Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to support (a) prison officers and (b) probation service staff.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
The Government is committed to making sure that all prison and probation staff have a safe place in which to work, the time and capacity to do their job well, and the right support, training and equipment to help them.
It is important that we have enough people to enable this vital work to be undertaken effectively. We are committed to recruiting and training the prison and probation staff we need, particularly in areas with the most significant staffing challenges, and we are constantly monitoring staffing levels and retention. We have implemented measures to attract and retain staff, including pay increases, extra funding for probation staff, and mentorship programmes. We are also working to improve staff safety and to address wellbeing concerns arising from the pressurised nature of the work. In addition, we are actively seeking ways in which technological innovation can ease the burden on our hard-working staff.
Prison and probation staff play a vital role in protecting the public and reducing re-offending. To help them to cope with the challenges this work involves, we provide extensive mental health support, including a 24-hour helpline, confidential counselling, and online wellbeing services. A new wellbeing support model has been established across HM Prison & Probation Service, with staff support and wellbeing champions for both prison and probation.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of incentivising people serving non-violent custodial sentences to undertake more community service work.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
Prisoners serving non-violent custodial sentences currently can access community service work through Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) during the custodial element of their sentence. Prisoners are eligible to be considered for ROTL once they have served at least half of the custodial element of their sentence, provided they are within two years of release, or once they transfer to an open prison.
ROTL is an important rehabilitation tool which allows prisoners to participate in activities in the community which have been identified as serving a particular purpose in meeting their individual resettlement objectives. Suitable, risk assessed prisoners may be allowed out during the day to, for example: work, attend college, attend an interview or maintain/re-establish links with their family. This helps them develop responsibility and gain valuable skills so that they can turn their lives around upon leaving prison.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) protections and (b) support mechanisms are in place for whistleblowers in prisons.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
The Ministry of Justice has a comprehensive whistleblowing policy which all staff can access via the intranet. The policy sets out the protections and support available to a whistleblower. Protections include protection under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) and the assurance that the Department will take disciplinary action if a whistleblower is subject to detrimental treatment as a result of having raised a concern.
Sources of support include Nominated Officers, who can advise on how to raise a concern, and specialist teams including Counter Corruption, the HM Prison and Probation Service Tackling Unacceptable Behaviours Unit, and the Department’s employee assistance provider.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that prisons are safe workplaces for staff.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
Staff must be able to expect a safe and decent work environment. We will not tolerate any violence against prison officers and prisoners who are violent towards staff will face the full consequences of their actions.
The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 doubled the maximum penalty to up to two years’ imprisonment for those who assault emergency workers, including prison officers. There are higher maximum penalties in place for more serious offences, including ABH, GBH and sexual assault.
We are providing targeted support to adult male prisons with the highest assault rates to tackle local drivers of violence.
We are continuing with plans for a phased removal of wet-shave razors in up to 30 prisons in the adult male estate in 2024/25.
To protect staff from serious assaults, prison officers in the adult male estate are provided with PAVA, a synthetic pepper spray. Every prison officer across public sector prisons can wear a Body Worn Video Camera whilst on shift, providing high-quality evidence to support prosecutions against those who commit assaults against staff.
We are implementing measures to ease prison crowding as we know that crowded conditions can increase violent incidents in prisons.