Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 17
17
Deferred
Specialised training for prison officers on remand prisoners' needs is lacking.
Conclusion
We recognise the difficulties HMPPS faces surrounding the recruitment and retention of prison staff. This is an issue we intend to explore in more depth in our prison workforce inquiry. Evidence to this inquiry has highlighted how working with remanded prisoners can pose particular challenges for prison officers. Prison officers must be given specialised training on the particular needs of remand prisoners and how to engage them in a prison regime. (Paragraph 98) Resettlement following time spent in custodial remand
Government Response Summary
The government partially accepted the recommendation but responded by detailing existing resettlement support for acquitted individuals and outlining future considerations and reviews regarding accommodation, subsistence payments, and a trial for peer and employment support, entirely omitting the recommendation about staff training.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
We partially accept this recommendation. There is a range of support provided to those acquitted who are returning to the community. Those held on remand in custody will receive immediate needs and pre-release support from the pre-release teams (PRT) in prison to assist them in returning to the community. PRTs embedded in reception prisons screen and identify immediate resettlement needs and provide pre-release support for all people in prison, including those who are unsentenced. This includes signposting to specialist services, support sustaining tenancies and providing low complexity support for finance, benefit and debt. The legal obligation to support people into accommodation comes under the statutory requirements of local authorities. Pre-release teams will therefore submit referrals on the day of acquittal to the appropriate local authority for statutory housing support for those at risk of becoming homeless on release. Resettlement information and guidance is also available on discharge from custody, which includes advice and contact details for national support services once they have returned to the community. However, given the issues raised by the JSC, we recognise that we need to explore the challenges faced by this cohort in greater depth. To do this, we will consider the eligibility of those on remand for the subsistence payment as part of the wider review of the discharge policy, as well as consider the potential applicability of the resettlement passports currently in development. We will also investigate options to provide short- term temporary accommodation support for those acquitted, distinct from the provision provided to sentenced individuals. We will review the findings from the short trial that was recently launched at HMP Wandsworth to test improved peer and employment support for those on remand whilst in prison, and capture more accurate data on needs and support, in order to inform considerations of what future support could look like. The findings from these reviews will be used to inform future decisions on possible further investment around resettlement support for those acquitted. Alternatives to custodial remand