Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of drug-related deaths across the secure estate.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Every death in custody is a tragedy, and we continue to do all we can to keep people safe in prison. We are committed to ensuring all those who need drug treatment in prison have access to a full range of treatment options, including abstinence-based interventions, to support a meaningful recovery and thereby reduce drug related deaths.
As part of the Cross-Government Drug Strategy, the MoJ is investing up to £120m to tackle drugs and support offenders into treatment. This includes working with NHS England to supply life-saving naloxone medication to staff in prisons, to administer to those who have suffered an opiate overdose.
We are also investing in prison security to prevent drugs entering prisons in the first place, recruiting Drug Strategy Leads in all male category C and women's prisons to coordinate a whole system approach to tackling drugs, and rolling out abstinence-based Drug Recovery Wings to help opiate users recover from their substance misuse.
Asked by: Ellie Reeves (Labour - Lewisham West and Penge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made for the implications of his policies of the Women in Prison’s report on the Value of Women’s Centres which noted that investing in Women's Centres could generate a nearly triple return on investment; and if his Department would contribute to a cross-departmental fund for such an investment.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government appreciates the important role women’s centres play in supporting women in the community with complex needs, including supporting ex-offenders to address the underlying causes of their behaviour, as set out in this report.
The benefits of work for ex-offenders are far reaching and that is why DWP already invests significant funding for over 200 prison Work Coaches who provide employment and benefit support in prisons. Our extensive network of Jobcentre Work Coaches also provide tailored employment support to ex-offenders in the community.
The Ministry of Justice is investing up to £24 million in women’s community services that aim to both support the sector in delivering vital services and to promote better local integration in how those services are delivered. The effectiveness of their funding for women’s community services will be evaluated and inform future funding decisions across Government.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to tackle drug use in prisons.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The cross-government Drugs Strategy, published in December 2021, sets out a 10-year plan to reduce the supply and demand for drugs, deliver a high-quality treatment and recovery system, and reduce drug harms. The strategy was underpinned by record £900m investment across government to tackle drug misuse, including £120m funding for the MoJ to get more offenders into treatment.
To do this we are: piloting Problem-Solving Courts to combat drug and alcohol fuelled crime; rolling out Drug Recovery Wings where prisoners commit to remain abstinent and undergo regular voluntary drug tests; recruiting Drug Strategy Leads in all male category C and women's prisons to coordinate a whole system approach to tackling drugs, as well as Health and Justice Coordinators across all probation regions to ensure continuity of care for prison leavers.
This is all in addition to the existing £100m already invested to combat crime in prisons, including reducing the conveyance of illicit items such as drugs and mobile phones.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton South)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking through the criminal justice system to tackle alcohol and drug related crime.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The cross-government Drugs Strategy, published in December 2021, sets out a 10-year plan to reduce the supply and demand for drugs, deliver a high-quality treatment and recovery system, and reduce drug harms. The strategy was underpinned by record £900m investment across government to tackle drug misuse, including £120m funding for the MoJ to get more offenders into treatment.
To do this we are: piloting Problem-Solving Courts to combat drug and alcohol fuelled crime; rolling out Drug Recovery Wings where prisoners commit to remain abstinent and undergo regular voluntary drug tests; recruiting Drug Strategy Leads in all male category C and women's prisons to coordinate a whole system approach to tackling drugs, as well as Health and Justice Coordinators across all probation regions to ensure continuity of care for prison leavers.
This is all in addition to the existing £100m already invested to combat crime in prisons, including reducing the conveyance of illicit items such as drugs and mobile phones.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the press notice entitled Extra funding for organisations that steer women away from crime, published by his Department on 23 January 2021, how much his Department has spent on on building new prison places in existing women’s prisons since January 2021.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
New places being delivered in the women’s estate will be delivered as part of our £3.8bn investment to deliver 20,000 prison places across England and Wales by the mid-2020s.
New facilities in the women’s prison estate will provide up to 500 extra places that are safe, secure, trauma-informed and gender-specific. We will also continue to invest in community-based interventions, to ensure women have an alternative to a custodial sentence where appropriate
Asked by: Ellie Reeves (Labour - Lewisham West and Penge)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Liaison Officers there are across the women’s estate; and what training they have received.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Prisons Strategy White Paper set out a new approach for women’s prisons: one which is trauma responsive, recognises the distinct nature of women’s experience in custody and provides the appropriate levels of support, particularly for pregnant women and those with young children.
So far, we have developed bespoke selection and assessment criteria for staff in women’s prisons and started to roll out a bespoke model of staff training.
