Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of replacing wet shaving razors with electric shavers in all prisons across Wales.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many deaths have been recorded at HMP Wandsworth since 30 June 2023.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Deaths recorded by prison are published as part of our Safety in Custody statistics, updated quarterly, and available in the Deaths Data Tool at the following link: Safety in custody: quarterly update to September 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Please note that deaths at Wandsworth are currently published from 30 June 2023 – end of December 2023. Figures to the end of March 2024 are not due for publication until April 2024 and cannot be released at this time.
Deaths in prison custody figures include all deaths of prisoners arising from incidents during prison custody. They include deaths of prisoners while released on temporary license (ROTL) for medical reasons but exclude other types of ROTL where the state has less direct responsibility.
In addition to deaths in prison custody which occur in hospitals, hospices or nursing homes, a small proportion will occur while in an ambulance on the way to hospital, while the prisoner is under escort.
Every death in custody is a tragedy and we continue to do all we can to improve the safety of prisoners.
We have implemented a revised version of the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) case management approach across the prison estate. Revisions in ACCT v6 include a stronger emphasis on taking a person-centred approach; better multi-disciplinary team working; a consistent quality assurance process and an improved focus on identifying and addressing an individual’s risks, triggers and protective factors.
We are implementing a new safety training package for staff. It brings together related safety topics, including suicide and self-harm prevention and understanding risks, triggers and protective factors.
We fund Samaritans through a grant providing total funding of just under £2 million between 2022 and 2025. This is primarily for the delivery of the Listener scheme (through which selected prisoners are trained to provide support to fellow prisoners in emotional distress).
We have also worked with Samaritans to develop a postvention response to providing support in the period following a self-inflicted death in order to reduce the risk of further deaths. This has been successfully piloted and the renewed grant includes funding for this service to be maintained until March 2025.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of ending the supply of razors to prisoners.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of assaults on prison officers involving razors in each of the last 24 months, and subsequently how many of those have resulted in (a) hospitalisation or (b) prison officers leaving the service could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Data on how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors could also only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors in each of the last 24 months.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of assaults on prison officers involving razors in each of the last 24 months, and subsequently how many of those have resulted in (a) hospitalisation or (b) prison officers leaving the service could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Data on how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors could also only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of assaults on prison officers involving razors.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of assaults on prison officers involving razors in each of the last 24 months, and subsequently how many of those have resulted in (a) hospitalisation or (b) prison officers leaving the service could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Data on how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors could also only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many assaults on prison officers involving razors have resulted in (a) hospitalisation and (b) prison officers leaving the service in each of the last 24 months.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of assaults on prison officers involving razors in each of the last 24 months, and subsequently how many of those have resulted in (a) hospitalisation or (b) prison officers leaving the service could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Data on how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors could also only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many assaults on prison officers have involved razors in each of the last 24 months.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of assaults on prison officers involving razors in each of the last 24 months, and subsequently how many of those have resulted in (a) hospitalisation or (b) prison officers leaving the service could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Data on how many prisoners have been successfully prosecuted for attacks on prison officers with razors could also only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
We are committed to making prisons a safe place to work and recognise the risks associated with the current wet shave razor provision. In the 2021 Prison Safety White Paper, we committed to trial alternatives to wet-shave razors in prisons to test whether a change in approach might lead to a safer environment for both prisoners and staff. Throughout 2022 and 2023 six pilots have been carried out in the male estate and one carried out in the female estate.
Testing at all sites has now concluded and the results are being evaluated. The evaluation will consider outcomes, learning and positive practice from across all pilot sites and will be measured against the impact they have had on violence and/or self-harm.
The evaluation will be completed by the end of March 2024. This evaluation will enable us to make informed recommendations on future shaving provision in prison establishments.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the National Statistics entitled Safety in Custody Statistics, England and Wales: Deaths in Prison Custody to December 2023 Assaults and Self-harm to September 2023, published on 25 January 2024, how many and what proportion of assaults on prison staff took place in privately-operated prisons.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We publish the number of assaults against prison staff, as part of our Safety in Custody statistics, in Table 8e of the summary tables, available at the following link: Safety in custody: quarterly update to September 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Totals for those occurring in privately-operated prisons can be seen at row 160, with the grand total in row 162. While staff assault rates remain below pre-pandemic levels, we continue to ensure all our hardworking staff are protected and will never tolerate violence against our hardworking prison officers. Prisoners who are violent towards staff will face the full consequences of their actions and will be dealt with swiftly and effectively, which includes further time behind bars.
We are providing staff in the adult male estate with a personal safety package which includes SPEAR personal safety training, in order to protect staff and prisoners from instances of serious violence. We also continue to provide targeted support to prisons on CSIP (Challenge, Support and Intervention Plan) implementation where needed. CSIP provides a framework for managing violence that is centred around the prisoner and their specific needs to help them manage and move away from violent behaviours.
Asked by: Lord Woodley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners serving an imprisonment for public protection sentence (1) took their own life, or (2) died from other causes, in 2023.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Every death in custody is a tragedy and we continue to do all we can to improve the safety of prisoners
We have implemented a revised version of the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) case management approach across the prison estate which is used to support people at risk of suicide or self-harm in prison. Revisions in ACCT v6 include: a stronger emphasis on taking a person-centred approach; better multi-disciplinary team working; a consistent quality assurance process and an improved focus on identifying and addressing an individual’s risks, triggers and protective factors.
