Tag: Ministry of Justice

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 1 May 2023.

Extra £6 million to support up to 2,000 more people in complex family cases.

Extended family members seeking to provide long-term, stable care for vulnerable children will be able to access free legal advice, thanks to new government investment announced today (30 April 2023).

Under the move, legal aid funding will be extended to more people applying for Special Guardianship Orders through the courts – a form of care which sees a child in need of a loving home placed with extended family, friends or foster parents until they reach the age of 18.

These cases are often complicated, emotionally charged and challenging for families looking for the best outcome for vulnerable children.

Now, people making such applications in private law hearings will have access to legal aid funding for advice and representation on their cases, removing one more burden for families.

The funding will also provide free legal representation to parents opposing Special Guardianship Orders in private law proceedings to ensure they have the right support and advice.

Justice Minister, Lord Bellamy, said:

Providing a stable, loving home for a vulnerable child in need is an utterly selfless act and it is right we provide families with the vital support they need – particularly in the most complex and emotive of cases.

We are investing millions of pounds every year to make sure criminal and civil legal aid support can reach those who need it most.

Previously, legal aid was only available for Special Guardianship cases where the local authority was involved in submitting an application to remove a child from their birth parents.

The change to extend eligibility to private law cases comes as part of a wider investment in civil and criminal legal aid. Additional measures include:

• standardising the means and merit testing requirements for birth parents in proceedings where a local authority is authorised to place a child for adoption
• an extra £10 million a year in housing legal aid so that thousands more people can access legal advice when they fall into difficult times and face the risk of eviction

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 30 April 2023.

Terrorist prisoners to be banned from taking leading roles in religious services.

Convicted terrorists will be banned from taking a leading role in religious services and face more rigorous checks for extremist literature as the government redoubles efforts to crackdown on dangerous radicalisers behind bars.

New rules will prevent terrorist prisoners leading the call to prayer or delivering sermons – positions they could exploit to gain authority or influence over other offenders and spread their poisonous ideology.

This will strengthen existing measures preventing the most dangerous prisoners leading Friday prayers by extending the ban to all faiths and not just those in high-security prisons – protecting frontline staff and the public.

The government also confirmed today (30 April 2023) limits on prisoners’ property that will prevent extremists circumventing prison rules to hide and spread extremist texts.

While under prison rules there are no limits on the number of books prisoners can own, the government will toughen these restrictions by stating that they must fit into two medium size boxes with a maximum weight of 15 kilograms.

This follows instances where prisoners have gathered hundreds of books in their cells – in one case an offender had more than 200 books – in an apparent attempt to thwart prison officers searching for extremist material.

This week also sees construction beginning on a new Close Supervision Centre at HMP Frankland – a separate wing to hold the most physically violent prisoners, including terrorists ,to further tackle extremist activity.

The moves build on a bolstered approach to managing terrorists in prison that began a year ago this week following an independent review Jonathan Hall KC.

Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk said:

Faith can play a vital part in prisoners’ rehabilitation but we must never tolerate terrorists who seek to exploit religious services to advance their own sinister agenda.

These changes, alongside tougher sentences for terrorists who commit crimes behind bars and our work to separate more of the most radical terrorists, will better protect our hardworking staff, other prisoners and the public.

There are currently around 200 convicted terrorists in custody, many of whom attempt to justify their offences through their flawed interpretation of religion.

Today’s announcements are the latest in a string of decisive actions taken to prevent radicalisation and exploitation by terrorist offenders behind bars, following recommendations made by Jonathan Hall KC.

Since the report, the government has introduced a range of measures to tackle the threat of terrorist activity behind bars. This includes:

• Crime in Prisons agreement which ensures that terrorist offenders committing crime in prison are automatically referred to the police for prosecution so they face longer behind bars to keep the public safe.
• An investment of £1.2 million to establish a specialist Separation Centre and high-risk casework team, helping prevent offenders from spreading their malicious ideology to others.
• Changes to placement into Separation Centres so that offenders can be considered for placement in them sooner rather than being a ‘last resort’. Separation Centres are used to hold the most subversive extremist prisoners to prevent them from radicalising other prisoners.
• Ending the automatic early release of terrorists through the Terrorist Offenders Act 2020 and introducing a 14-year minimum jail term for the most dangerous terrorist offenders through the Counter Terrorism and Sentencing Act 2021.
• Introducing mandatory polygraph testing and making it easier for the police to search terrorist offenders or their property through the new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
• A £6 million expansion of close supervision centres that house the most violent offenders, including the one now under construction at HMP Frankland.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 28 April 2023.

