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  • The Earl of Listowel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The Earl of Listowel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Listowel on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they offer to local authorities in respect of persuading children in their care to leave that care at the age of 16 or 17.

    Lord Nash

    The Government amended the statutory framework regarding 16- and 17-year-olds ceasing to be looked after in January 2014. The new regulation requires that where a child aged 16-or 17-year-old is looked after other than by virtue of a care order, the decision of the local authority to cease looking after that child must be approved by their director of children’s services. The intention behind the Regulation is to help ensure that young people do not leave care until they are ready and properly prepared. The Department for Education will, in the summer, revise the ‘Care Planning, Placement and Case Review’ statutory guidance to explain how local authorities should implement the new duty.

  • The Earl of Listowel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The Earl of Listowel – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Listowel on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support they are offering local authorities to implement the staying put duty in the Children and Families Act 2014.

    Lord Nash

    The Government will be giving local authorities an additional £40 million over the next three years to help implement the new ‘Staying Put’ duty. The Department for Education will shortly be publishing revised ‘Transitions to Adulthood’ statutory guidance, which will include specific guidance for local authorities on implementing the duty.

  • Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conclusion of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his report on HMP Pentonville that Home Office input on immigration matters relating to foreign prisoners was inadequate.

    Lord Faulks

    The Home Office and the National Offender Management Service work closely together to ensure that foreign national prisoners are identified, and where appropriate, removed from the country at the earliest opportunity. Regular discussions take place between Governors and Home Office officials to assess the level of immigration support required to achieve this.

    Since the Chief Inspector’s report, Home Office resources at HMP Pentonville have been increased. Immigration Officers now attend the prison on a total of 30 days per month and intend to be present on every weekday. Since 29th March they have also attended on Saturdays.

    Immigration Officers hold induction and documentation interviews and hold regular general immigration surgeries.

  • – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the findings of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons about the medical treatment in the High Security Unit and Special Security unit in HMP Belmarsh that led to his recommendation that patients should receive confidential medical consultations and treatment that preserves privacy and dignity

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The HSU / SSU is visited daily by a nurse who will speak with every prisoner to establish whether there are any issues. The GP will visit the unit weekly (as a minimum). As part of the HMIP Action Plan that is being developed the Operating Standards are currently under review which will address the issue regarding quarterly reviews.

    The reference in the report was regarding one prisoner who was seen with discipline staff present; the privacy and dignity of prisoners is taken very seriously within HMP Belmarsh, however this must be balanced against the risk that the individual poses to others. Prisoners will be seen without escorting staff unless the risk is deemed to be too high, this is an exceptional circumstance rather than the rule.

  • Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conclusion of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his recent report on HMP Belmarsh that there was no evidence that the quarterly health reviews of all prisoners in the High Security Unit and the Special Security Unit required by the operating standards had been carried out.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The HSU / SSU is visited daily by a nurse who will speak with every prisoner to establish whether there are any issues. The GP will visit the unit weekly (as a minimum). As part of the HMIP Action Plan that is being developed the Operating Standards are currently under review which will address the issue regarding quarterly reviews.

    The reference in the report was regarding one prisoner who was seen with discipline staff present; the privacy and dignity of prisoners is taken very seriously within HMP Belmarsh, however this must be balanced against the risk that the individual poses to others. Prisoners will be seen without escorting staff unless the risk is deemed to be too high, this is an exceptional circumstance rather than the rule.

  • Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conclusion of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his recent report on HMP Belmarsh that the requirement in the operating standards for the Governor to visit the High Security Unit and the Special Security Unit once a week had not been met.

    Lord Newby

    1. The prisoner regime includes a programme to allow access to the library once a week for those not attending education. The implementation of New Ways of Working, which includes the introduction of a new Core Day, will increase the opportunity for prisoners to access the library.

    2. All in use cells on the High Security Unit / Special Secure Unit are appropriately furnished in compliance with national guidelines, which are also included as part of the unit’s operating standards. The cells are also equipped to the specification required for accommodating Category A prisoners. The accommodation on the unit is inspected monthly, to ensure compliance and to maintain decency; this system is audited.