To support the implementation of ACCT v6 we are developing and introducing a new safety training package for staff (called Safety Support Skills training). It brings together related safety topics, including suicide and self-harm prevention, understanding risks, triggers and protective factors, and encourages a joined-up approach to prison safety.
We have also worked with Samaritans to develop a postvention response to providing support in the period following a self-inflicted death in order to reduce the risk of further deaths. This has been implemented across the adult male estate, and the roll out of an adapted version of the approach in the women’s estate will shortly be completed. Our grant to Samaritans includes funding for this service to be maintained until March 2025.
In 2023, 17 prisoners serving an imprisonment for public protection sentence died in custody, 9 of these were classified as self-inflicted deaths.
(1) Deaths in prison custody figures include all deaths of prisoners arising from incidents during prison custody. They include deaths of prisoners while released on temporary license (ROTL) for medical reasons but exclude other types of ROTL where the state has less direct responsibility.
(2) An indeterminate sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) was introduced in 2005. It was intended for high risk prisoners considered ‘dangerous’ but whose offence did not merit a life sentence. The number of prisoners held on this sentence increased initially and the increase was offset by reductions elsewhere
(3) Figures include incidents at HMPPS run Immigration Removal Centres and during contracted out escorts. Figures do not include incidents at Medway STC
(4) The self-inflicted deaths category includes a wider range of deaths than suicides. When comparing figures with other sources it is important to determine whether the narrower suicide or broader self-inflicted deaths approach is in use.
Data Sources and Quality
These figures are derived from the HMPPS Deaths in Prison Custody database. As classification of deaths may change following inquest or as new information emerges, numbers may change from time to time.
Please note that all deaths in prison custody are subject to a coroner’s inquest. It is the responsibility of the coroner to determine the cause of death. The HMPPS system for classifying deaths provides a provisional classification for administrative and statistical purposes. The final classification is only determined at inquest. Figures dependent on classification of deaths should therefore be treated as provisional.
It remains a priority for this Government that all those serving the IPP sentence receive the support they need to progress towards safe release from custody or, where they are being supervised on licence in the community, towards having their licence terminated altogether. In that respect, the Lord Chancellor, announced on 28 November 2023, this Government is taking changes forward in the Victims and Prisoners Bill to reform legislation relating to the termination of the licence for IPP offenders by making amendments to section 31A of the Crime (Sentences) Act 1997.
The new measure, subject to the views of Parliament, will:
a. reduce the qualifying period which triggers the duty of the Secretary of State to refer an IPP licence to the Parole Board for termination from ten years to three years;
b. include a clear statutory presumption that the IPP licence will be terminated by the Parole Board at the end of the three-year qualifying period;
c. introduce a provision that will automatically terminate the IPP licence two years after the three-year qualifying period, in cases where the Parole Board has not terminated the licence, so long as the offender is not recalled in that period; and
d. introduce a power to amend the qualifying period by Statutory Instrument;
The Government was particularly persuaded by the Justice Select Committee’s (JSC) recommendation to reduce the qualifying licence period from 10 years to five years – a recommendation in their IPP inquiry report published on 28 September 2022. We are going further: reducing the period to three years. These amendments will restore greater proportionality to IPP sentences by reducing the qualifying period to three years and providing a clear pathway to a definitive end to the licence and, therefore, the sentence.
The safety workstream will actively support Prisons to deliver improvements to safety of those serving an IPP sentence. We plan to;
• Continue to raise staff awareness of the heightened risk of self-harm, suicide and violence of IPP prisoners.
• Monitor, analyse and share any changing or emerging trends in published IPP prisoner data to inform and update guidance where appropriate
• Share internal and external learning, initiatives and communications to inform and enable prisons to support IPP prisoners at risk of self-harm, suicide and violence.
• Develop and pilot a IPP safety toolkit, based on positive practice, to support prisons to improve their approach to IPP prisoners and encourage local innovation.
Asked by: Lord Harries of Pentregarth (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce the number of suicides in prison.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Every death in custody is a tragedy and we continue to do all we can to improve the safety of prisoners.
We know that relationships between staff and prisoners plays an important role in preventing self-inflicted deaths in prisons and that is why we have announced additional investment in our workforce. As of 30 September 2023, there were 23,058 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Band 3-5 prison officers in post, an increase of 1,441 FTE since 30 September 2022. This means staff can provide more support for prisoners and better monitor the risk of harm. In addition to recruiting new officers, we are developing and phasing in a new safety training package for staff. It brings together information on related safety topics, including suicide and self-harm prevention, understanding risks, triggers and protective factors. This training is complemented by a revised version of the case management approach used in prisons to support people at risk of suicide or self-harm.
We will continue to fund the Samaritans (£625,000 each year until March 2025) to deliver the Listener scheme where prisoners are trained to provide emotional support to each other. We have also worked with the Samaritans to design an additional support service for prisons in the period following a self-inflicted death, with the aim of reducing the risk of further deaths.