Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether new dedicated staff set to act as brokers for prisoners to secure quicker access to accommodation and services on release in eleven prisons will receive training on gender specific accommodation challenges for women prison leavers.

We are introducing and testing the Housing Specialist role across a number of prisons, including HMP Newhall in the female estate. The specific challenges women prison leavers face accessing accommodation and services on release have been considered as part of the design of the role and project as a whole. Candidates who do not already have an understanding of these challenges will be given support to develop this, working alongside colleagues who understand the challenges, in order to maximise the opportunities on release.