A committee of MPs said that there was 'little available information' on how the operational performance of private finance initiative prisons compared with other prisons, or whether the use of the PFI had brought wider benefits to the prison service.
Source: The Operational Performance of PFI Prisons, Forty-ninth Report (Session 2002-03), HC 904, House of Commons Public Accounts Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report
Date: 2003-Dec
The Commission for Racial Equality accused the prison service in England and Wales of unlawful racial discrimination for a catalogue of failures to properly protect and treat ethnic minority prisoners and staff. It also published an action plan, jointly with the prison service, designed to address the issue of racism in prisons.
Source: Racial Equality in Prisons, Commission for Racial Equality (020 7939 0000) | Implementing Race Equality in Prisons: A shared agenda for change, Commission for Racial Equality and HM Prison Service
Links: Report (pdf) | Action plan (pdf) | CRE press release | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2)
Date: 2003-Dec
A joint group of MPs and peers reportedly warned that prisons would 'explode into violence' unless urgent action were taken to ease overcrowding. Record prison numbers were 'endangering the life and limbs of both prisoners and prison officers'.
Source: Report by All Party Parliamentary Penal Affairs Group, in conjunction with Prison Reform Trust, reported in The Guardian, 22 December 2003
Links: Guardian report
Date: 2003-Dec
A report said that probation areas and policy makers should be realistic about the reductions in offending which could be achieved in the short term through toughening up enforcement practices. One option might be to explore ways of positively reinforcing good attendance, and of addressing non-compliance, without recourse to breach action.
Source: Ian Hearnden and Andrew Millie, Investigating Links between Probation Enforcement and Reconviction, Online Report 41/03, Home Office (web publication only)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Dec
A report said that racist comments and discrimination by prison staff were commonplace in England's Young Offender Institutions. Black young prisoners suffered racism in silence because of fundamental flaws in prison service complaints procedures.
Source: David Wilson and Sharon Moore, Playing the Game The experiences of young black men in custody, Children s Society (020 7841 4415)
Links: Report (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Dec
A report said that remanding more than 8,000 young men aged 18-20 to prison every year was wasteful and unproductive. The overwhelming majority of those concerned were only held in prison for a short time, and yet very little was done to address their problems, leading to disrupted lives and more crime.
Source: Anita Dockley, Busy Doing Nothing: The experience of 18 to 20 year old men on remand, Howard League for Penal Reform (020 7249 7373)
Links: Report (Word file) | Howard League press release
Date: 2003-Nov
The government published statistics on the prison service in 2002. The average population in custody during 2002 was 70,860, an increase of 7 per cent on 2001, and a 55 per cent increase compared to 1992.
Source: Prison Statistics: England and Wales 2002, Cm 5996, TSO (0870 600 5522) | Rachel Councell, The Prison Population in 2002: Statistical review, Research Findings 228, Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Report (pdf) | Findings (pdf)
Date: 2003-Nov
The government announced that the women s prison estate would be managed geographically instead of functionally from 2004. It said the move would enable female prisoners to have better access to services such as jobseeking and healthcare which had a regional structure. The particular needs of female prisoners would continue to be met by a dedicated section of staff with a senior manager in overall charge. But campaigners said that only the creation of a 'National Women's Justice Board' would prioritise the needs of women offenders. (There are 17 women's prisons, and 2 wings attached to men's prisons.)
Source: Press release 12 November 2003, Home Office (0870 000 1585) | Press release 13 November 2003, Prison Reform Trust (020 7251 5070)
Links: Home Office press release | PRT press release
Date: 2003-Nov
A bulletin provided information about mentally disordered offenders admitted to, detained in, or discharged from hospitals. The number in hospital at the end of 2002 was 2,989, 0.7 per cent more than the previous year. The total number admitted to hospitals was 985 in 2002, 12 (or 1 per cent) fewer than the previous year.
Source: Daniel Howard and Olivia Christophersen, Statistics of Mentally Disordered Offenders 2002: England and Wales, Statistical Bulletin 14/03, Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Bulletin (pdf)
Date: 2003-Nov
A report examined changes since a survey of race relations in prisons conducted in 2000. It said that, although much had been achieved, commendable policies still needed to be translated into reality.
Source: Race and Prisons: Where are we now?, National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (020 7582 6500)
Links: No link
Date: 2003-Nov
An inspectorate report said that probation boards had established a clear identity for themselves (since their creation in 2000), and had generally exercised their responsibilities efficiently. But it said questions remained as to which aspects of probation policy should be determined locally and which centrally.
