.4).
 
T3.2. Produce a guidance booklet for practitioners
Under this task, the partnership will develop a guidance booklet for practitioners to facilitate the implementation and operationalisation of the FD. The document will strive to put forward a Common Outline for the EU Member States regarding the assessment of rehabilitation goals and achievements while offering specific guidelines. As there are no generally recognised definitions in this regard, the proposal of the common outline will mostly rely on transversal indicators (e.g., no reconvictions within the four next years), as well as those deriving  from  the previously organised Thematic Workshops (T2.4) and  collected  best practices at national and EU-level (which this very same task will encompass). The booklet will target practitioners’ needs (primarily judges and magistrates, while proving useful for interested  and curious  lawyers  as  well),  including  the  conclusions  on the  intrinsic  gender perspective  of  executing  the  947  instrument,  as  well  as  considerations  for  improvement overall, with a concrete focus on effective strategies for the execution of FD (e.g., procedural issues; filling out the necessary certificates/orders; identifying the appropriate contact point, namely through the use of the Judicial Atlas on criminal matters), but also on the European Probation Rules.

T3.3. Update the EU probation project software
Building on the software produced under the scope of the EU Probation Project, the partnership will complement it and update it, thereby facilitating the work of judges and magistrates and other professional groups (lawyers) when handling the 947 instrument. After the project’s closure, the software will be ceded to the European Judicial Network.

​T3.4. Transnational awareness-raising symposia
The   awareness-raising   symposia will   look   to   achieve   strengthened   cooperative relationships between participants, leading to fruitful exchanges of ideas and practices, improved knowledge regarding one another’s judicial system and competent authorities. Practical sessions are envisaged as well, promoting networking, while offering concrete opportunities for the involved practitioners to learn more about the use of the instrument. Each symposium will set aside one-half day for a study visit to the national training institute, which will host the events. Moreover, the topics for discussion will consider gendered experiences of probationers and specificities linked to gender when considering transfers, count with the dissemination of materials countering gender stereotypes, and outline the relationship between gender and probation measures and transfers. By summarising the most relevant aspects of the national discussions (which will provide the groundwork for the upcoming WP4), as well as the results from a pre-vs post-feedback form for participants, the partnership will produce an International Symposium Communiqué.
Leader
European  Strategies Consulting (ESC)
Time-table
01/08/2022-31/07/2023​
PR4. Convergence of practices towards a fluid implementation of FD 2008/947 at EU-level
Description​​
Associated specific objective 2–Effectively support judges and magistrates (but also lawyers on a second level) for the execution of FD 2008/947 –linked to general objective 2. Associated specific objective 3 –Upscale the practitioners’ sensitivity and interest towards the FD –linked to general objective 3; Associated specific objective 4 –Foster increased awareness on the advantages of transferring probationers for their resettlement and reintegration –linked to general objective 4
Activities
T4.1. J-CAP’s JUDICIAL TALKs
These events will frame the closure of J-CAP’s awareness-raising intervention, allowing the roundtables to play a central role in their publicity and progressively expand the project’s audience.
 
  • T4.1.1. National roundtables
    The partnership and external speakers will develop presentations highlighting issues in its operationalisation and potential solutions, calling on stakeholder groups to action in fostering respect for EU law.

  • T4.1.2. Conduct J-CAP’s Mid-term international virtual conference
    These online events will count with the presentations both from Consortium partners, experts (Associated Partners), Advisory Board Members, and stakeholders’ that were previously engaged in the T4.1.1. The topics under scope would be the main findings resulting from the previous event, allowing knowledge sharing with EU practitioners. Feedback will be collected from participants.


T4.2. Set-up and integration of JUDICIAL TALKs content for training purposes
During the events foreseen within T4.1, short videos will be created to be incorporated into the training programme of Judicial Training Centres and national Institutes of Magistracy   comprised within J-CAP’s Consortium and Associated Partners, for supporting initial and continuous training. This task will follow the previously mentioned gender mainstreaming measures.
Leader
IPS_Innovative Prison Systems (IPS)
Time-table
01/03/2023-29/02/2024
​PR5: Strategical dissemination and exploitation programme
Description​​
Associated specific objective 3 –Upscale the practitioners’ sensitivity and interest towards the FD –linked to general objective 3; Associated specific objective 4 –Foster increased awareness on the advantages of transferring probationers for their resettlement and reintegration –linked to general objective 4.
Activities
T5.1. Dissemination, mainstreaming and sustainability strategy plan
A coherent and comprehensive dissemination and sustainability strategy will be developed from the start of the project, aiming to optimise the exploitation of the project’s activities and results, maximising the project’s visibility, increasing stakeholders’ engagement and commitment towards the project.  As such, this task will focus on enhancing J-CAP’s sustainability through a mainstreaming optic.
 
T5.2. Dissemination toolkit
Aiming to standardise and consolidate the project’s visual identity whilst strengthening J-CAP’s brand, a dissemination toolkit will be produced at the beginning of the project. It will comprise the project’s logo, website, documentation templates and a roll-up.

T5.3. J-CAP’s bi-annual e-Magazines
The Consortium will design and disseminate e-magazines (approx. 5-month periodicity) in order to expand the project’s outreach and stakeholder base. These are to be translated into every partner language by the project partners. The e-magazines will present up-to-date information on the project’s activities and tangible results, explicitly emphasising the achievement of milestones and deliverables.

T5.4. J-CAP news articles and project booklet
J-CAP will be featured in four of JUSTICE TRENDS Magazine’s editions. One of these will be a premium publication covering the project’s main objectives and outputs and include a booklet of the project’s goals and achievements.

T5.5. Final International Conference
J-CAP’s final international conference will seek to unpack the project’s outputs’ relevance in the overall context of improving the effective and coherent application of EU law, specifically in what concerns the promotion of resocialisation and rehabilitation of ex-inmates.​
Leader
IPS_Innovative Prison Systems (IPS)
Time-table
01/04/2022- 31/03/2024​
This project is funded by the Justice Programme. This website has been accomplished in the scope of the project “Judicial cooperation for the enhancement of mutual recognition regarding probation measures and alternative sanctions " (J-CAP), Grant Agreement no. 101046663, implemented with the financial support of the European Commission by the Justice Programme. 
​This website reflects the views only of the author, hence neither the Portuguese National Agency nor the European Commission can be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.