Further written evidence from the Howard League for Penal Reform (PPP 60)
In November 2013 Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 30/2013 came in to force, which introduced a new Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) scheme in all adult prisons. As part of the new IEP scheme sending any parcels to prisoners, aside from a single package after a person first enters prison, was prohibited. Prior to PSI 30/2013 governors had discretion over parcels sent from family and friends to prisoners. Under the previous IEP scheme it was fairly common for people to send in clothing, books and other essentials and small gifts to their loved ones in prison.
The ban on sending parcels into prisoners includes sending books to prisoners. The Howard League for Penal Reform launched a campaign in March 2014 to highlight the difficulty prisoners were having in receiving books and other essentials. This campaign was backed by numerous authors as well as the campaign group English PEN. Early in the campaign the limit on having a maximum of 12 books in a cell at any one time was removed.
On Friday 5 December 2014 Mr Justice Collins, in the high court, declared the blanket ban on sending books to prisoners unlawful stating that “I see no good reason, in the light of the importance of books for prisoners, to restrict beyond what is required by volumetric control … and reasonable measures relating to frequency of parcels and security considerations.” The Ministry of Justice has not appealed this judgment, but to date the restriction on sending books to prisoners remains in force. The Howard League understands that the policy will be amended in February 2015.
The Ministry of Justice has suggested that prisoners do not need to receive books from family and friends as they have access to prison libraries. Whilst it is the case that all prisons must have a library, numerous official reports as well as evidence we have gathered from prisoners and their families show that access is poor in a large number of prisons.
3a. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons reports
Since PSI 30/2013 came into force reports from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons have been critical of both library services and access to libraries. . Examples include:
Portland, published 4 December 2014
“Library provision was barely adequate with limited access.”
“The library was reasonably well stocked but staff shortages had resulted in reduced access for prisoners. Reduced space had affected the number of prisoners able to use the facility, and lending rates had significantly decreased.”
“Many scheduled visits from the wings did not take place due to a lack of prison escort staff, and education staff no longer formally scheduled visits as part of sessions.”
Elmley, published 12 November 2014
“Access to the library was unacceptably poor. Many prisoners said that they had not been able to visit the library for many months.”
“Prisoners rarely went to the library as a result of a lack of staff to escort or supervise them. Even prisoners studying in the adjacent education classrooms found accessing the library difficult. Our survey reported only 6% of prisoners visited the library at least once a week. This was a significant decline from 20% at the previous inspection and lower than comparable prisons at 32%.”
Swinfen Hall, published 11 November 2014
“Staffordshire County Council ran the prison library, which had two librarians and two orderlies and was open Tuesday to Friday daytime and on Saturday afternoon. Prisoners rarely visited the library and the planned allocation times frequently clashed with other activities. The percentage of the population registered as members of the library had fallen since the previous inspection. A mobile trolley service had been trialled unsuccessfully after the previous inspection. The library was not promoted well enough throughout the prison to encourage use of its facilities, and not all new arrivals attended the library induction.”
“There was insufficient monitoring of the use of the library by different groups of prisoners to plan improvements. A new computerised system was not yet producing library performance reports, and data on library stock and book loss were unavailable. The library had weak links with education and vocational training. Prisoners could not easily access reference legal texts and Prison Service Orders in the library.”
Swaleside, published 26 September 2014
“The library was good but access was problematic.”
“The library was pleasant and well stocked, with good recreational and learning resources. Although sessions were timetabled to give all prisoners access to it, many were unable to attend because of regime and staffing issues.”
Chelmsford, published 9 September 2014
“Prisoners’ access to the library was too restricted. The library opened for only 20 hours a week, over four weekdays. A lack of prison staff availability and inadequate cover for library staff absence had led to frequent closures for one, and often two, of the eight half-day sessions each week. The library provider had recently arranged additional staffing to reduce the number of cancelled sessions.”
“Library usage was low. Only 25% of prisoners responding to our survey said that they visited the library at least once a week, a far smaller proportion than at similar prisons.”
Wormwood Scrubs, published 3 September 2014
“Prisoners reported problems in getting to the library. Despite slightly longer opening hours in the previous few months, the number of prisoners visiting the library had dropped by about a third.”
“Prisoner access to and attendance at most activities, including the gym and library, were poor and cancellations were frequent.”
“The number of visits to the library had declined by about a third during 2013 to 2014, largely because staff were not bringing prisoners from the wings.”
Parc Juvenile Unit, published 27 August 2014
“There was a well-stocked library, but access to it was too limited.”
“At the time of the inspection, the library did not have the full complement of staff. As a result of this, opening times were limited and library promotion and development work had been greatly reduced.”
Doncaster, published 13 August 2014
“Library provision was poor. Library facilities were located in small, unattractive rooms in each of the three house blocks. There was no furniture for private study, nor computers for prisoners visiting the library to use.”
“Arrangements for prisoners to select from stock held in house blocks apart from their own were weak, further limiting their book choices. The variety of newspapers and periodicals was narrow.”