New Lord Chancellor announces 13,000 cameras now available to every prison officer on shift.

Every prison officer in England and Wales now has access to a body-worn video camera while on shift to help keep them safe and cut prison violence, the new Lord Chancellor has announced today (28 April 2023).

Alex Chalk KC confirmed 13,000 new and improved cameras are now available across public sector prisons, as he met staff at HMP Isis in London to mark his first week in post.

It doubles the total available to be used every time an officer is on duty, capturing challenging prisoner behaviour and how staff have dealt with it, helping to stop false accusations from prisoners.

It means staff can be more confident in the actions they take to de-escalate tricky situations and a pilot study published in 2020 found they can improve trust between staff and prisoners.

These new devices also offer superior image and audio quality, leading to improved evidence gathering which can speed up prison adjudication processes, support criminal prosecutions and potentially halt lengthy legal action – saving taxpayers’ money and courts’ time.

They also help reduce the need to pay unnecessary compensation to prisoners paid who have made up allegations.

For example, body-worn cameras recently proved their worth when a prisoner’s claim to have been assaulted while resisting a transfer to HMP Rochester was thrown out by police. Footage worn throughout the incident found prison staff used reasonable force.

Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk KC, said:

These new, improved video cameras are proving highly effective at preventing vexatious claims by prisoners, calming volatile situations, and keeping our dedicated prison officers and our prisons safe.

Other security measures including synthetic pepper spray, x-ray body scanners and airport style security are helping turn prisoners away from crime and towards purposeful activity.

The new cameras are the latest measure, building on our £100 million investment to improve safety in prisons and protect frontline staff, adding to the roll-out of PAVA spray and police-style restraints rolled out in men’s prisons in recent years.

It follows the government toughening prison sentences for assaults on emergency workers – including prison officers, by raising maximum sentences to 12 months in 2018 and again to up to 2 years, through last year’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act.

Jade Turner, Custodial Manager at HMP Styal said:

As prison officers, sometimes we have to deal with difficult situations and I have found body worn cameras help make my job safer, while reassuring prisoners we will work with them openly and transparently.

Our game-changing X-ray body scanners have thwarted almost more than 28,000 attempts to smuggle drugs, phones and weapons.

And in December we went further, striking the Crime in Prisons Referral Agreement with Counter Terror Police and the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure more offences by prisoners are dealt with in the courts – toughening sentences for those guilty of crime behind bars.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 25 April 2023.

The Secretary of State for Justice has announced the appointments of Roy Grant and Nigel Cotgrove as members to the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB). Both appointments will be for a tenure of five years and will commence on 1 August 2023 until 31 July 2028.

The PSPRB provides the government with independent advice on the remuneration of operational prison staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as set out in The Prison Service (Pay Review Body) Regulations 2001 (SI 2001 No. 1161).

Appointments and re-appointments to the PSPRB are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. These appointments have been made in line with the Commissioner’s Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies.

Public appointments to the PSPRB are made by the Prime Minister.

Roy Grant biography

Roy Grant was recently a Non-Executive Director for RCNi for 9 years until 2022 and a Member of the Royal College of Nursing Remuneration Committee. He has worked on industrial relations programmes, strategy development, financial stability, governance and audit and risk. From 2015 to 2021 he was chair of the remuneration committee for Your Housing Group, a social housing organisation across the Midlands and North West. Prior to 2013 he had a long career as an HR director across multiple sectors.

Nigel Cotgrove biography

Nigel Cotgrove is currently a Trustee Director of the BT Pension Scheme, where he has been in post since 2020. He has also been part of the Members’ Panel at the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) since 2016. Nigel worked for the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) for 31 years until 2020. He served as a National Officer for over 20 years representing workers in the telecoms, IT and financial services sectors. Prior to that, he worked as a CWU Research Officer.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 20 April 2023.

 

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 4 April 2023.

