Committees

Prison reform: the greatest overhaul of prisons in a generation?

30 November 2016

The Justice Committee's inquiry into prison reform starts with evidence from Sam Gyimah, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Prisons and Probation, and Michael Spurr, CEO of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS).

Witnesses

Tuesday 29 November 2016, The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

At 9.30am

  • Sam Gyimah MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary for Prisons and Probation, Ministry of Justice
  • Michael Spurr, Chief Executive, National Offender Management Service

Continuing deterioration in prison safety

In this first hearing, the Committee aims to clarify the proposals included in the recently published Prison Safety and Reform Plan, and to get an update on immediate issues in the prison estate, including safety and staffing, and how the Government has responded to the concerns of prison governors and prison officers.

The inquiry opens in the context of continuing deterioration in prison safety. Recent incidents include a riot in Bedford prison; disturbances in prisons in Lewes and Birmingham – and in Exeter and Lincoln, which included hostage taking; the escape of two prisoners from Pentonville; and the death of a prisoner after being stabbed. According to Government figures, the 12 months to June 2016 saw a rise of 43% in assaults on prison staff, and 107 prisoners took their own lives – an average of one every three days.

For further information see the Committee's report on prison safety, the Government's response and the latest prison safety and workforce data.

Prison Safety and Reform Plan

The Government's recently published Prison Safety and Reform Plan defines four core purposes for prisons: protecting the public; maintaining safety and order; reforming offenders; and preparing them for life outside prison.

Key reforms announced in the plan include:

  • Statutory definition of the purposes of prison and responsibilities of the Secretary of State in relation to these
  • £104m annually to strengthen the frontline with 2,500 more prison officers
  • Rigorous new standards to get prisoners off drugs and into work
  • Prisoners to be tested for drug use on entry and exit from prison and on English and maths so progress made on the inside can be measured
  • Results to be published on new league tables to drive reform and improvements across the estate
  • New duty of Secretary of State intervention when prisons are falling
  • A £1.3bn modernisation programme to create 10,000 modern prison places with Wellingborough the first site to be named for potential redevelopment

Committee Chair Bob Neill said:

"Prison reform is urgent. The mounting crisis in prison safety, the suicide rate, overcrowding, staff shortages, a more violent culture, the lack of education and training opportunities all show that the current approach fails in multiple ways. The Government's reform plans have been described as the biggest overhaul of our prisons in a generation. In this major new inquiry we will ensure that they are given rigorous scrutiny, to ensure that every opportunity is taken to transform failure into success."

The session will also focus on plans for prison governor empowerment and performance standards.

Reform prisons

Six trailblazer 'reform prisons' were established by the Government as part of its ambitious reform programme, where from 1 July 2016 governors have had greater control over the operational and financial management of their prisons.

The plan states that from April 2017 the Ministry aims to build on the devolution of powers rolled out in the six reform prisons, giving governors:

  • Authority to do their own workforce planning
  • Greater power of service provision in their prison, devolving control over education, work, family ties, offender behaviour and resettlement programmes, and greater influence over healthcare provision
  • Greater authority to decide how to spend their own budget
  • Devolved decision making powers on key operational policies, so that they can make better use of tools such as Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) to allow prisoners to engage in purposeful activity such as work, as part of their sentence.

The session will also consider performance measures and accountability. The Ministry proposes to measure performance under four quality standards:

  • Public protection
  • Safety and order – reduction in assaults and self-harm
  • Reform – health and substance misuse; work; education; contact with families
  • Preparing for life after prison – including measuring employment, education and accommodation on release

Follow the inquiry

Further information

Image: Ministry of Justice