    3. The Governor has a programme of visits throughout the establishment; this includes visits to the HSU / SSU. The requirement for a weekly visit is completed by the Governor or the Deputy Governor, and the visits will ensure that all prisoners and staff are frequently seen and any emerging issues are heard and noted. These visits are now recorded for audit and inspection purposes.

  • Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken to respond to the recommendation by Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his recent report on HMP Belmarsh that not all cells in the High Security Unit and Special Security Unit were equipped with furniture and furnishings in line with the Prison Service’s operating standards for such units.

    Lord Newby

    1. The prisoner regime includes a programme to allow access to the library once a week for those not attending education. The implementation of New Ways of Working, which includes the introduction of a new Core Day, will increase the opportunity for prisoners to access the library.

    2. All in use cells on the High Security Unit / Special Secure Unit are appropriately furnished in compliance with national guidelines, which are also included as part of the unit’s operating standards. The cells are also equipped to the specification required for accommodating Category A prisoners. The accommodation on the unit is inspected monthly, to ensure compliance and to maintain decency; this system is audited.

    3. The Governor has a programme of visits throughout the establishment; this includes visits to the HSU / SSU. The requirement for a weekly visit is completed by the Governor or the Deputy Governor, and the visits will ensure that all prisoners and staff are frequently seen and any emerging issues are heard and noted. These visits are now recorded for audit and inspection purposes.

  • Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Stern – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Stern on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken to respond to the recommendation by Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons in his recent report on HMP Belmarsh that the library should increase its opening hours so that all prisoners have access to it.

    Lord Newby

    1. The prisoner regime includes a programme to allow access to the library once a week for those not attending education. The implementation of New Ways of Working, which includes the introduction of a new Core Day, will increase the opportunity for prisoners to access the library.

    2. All in use cells on the High Security Unit / Special Secure Unit are appropriately furnished in compliance with national guidelines, which are also included as part of the unit’s operating standards. The cells are also equipped to the specification required for accommodating Category A prisoners. The accommodation on the unit is inspected monthly, to ensure compliance and to maintain decency; this system is audited.

    3. The Governor has a programme of visits throughout the establishment; this includes visits to the HSU / SSU. The requirement for a weekly visit is completed by the Governor or the Deputy Governor, and the visits will ensure that all prisoners and staff are frequently seen and any emerging issues are heard and noted. These visits are now recorded for audit and inspection purposes.

  • Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wigley on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Imprisonment for Public Protection prisoners were imprisoned at the latest date available date; how many of those were beyond the tariff; and of those beyond their tariff, how many (1) have completed rehabilitation programmes courses successfully, (2) have been on rehabilitation courses but have not completed them successfully, (3) have been offered rehabilitation courses but are awaiting their completion, and (4) have not been offered rehabilitation courses.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The Parole Board assesses the risk posed by individual prisoners when considering their release or transfer to open conditions, and work that has been completed to reduce these risks, rather than only looking at whether specific offending behaviour programmes (OBPs) have been completed. It is not mandatory for Indeterminate Sentence Prisoners to complete OBPs in order to achieve release. Other work that may help to reduce risk may take the form of accredited OBPs; however, it may also include activities such as education or training, work, one to one sessions with a psychologist and a range of other interventions. Although in some circumstances an OBP may be the preferred option, the Parole Board may consider that an offender has reduced their risk of harm, despite not being able to attend a particular course, because they have been able to undertake other offending behaviour work which has achieved the same outcome.

    As at 31 December 2013 there were 5,335 prisoners serving an Indeterminate Sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection, of which 3,561 were beyond the tariff.

    Of these prisoners beyond tariff, 3,160 had completed at least one accredited offending behaviour programme successfully; 415 had attended a programme and not completed it successfully and of these, 62 had yet to complete any programme successfully; and 184 are currently attending a programme and the outcome is not yet known.

    The figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

    No information is collected on how many prisoners have not been offered an accredited offending behaviour programme and this could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Wigley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wigley on 2014-04-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the latest available figures of the number of people in employment in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales respectively; and how they compare with the figures for three and six years earlier.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.