Source: From Aspirations to Reality: Inspection of the governance of probation areas by probation boards, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales (020 7035 2103)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Oct
Campaigners said that prisoners were being denied opportunities for education and training in jails in England and Wales, because of a failure to prioritise learning. Based on interviews with a range of prisoners, a report concluded: 'despite the highly appreciated efforts of some education staff there was a desultory second best feel to prisoners' accounts of education'. It highlighted a number of specific barriers to learning in prison.
Source: Time to Learn: Prisoners' views on prison education, Prison Reform Trust (020 7251 5070)
Links: PRT press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Oct
Campaigners published a survey of prisoners in Northern Ireland which showed that 23 per cent were scared or depressed on reception into prison, and 13 per cent regularly felt they had nothing left to live for. The report called for training for prisoners to enable them to provide peer support inside prison; family days, extended visits and improved visiting facilities for children; and a garden or other pleasant outside space where prisoners could go to relax.
Source: Claire McCarthy, Suicide and Self-harm: A strategy for Northern Ireland, Howard League for Penal Reform (020 7249 7373)
Links: Howard League press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Oct
A report evaluated drug treatment programmes for prisoners. It said that cognitive-behavioural therapies had a consistent record for effectiveness, motivating people to change behaviour and helping with related problems such as anxiety and depression. Evidence for non-directive counselling techniques was not strong in general, and even more limited for its use within the criminal justice system. Evidence was lacking for the effectiveness of educational programmes.
Source: Larry Harrison, Rose Cappello, Andy Alaszewski, Sarah Appleton and Geoff Cooke, The Effectiveness of Treatment for Substance Dependence within the Prison System in England: A review, Centre for Health Services Studies/University of Kent (01227 827760)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary
Date: 2003-Aug
A report said that elderly prisoners were being neglected, because the prison service was failing to meet their specialist health, social and rehabilitation needs.
Source: Ken Howse, Growing Old in Prison: Scoping study on older prisoners, Prison Reform Trust (020 7251 5070)
Links: PRT press release
Date: 2003-Aug
An article said that many aspects of prison life damaged the mental health of both prisoners and prison staff, and that a better understanding of the prison environment was needed if prisoners were to be successfully rehabilitated into society.
Source: Jo Nurse, Paul Woodcock and Jim Ormsby, 'Influence of environmental factors on mental health within prisons: focus group study', British Medical Journal 30.8.03
Links: Article | BMJ press release
Date: 2003-Aug
A report said that 2002-03 saw the highest number of suicides, and record levels of overcrowding and staff sickness, in prisons in England and Wales. It also said that the recorded level of drug use in prisons had increased for the first time in five years. It raised concerns about the accuracy of the official 'key performance indicators' for the prison service.
Source: Enver Solomon, A Measure of Success, Prison Reform Trust (020 7251 5070)
Links: Report (pdf) | PRT press release (Word file) | Summary | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Aug
A report brought together seven studies of drug use on the part of prisoners before, during and after custody. Subjects covered by the studies included: the international literature on drug treatment in prisons; the treatment needs of female prisoners; the impact of treatment on re-offending; and the initial development of the prison service's strategy for tackling the problem.
Source: Malcolm Ramsay (ed.), Prisoners Drug Use and Treatment: Seven studies, Research Study 267, Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Study (pdf) | Findings (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jul
The probation service inspectorate expressed concern about 'sentencing drift' (increasingly tougher penalties for similar offences). It said that if the national probation service were to be enabled to target its resources on higher-risk offenders and, in particular, supervise persistent offenders more intensively, then it would almost certainly have to shed some other tasks.
Source: 2002/2003 Annual Report, Her Majesty s Inspectorate of Probation/Home Office (020 7273 4599)
Links: Report (pdf) | Home Office press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jul
The prison service in England and Wales met 8 out of 15 key performance targets in 2002-03, including those for escapes and for education of prisoners. But there was an increase in self-inflicted deaths, and in the number of positive drug tests.
Source: Annual Report & Accounts: April 2002 to March 2003, HC 885, HM Prison Service, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | HM Prisons press release
Date: 2003-Jul
An audit report said that the private finance initiative (PFI) had improved prison services overall.
Source: The Operational Performance of PFI Prisons, HC 700 (Session 2002-03), National Audit Office, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | NAO press release | Prison Reform Trust press release | CBI press release
Date: 2003-Jun
A study found two principal causes for the increase in the prison population between 1991 and 2001: sentencers were imposing longer prison sentences for serious crimes, and they were more likely to imprison offenders who previously would have received a community penalty or even a fine. The increase was not linked to a rise in crime.
Source: Mike Hough, Jessica Jacobson and Andrew Millie, The Decision to Imprison: Sentencing and the prison population, Prison Reform Trust (020 7251 5070)
Links: Summary (pdf) | PRT press release
Date: 2003-Jun
The prison population in England and Wales in December 2002 was 69,612, an increase of 5 per cent compared to a year earlier.
