Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of suicide prevention training provided to (a) prison and (b) probation staff.

All new members of prison staff with prisoner contact receive training on suicide and self-harm prevention, and all staff who undertake key roles relating to risk assessment and case management also receive specific training relating to those roles. This training is subject to regular review and feedback is sought from participants as part of this process. An e-learning module has recently been made available for all staff to access on postvention support following a self-inflicted death in custody, and the effectiveness of this will be reviewed in due course.

There are two suicide prevention learning packages for probation staff: a Zero Suicide Alliance package for all staff, and a package aimed at new entrant Professional Qualification in Probation and Probation Service Officers which was developed internally as part of a broader introduction to mental health. Following completion of this latter package the majority of the intended group stated that they felt more prepared to work in this area and more confident about this part of their role. The effectiveness of this learning will continue to be reviewed to ensure that it meets the needs of the business going forward.