“The library did not routinely obtain books or other materials to support education and vocational training courses across the prison.”
Glen Parva, published 6 August 2014
“Access to the library was poor.”
“The two libraries, operated by Leicester Council, were adequately resourced but greatly underused, although the recent changes to the core day had promoted a significant improvement in prisoners’ access to them.”
Birmingham, published 9 July 2014
“Access to the library was particularly poor.”
“Prisoners’ access to the library had declined since the previous inspection. Prisoners who worked could not visit the library and it remained closed during the evenings and at weekends.”
“Access to the library had decreased and it was now an underused resource.”
Whitemoor, published 22 May 2014
“Access to the library was limited.”
“The library provided prisoners who borrowed books with an adequate service but was otherwise very limited. Access was regular but very brief. The library did too little to support learning across the prison.”
Woodhill, published 13 May 2014
“At the time of the inspection, the prison had not had a library service provider for nine months. The library was managed and operated by a prison officer, supported by two prisoner orderlies. A new service provider was due to take over management of the library but not until April 2014. New prisoners did not routinely receive information about library services.”
“The quality and quantity of library materials were adequate but no new library materials had been introduced for nine months.”
Brinsford, published 23 April 2014
“The library was spacious, welcoming and well stocked. Prisoners had inadequate access to the library because of the lack of available prison officers. Library staff were frequently unable to run activities they had planned.”
“The library was spacious, welcoming and well stocked. Staff were well qualified and managed the library very effectively. However, these facilities were substantially underused because prisoners had inadequate access to the library. In one week in October, only three prisoners visited it on one occasion when they were brought over from the induction wing. The lack of available prison officers to accompany prisoners to the library had severely reduced library membership, use of the facilities and book loans. The library was still not open in the evenings or at weekends.”
3b. Independent Monitoring Board reports 2013/14
Several Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) reports have reported concerns about access to libraries over the last year. Examples include:
Belmarsh IMB
“The library continues to be a well organised and valuable resource. It is unfortunate that visits from the houseblocks have frequently been cancelled throughout the year due both to officers being re-deployed and absence of the librarian.”
Bullingdon IMB
“There is a well-stocked library with helpful staff… However, E Wing prisoners were unable to access the library for six months. They could not be accommodated under the new core day timetable.”
Dartmoor IMB
“The library is an effective resource but the Board has noted that sessions have been missed due to staff shortages and lock downs.”
Nottingham IMB
“It is disappointing to report that the library service within the prison continues to be seriously underused. Indeed, following the contraction in staffing throughout the establishment, the number of prisoners taking out library material has not exceeded 15% of the prison population. Even more concerning is the failure of several wings to provide any access to the library in recent months. In every instance a lack of staffing is cited as the reason for this failure, but it is also in part a failure to appropriately prioritise library access and to think creatively about improving the situation. The library is a valuable resource for prisoners, which at present is not utilised effectively.”
Pentonville IMB
“There were 7031 recorded visits to the library in the reporting year, a significant decrease from the previous year’s total of 11,300 – itself down from 12,300 in 2011-2012. The most notable drop took place following the introduction of NWoW in October which exacerbated the impact of a steady reduction in staffing levels.”
Stafford IMB
“Problems with staffing reduced prisoners’ chances of improving themselves and of preparing for the future. Access to the library was a particular problem”
3c. Letters from Prisoners
The Howard League has received a large number of letters from prisoners regarding library facilities and access to libraries. Examples include:
Prisoner from Pentonville
“I have been in HMP Pentonville for 8 weeks. I have not been offered a visit to the library and have had no access to reading materials. No prisoners on A wing or J wing are allowed to go to the library. I have asked wing staff regularly, but they have been unable to assist.”
Prisoner from Isle of Wight
“I have very limited access to the library, as I work full time. I get access to it for approx. 10-15 minutes once a fortnight.”
Prisoner from Northumberland
“Since the middle of January we have been denied regular access to the library and complaints about this have been met with one excuse after another but there has been no improvement. In February we visited the library twice, in March, once, in April, once and not one of these visits was the half hour we are supposed to get.”
Prisoner from G4S-run Oakwood
“I have been in Oakwood for nearly 19 months. I have only been to library once. They have library in here but it is very hard to get access to the library.”
Prisoner from Wakefield
“Over the last month, my wing’s library evening has been cancelled on several occasions. Despite the provision in prison rules 1999 for every prisoner to have access this is simply not happening.”
Prisoner from Bullingdon
“My wing can no longer visit the main library. This is now a permanent arrangement. The prison says it’s because of staff shortages. We have a small wing library with a small number of books and reference books which are so out of date they are useless.”
Most prisoners do not have access to newspapers unless they can get to the library, none have access to the internet and so without books their only source of intellectual stimulation and what is happening in the world outside is the television.
The Howard League for Penal Reform is calling on the Ministry of Justice to lift the ban on sending parcels containing books and other essentials to prisoners forthwith.
January 2015