Source: Veronica Hollis and Michelle Goodman, Monthly Prison Population Brief, England and Wales: December 2002, Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-May
A report made a series of recommendations for reducing the number of suicides by prisoners.
Source: Jenny Shaw, Louis Appleby and Denise Baker, Safer Prisons, National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness (01772 406631)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-May
The government announced a reduction in the period a prisoner had to spend in custody before becoming eligible for home detention curfew. As a result the maximum length of home detention curfew would rise from three months to four and a half months, according to sentence length, from 14 July 2003.
Source: House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 10.4.03, columns 31-32WS, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Hansard | Home Office press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Apr
The Lord Chief Justice said that jail terms of a year or less did not help rehabilitate offenders, and that more offenders should be given community sentences.
Source: Speech by Lord Chief Justice, 16.4.03, Lord Chancellor s Department (020 7210 8500)
Links: Text of speech
Date: 2003-Apr
The government announced that performance testing would be introduced in the Prison Service, starting with four selected prisons. A quarterly report would be published, grading each prison on a scale of 1 to 4, where 1 indicated a 'failing' prison and 4 indicated exceptionally high performance. The testing would be evaluated by a board chaired by the Commissioner for Correctional Services, which would make recommendations to transfer to private management any prison that failed to meet the test. The government said: 'Performance testing will ensure that prisons really are working towards delivering improvements which will mean better treatment of prisoners and more opportunity to reduce offending.'
Source: Press release 8.4.03, HM Prison Service/Home Office (0870 000 1585)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Apr
An inspectorate report said the National Probation Service is making good progress in the national roll-out of 'drug treatment and testing orders': but it also highlighted a number of areas where improvement was necessary, including the monitoring of women offenders and those from minority ethnic groups, and 'unacceptable' regional variations in delivery.
Source: A Long Way in a Short Time: Inspection of the implementation of drug treatment and testing orders by the National Probation Service, HM Inspectorate of Probation (020 7035 2200)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Mar
A campaign group report said that the number of men, women and children deliberately injuring themselves in prisons in England and Wales is more than three times higher than previously thought. It said that as many as 21,000 incidents of self-injury take place in prisons each year.
Source: Suicide and Self-harm Prevention: Management of self-injury in prison, Howard League for Penal Reform (020 7249 7373)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Mar
A campaign group report said the system for investigating deaths in custody needs radical reform. It called on the government to overhaul the entire system including initial investigation, coroners' courts, and other remedies. It argued that the current system 'clearly breaches' the right to life as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights.
Source: Greta Vogt and John Wadham, Deaths in Custody: Reform and redress, Liberty (020 7403 3888)
Links: Report (pdf) | Press release
Date: 2003-Mar
A new post of 'commissioner for correctional services' was created at permanent secretary level in the Home Office. The post combines overall responsibility for the prison and probation services, and for advising the government on sentencing policy.
Source: The Guardian, 19.2.03
Links:Guardian report
Date: 2003-Mar
The Prison Service launched a 'professional standards unit', designed to promote a culture of integrity and openness and to deter corruption, dishonesty and discrimination.
Source: Press release 17.2.03, Prison Service/Home Office (020 7273 4543)
Links: Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
The average prison population in England and Wales in 2001 was 66,300, an increase of 3 per cent since 2000 (64,600), and greater than in any previous year. The greatest proportion of male prisoners were serving sentences for violence against the person (22 per cent). The average female prison population increased by 12 per cent to 3,740: two-fifths (40 per cent) were serving sentences for drug offences.
Source: Rachel Councell and Jide Olagundoye, The Prison Population in 2001: Statistical review, Research Findings 195, Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Findings (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Feb
The number of people held in custody in England and Wales in September 2002 was 72,315, an increase of 7 per cent on the number in September 2001 (67,465). The Lord Chancellor reportedly described the prison population as 'insupportable'.
Source: John Simes and Michelle Goodman, Prison Population Brief - England and Wales: September 2002, Home Office (020 7273 2084) | The Guardian, 7.1.03
Links: Report (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jan
Children with a prisoner in the family are more likely to suffer from isolation, discrimination and significant mental health problems, according to a report.
Source: Exploring the Needs of Young People with a Prisoner in the Family, Action for Prisoners' Families (020 7384 1987)
Links: Press release (Word file) | Community Care article
Date: 2003-Jan
A survey found that the police, schools and prisons are generally perceived to have a greater impact on levels of crime than the probation service. Levels of awareness and understanding of the probation service appear to be lower among minority ethnic communities.
Source: MORI Social Research Institute, Perceptions of the National Probation Service, National Probation Directorate/Home Office (020 7273 2084)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jan