The Secretary of State for Justice has announced the reappointment of Keith Fraser as Chair of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 3 April 2023.

Report finds process less intimidating and yields better evidence.

Rape victims who pre-record their evidence are more likely to have a better experience of the court process, findings published today (3 April 2023) reveal.

Today’s report finds that victims who use the measure, which has been available in all Crown Courts in England and Wales since September last year, find their experience less intimidating as they do not have to face their alleged attacker in the full glare of a courtroom.

Other benefits include improved recall of events as a result of cross-examination being brought forward, normally nearer to the time of the alleged offence, and knowing exactly when they will need to give evidence. It also meant they were able to access vital support services earlier, such as therapy, without fear that it could be used against them in cross-examination.

The rollout of pre-recorded evidence is one of several actions the government is taking as part of the Rape Review Action Plan to give every victim the confidence to come forward and get support they need, and bring more rapists to justice. Our actions are working, the latest figures show that the number of rape cases reaching Crown Court has doubled since the Rape Review was commissioned in 2019 and that the government is closer to its target of returning to 2016 levels by the end of this Parliament. Pre-recorded evidence will help ensure all cases reaching court are supported in the appropriate way to see justice delivered.

Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Dominic Raab, said:

Pre-recorded evidence is an important part of our plan to improve rape victims’ experience of the criminal justice system – reducing the stress and trauma that many suffer as a result of facing court. This report shows it is making an important and positive difference.

Alongside better collaboration between police and prosecutors and a 24/7 support line we will stop at nothing to make sure that victims feel able to persevere with the process and bring more perpetrators to justice.

Today’s report finds that pre-recording evidence can create a calmer, less intimidating cross-examination experience for witnesses compared to traditional cross-examination in a trial. One witness who had pre-recorded their evidence said:

Making it possible to go and pre-record it, I have no words to explain how much pressure it took from my shoulders.

I feel safe, and I felt like I don’t have to meet anyone I don’t want to meet. I felt protected, just a safe environment to me.

A police officer interviewed for the evaluation report said:

I’ve […] watched the complainant giving evidence and I really felt for that person because they’ve just been pulled apart and in that horrible, hostile courtroom environment which I wouldn’t wish on anyone.

Other practitioners interviewed for the evaluation report – including Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVA), at-trial advocates and police – highlighted the benefit of the witness knowing the exact date and time that they will give evidence, compared to traditional cross-examination where the witness may have to wait in court for days to give their evidence.

The report also found the reduced time between the alleged offence and the cross-examination could improve witnesses’ memory recall. This could be especially beneficial to vulnerable witnesses, particularly children, whose recollection is more at risk of impairment while waiting for trial.

The findings follow the introduction of the Victims and Prisoners Bill which places on a statutory footing the foundations of the Victims’ Code. This means that victims will be entitled to challenge decisions to not charge or continue a prosecution, receive information on how their case is progressing, and be able to access support services such as ISVAs.

The rollout of pre-recorded evidence was a major part of the Rape Review Action Plan to drive up prosecutions and convictions for adult rape cases. Alongside this the government has also:

• Launched a 24/7 support line run by Rape Crisis for rape and serious sexual violence victims
• Expanded Operation Soteria to a further 14 police forces and to 3 new Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) areas
• Passed new laws via the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act (2022) to stop unnecessary and intrusive requests for victims’ phones, with the majority of forces in position to ensure no victim should be without their devices for more than 24 hours
• Committed to introduce new legislation on the way the police can request access to personal data from third parties such as medical data
• Launched a specialist sexual violence support pilot at 3 Crown Courts – Leeds, Newcastle, and Snaresbrook in London. It seeks to provide victims with enhanced at-court support and help increase throughput of cases. It includes the introduction of trauma-informed training for court staff, maximising the use of technology, and access to ISVAs at court
• Quadrupled victim support services funding by 2025 compared to 2010 levels. This includes increasing the number of Independent Sexual and Domestic Violence Advisors (ISVA and IDVA) by 43% over the next 3 years taking the total to over 1,000

Taken together these measures are driving improvements across the system. Alongside the doubling in the number of rape cases going to Crown Court compared to 2019, the latest statistics show the key targets of the Rape Review are close to being achieved.

