Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Question 13 of oral evidence taken before the Justice Committee on 24 October 2023, HC 1929, Session 2022–23, which prisons are (a) sending and (b) receiving prison officers under detached duty; and how many prison officers are affected.

On 8 November 2023, 385 prison officers at Bands 3-5 were deployed on detached duty. The prisons sending and receiving officers on detached duty on that date are listed in the table below:

Staff are deployed on detached duty as a tactical response to support other prisons when required, to cover staffing shortfalls, or to meet other operation requirements. It provides His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) with a vital contingency measure to assist in maintaining good order and security in prisons.

Despite a challenging labour market, we have seen indications of an improving resource picture nationally within prisons, with a substantial increase of 701 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Band 3-5 Prison officers between June 2022-June 2023. In the same period, we have seen a fall in the resignation rate amongst Band 3-5 officers of 2.6 percentage points, down from 11.5% in June 2022 to 8.9% in June 2023.