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Select Committee · Justice Committee

Mental Health in Prison

Status: Closed Opened: 20 Apr 2021 Closed: 1 Jun 2022 12 recommendations 21 conclusions 1 report

This inquiry seeks to understand the current scale of mental health need in prisons, and to identify what support exists and whether there are any gaps in provision. Read the terms of reference to find out more about the inquiry .

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Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
5th Report - Mental health in prison HC 72 29 Sep 2021 33 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

3 items
21 Recommendation 5th Report - Mental health in prison Accepted in Part

Increase immediate availability of mental health inpatient beds for prisoners facing transfer difficulties.

The Ministry of Justice should work with the Department for Health and Social Care and the NHS to increase immediately the availability of mental health inpatient beds for prisoners from those prisons that have the most difficulty transferring prisoners within the time limit, including for those who are considered by …

Government response. The government acknowledges delays in transfers and is implementing revised guidance, committing to a 28-day statutory time limit for transfers once guidance is embedded. They also cite investment in community mental health services and the NHS Long Term Plan aiming …
Ministry of Justice
22 Recommendation 5th Report - Mental health in prison Accepted in Part

Publish monthly data on prisoners awaiting mental health inpatient transfers, including waiting times.

HMPPS and the NHS should gather and publish monthly information for every establishment (without naming establishments to protect patient confidentiality) on the number of prisoners awaiting transfers to inpatient care for mental illness and for how long they have been waiting.

Government response. The government states they already gather and monitor monthly data on transfers, using it to address delays, but explicitly rejects publishing this data publicly due to patient confidentiality concerns.
Ministry of Justice
29 Recommendation 5th Report - Mental health in prison Accepted in Part

Learning from RECONNECT pathfinders and partnership pilots needs swift acceleration and publication.

The NHS should learn early lessons swiftly from its RECONNECT pathfinder projects and accelerate roll-out of the most important features across all prisons in the interim between now and 2024 when it intends to have completed the full roll-out. Similarly, HMPPS’s five Health and Justice Partnership Co-ordinator pilots should be …

Government response. The government confirms a 'Lessons Learned' exercise for RECONNECT pathfinders has been done and a full evaluation is commissioned. For Health and Justice Partnership Coordinators, a process evaluation is underway with a report due Autumn 2022, and expansion to all …
Ministry of Justice