We have also funded a number of activities to support improvements in safety, including additional support for women with complex needs, specialist support for women who have experienced abuse and extra support during early days in custody.
In addition, we have announced the opening of a pilot Residential Women’s Centre in Swansea to provide a community-based alternative to a short custodial sentence.
The Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Unit and Maternal Separation from Children up to the Age of Two in Women’s Prisons Policy Framework (September 2021), committed to the introduction of the Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Liaison Officer across the women’s estate. There are 13 Liaison Officers in place and 12 attended the national ‘Managing Pregnant Women in Prison’ course in March 2022. Additionally, we have introduced a National Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Liaison Officers Support Network.
We also committed to The National Stakeholder Advisory Forum on Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Units, and Maternal Separation from Children up to the Age of Two in Women’s Prisons. This bi-annual event will bring together key stakeholders and individuals with lived experience ensuring a culture of reflective practice and informed policy development. The first event is scheduled for Autumn 2022 and the terms of reference will be shared with forum attendees in advance.
Asked by: Ellie Reeves (Labour - Lewisham West and Penge)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress his Department is making on ensuring that each women’s prison is a trauma-informed and responsive environment.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Prisons Strategy White Paper set out a new approach for women’s prisons: one which is trauma responsive, recognises the distinct nature of women’s experience in custody and provides the appropriate levels of support, particularly for pregnant women and those with young children.
So far, we have developed bespoke selection and assessment criteria for staff in women’s prisons and started to roll out a bespoke model of staff training.
We have also funded a number of activities to support improvements in safety, including additional support for women with complex needs, specialist support for women who have experienced abuse and extra support during early days in custody.
In addition, we have announced the opening of a pilot Residential Women’s Centre in Swansea to provide a community-based alternative to a short custodial sentence.
The Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Unit and Maternal Separation from Children up to the Age of Two in Women’s Prisons Policy Framework (September 2021), committed to the introduction of the Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Liaison Officer across the women’s estate. There are 13 Liaison Officers in place and 12 attended the national ‘Managing Pregnant Women in Prison’ course in March 2022. Additionally, we have introduced a National Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Liaison Officers Support Network.
We also committed to The National Stakeholder Advisory Forum on Pregnancy, Mother and Baby Units, and Maternal Separation from Children up to the Age of Two in Women’s Prisons. This bi-annual event will bring together key stakeholders and individuals with lived experience ensuring a culture of reflective practice and informed policy development. The first event is scheduled for Autumn 2022 and the terms of reference will be shared with forum attendees in advance.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing funding for computers, phone calls and other technical support to allow women in prison to engage with local authorities.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
As set out in the Prisons Strategy White Paper, we recognise that prisoner-facing technology can be transformative, including in supporting women with their rehabilitation and preparation for resettlement. To date, we have invested widely in prisoner communication, including rolling out video calling technology in July 2020 and email-reply systems in Autumn 2020 in all women’s prisons. We also completed the roll out of in-cell telephony in all closed women's prisons in June 2021. In addition, as part of family contracts, all women’s prisons have Family Engagement Workers who will work with and facilitate engagement with local authorities. In the longer-term, we aim to pilot employing social workers in women’s prisons.
Asked by: Gareth Thomas (Labour (Co-op) - Harrow West)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what were the 10 principal causes of death of those prisoners who died while in women's prisons in England and Wales in each of the last five years.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Department publishes statistics concerning deaths in prison custody in England and Wales in the quarterly Safety in Custody statistics. A spreadsheet containing statistics on all deaths in custody up to December 2021 is available, in addition to quarterly bulletins outlining trends, at: Safety in custody: quarterly update to September 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Those statistics are broken down by whether the death was self-inflicted, from natural causes, or from other non-natural causes, or by homicide. They also show the number of ‘awaiting further information’ cases where the cause of death cannot yet be ascertained and remains under investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman or a coroner.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the rate of self-harm was among prisoners in (a) women's prisons and (b) men's prisons in each of the last three years.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Department publishes statistics on deaths, self-harm and assaults in prison custody in England and Wales in the quarterly Safety in Custody statistics. A spreadsheet containing statistics on all instances of self-harm broken down by category is available, in addition to quarterly bulletins outlining trends at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/safety-in-custody-statistics.
Last year, we implemented a revised version of the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) multi-disciplinary case management approach to support prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm. We continue to make the Samaritans phone service available and are working with the Samaritans to ensure that the Listener peer support scheme continues to function effectively.
We are also implementing a new safety training package for staff, which addresses related issues, including suicide and self-harm prevention, understanding risks, triggers and protective factors, and communication skills.