In 1985 he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, which was commuted to manslaughter on appeal. He spent time in various prisons before being transferred to Broadmoor secure hospital due to his mental condition. He remained an in-patient from 1989 till 2002 when he was transferred to a medium secure unit. After nearly 20 years in institutions, Michael was understandably anxious about returning to the community. When he came to live at one of our forensic hostels in 2004, he worked hard with the support of staff to rebuild his confidence and develop direction in his life.

Michael showed an interest in pursuing employment opportunities and began doing voluntary work at a North London charity, in which he expressed great enjoyment. He also completed a City and Guilds course in Web Design, which he hoped to further to degree level.

Michael began to self-cater and undertook a course in Food Hygiene at his voluntary placement. He

was an active tenant at the project participating in tenant meetings and other activities. He would occupy his time when not studying by visiting friends or going to Internet cafés to surf the web. He maintained regular contact with his girlfriend and would visit her when given permission by his care team. He gradually became self-medicating to facilitate this and when the Home Office granted permission for Michael to spend the Christmas period with his girlfriend, he was able to demonstrate his ability to cope with greater independence. These visits became more extended with time and it was agreed that he would be allowed to move to the area in Northern England to be near his girlfriend, who he now described as his next of kin.

Michael moved on from St Martins in May 2006 to live with his girlfriend. He is planning to undertake a BSc in computer studies with the Open University in September 2006.

Details have been changed to protect the identity of the client.