These reveal that police referrals to the CPS and CPS charges, respectively, are up 117% and 94% on the 2019 quarterly average. Police referrals are also up 30% on 2016 levels with charges just 12% below the target the government set for the end of this parliament.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 29 March 2023.

The Secretary of State has appointed Adrian Usher as the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 23 March 2023.

Government to fund mandatory mediation for separating couples.

Thousands of children could be protected from witnessing their parents thrash out family disputes through the courts, following plans to mandate mediation for separating families announced today (23 March 2023).

In a major shake-up to the family justice system, proposals will see mediation become mandatory in all suitable low-level family court cases excluding those which include allegations or a history of domestic violence. This will mean separating couples have to attempt to agree their child custody and financial arrangements through a qualified mediator with court action being a last resort.

It is expected the move could help up to 19,000 separating families resolve their issues away from the courtroom, while also reducing backlogs, easing pressures on the family courts and ensuring the justice system can focus on the families it most needs to protect.

In the meantime, the government’s Family Mediation Voucher Scheme will be extended until April 2025 backed by an additional £15 million in funding. The scheme provides separating couples with vouchers worth up to £500 to help them solve disputes through mediation and has so far supported over 15,300 families.

Making mediation compulsory will allow the family courts to better prioritise and provide protection for the most serious cases with safeguarding concerns where it is not an option, such as domestic abuse and child safety. It is estimated that 36,000 vulnerable families each year will benefit from faster hearings and quicker resolutions as a result.

Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Dominic Raab MP said:

When parents drag out their separation through lengthy and combative courtroom battles it impacts on their children’s school work, mental health and quality of life.

Our plans will divert thousands of time-consuming family disputes away from the courts – to protect children and ensure the most urgent cases involving domestic abuse survivors are heard by a court as quickly as possible.

The overhaul could also introduce a new power for judges to order parents to make a reasonable attempt to mediate with possible financial penalties if they act unreasonably and harm a child’s wellbeing by prolonging court proceedings.

Research has shown parental conflict can be exacerbated by lengthy and acrimonious court proceedings, which can lead to higher rates of anxiety and depression, anti-social behaviour and reduced academic performance among children.

Mediation is a process in which couples work through their differences with a trained and accredited mediator to reach agreements such as how to split assets or arrange child contact times, rather than have a judge decide for them.

The voucher scheme has highlighted the benefit it can have on separating couples and their children. An analysis of the first 7,200 users of the scheme shows 69% of participants have reached whole or partial agreements away from court.

Currently administered by the Family Mediation Council, extending funding takes the total package of support provided by the government through the scheme to £23.6 million.

Estimates suggest 1 in 4 families who have child arrangements settled by judges have been to court before in the past 3 years. Increased use of mediation should lead to more agreeable resolutions for families, saving taxpayer money in the long term.

In turn, mediation provides a cheaper and more cost-effective solution for families, sparing them from expensive legal bills.

Chair of the Family Mediation Council, John Taylor, said:

Family mediation can play a really positive role in producing better outcomes for separating families, and in reducing the burden on courts. This consultation shows that Ministers recognise its value in helping separating couples make parenting and financial arrangements without the stress and delays involved in going to court.

It builds on the government’s successful £500 voucher scheme, which is encouraging separating couples to consider family mediation to resolve their disputes. The next few weeks will help shine further light on a process that has the potential to help many thousands more shape the futures of all their family members.

To better support children the proposals would extend the use of co-parenting programmes across the country by making them compulsory before court. Currently families are often referred to these programmes by judges during court proceedings.

These courses encourage parents to take steps for themselves and develop agreements without court intervention, making sure parents are putting their child’s needs first when separating. A pilot study found that around 78% of parents who attend both co-parenting programmes and mediation sessions took steps to withdraw their court cases.

Chief Executive of the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), Jacky Tiotto, said:

Cafcass strongly welcomes the focus on supporting more parents to agree how they will care for their children and spend time together without the need to make an application to the family court when they are separating.

We work with in excess of 145,000 children every year and we see the harm to which children are exposed in long adversarial court proceedings. Programmes that encourage parents to consider together what is safe and in the best interests of their children help to keep the focus on what children want and need as they grow up.

The proposals will be subject to a government consultation which will run for 12 weeks from today, closing on 15 June 2023.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 22 March 2023.

More than 90 business experts have been enlisted as prison employment advisors to help drive thousands of prison leavers into work and away from a life of crime.

Bosses from top firms including the Co-op, Greggs, Iceland, and Oliver Bonas have now been appointed as Employment Advisory Board chairs in all 92 resettlement prisons, which help prepare prisoners nearing the end of their sentence for release into the community.

The Boards link prisons to leading business figures who can offer their expertise on the skills, qualifications and training needed to help prisoners re-enter the workforce.

Using these insights, prisons can tailor their training and workshops to match local labour market demands so ex-offenders are job-ready when they walk out the prison gate.

The initiative was launched in March 2022 and will play a crucial role in boosting the UK economy while tackling the £18 billion annual cost of reoffending, with ex-prisoners in steady employment being nine percentage points less likely to reoffend.

Getting more prison leavers into work helps to protect the public and the number in employment 6 months after release increased by almost two thirds between April 2021 and March 2022, from 14 per cent to 23 per cent.

Deputy Prime Minister, Justice Secretary and Lord Chancellor, Dominic Raab MP, said:

Our innovative scheme is helping to get ex-offenders into work, keeping them on the straight and narrow while providing businesses with the staff they need to grow.

We are already seeing the rewards with more prison leavers in work six months after release – helping them turn their backs on crime, contribute to society and saving the taxpayer money.

Alongside breaking the cycle of crime, getting prison leavers work-ready helps employers build the workforce they and the economy needs.

Research from the Ministry of Justice shows that 90% of businesses that employ ex-offenders agreed that they are good attenders, motivated and trustworthy*. Harnessing the talent from those leaving the prison is already supporting employers to fill vacancies bringing benefits to businesses and the UK economy.

Richard Walker, Executive Chairman, Iceland Foods, said:

The rehabilitation of offenders back into the workforce can offer huge benefits to UK businesses and give those individuals seeking employment a much-needed lifeline. At Iceland we feel it’s the right thing to do, and although we’re at the beginning of this rehabilitation journey we are already seeing how it can offer real societal and business impact.

Employment Advisory Boards allow business leaders, including Iceland’s own Director of Rehabilitation Paul Cowley, an inside track to support ex-offenders, equipping them with much needed skills that employers like us will value both now and in the future.

Olly Tress, Founder and CEO of Oliver Bonas and EAB Chair at HMP Belmarsh said:

Employment Advisory Boards are helping prisoners to be job-ready for opportunities in the outside world, whether it be in IT support, catering or hospitality.

It’s a true win-win situation by plugging gaps in the skills shortages across various sectors, while providing a more stable future for the individual so they can stay crime-free.

Beckie Rowlands, Greggs Fresh Start Manager and EAB Chair at HMP Foston Hall said:

At Greggs, we pride ourselves on our culture, creating an environment which is inclusive of everyone. Being an inclusive business also means making it easier for people who might face challenges with getting a job. Through our Fresh Start programme, we proactively offer training and work experience to people who are transitioning into work, including care leavers, people who have been unemployed for a long time, or who are leaving the armed services or prison. We provide employability workshops, mentoring, mock interviews, interviews, placements and, most importantly, sustainable job opportunities to candidates that we would not ordinarily meet.

Working with the Employment Advisory Boards is a great way for us to not only reduce the impact of re-offending within our communities, but also an avenue to find great employees to join Greggs.

Dedicated job experts have been recruited in every resettlement prison in England and Wales and will walk prisoners through job applications and give them interview training so they are ready to find jobs in booming sectors such as construction, haulage, and logistics.

One-stop hubs where prisoners can access career advice and support with tasks such as CV writing have also been established in 91 of 92 resettlement prisons.

Dan Whyte, former prisoner, founder and Co-Director of DWRM Consultants, said:

When I received my life sentence, I had no qualifications at all, but I was determined to use my time inside productively by studying and focusing on the career I wanted when I walked through the prison gates.

Having a job gave me the direction I needed to stay on the straight-and-narrow after my release and now run a successful business helping prisoners get access to university training and education.

The launch of Employment Advisory Boards and Prison Employment Leads forms a central part of the Prisons White Paper, published in December 2021. This includes a major focus on upskilling offenders so they can turn their back on crime for good.