4th Report - Coronavirus (Covid-19): The impact on prisons

We recommend that the Ministry of Justice set out what additional mental health support is available for prisoners and what their long-term plan is to mitigate the effect lockdown may have on the mental health of prisoners should prisons remain … Read more We recommend that the Ministry of Justice set out what additional mental health support is available for prisoners and what their long-term plan is to mitigate the effect lockdown may have on the mental health of prisoners should prisons remain in this current phase for a prolonged period. Show less

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While the secure video calling service is a temporary measure implemented in direct response to the changes across the estate resulting from Covid-19, the Committee 28 Coronavirus (Covid-19): The impact on prisons believe there is scope for this service to … Read more While the secure video calling service is a temporary measure implemented in direct response to the changes across the estate resulting from Covid-19, the Committee 28 Coronavirus (Covid-19): The impact on prisons believe there is scope for this service to be developed in the long-term and rolled out further across the prison estate. We recommend that the Ministry of Justice make the secure video calling service available permanently across the rest of the prison estate. The Ministry of Justice should provide costings for such extension of this service and set out a timeframe for when this service will be expanded beyond the 10 establishments due to receive it, and how establishments will be prioritised. Show less

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Given that prisons have been in a state of lockdown for 15 weeks, we are pleased to hear that Exceptional Delivery Models for stage 3 are being developed and that there are hopes to relax the regime in the next … Read more Given that prisons have been in a state of lockdown for 15 weeks, we are pleased to hear that Exceptional Delivery Models for stage 3 are being developed and that there are hopes to relax the regime in the next few weeks. We recommend that the Ministry and HMPPS keep the Committee updated on their progress, including what prisons will be transitioning and in what timeframe. (Paragraph 35) Prison Population Management Show less

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We welcome the sourcing and installation of temporary units to increase headroom across the prison estate. We welcome the announcement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Summer Statement on 8 July that £60m is being made available to … Read more We welcome the sourcing and installation of temporary units to increase headroom across the prison estate. We welcome the announcement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his Summer Statement on 8 July that £60m is being made available to provide 1,000 temporary places. We recognise that this is ongoing work, but the Ministry of Justice should set out when they intend all 2,000 temporary units to be installed and when these units will be operational. Additionally, the Ministry should provide costings for the 2,000 temporary units, and set out how they intend to re- deploy these cells in the long-term. (Paragraph 68) Coronavirus (Covid-19): The impact on prisons 29 Children and young people in the custodial estate during COVID-19 Show less

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We recommend, however, that the Government investigate the reasons behind the relatively high level of remand into custody and explain the reasons behind that, particularly given the pressures on the custodial estate during the coronavirus outbreak.

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We recommend that the MoJ and Youth Custody Service set out how they have responded to the crisis in the context of the children’s estate and how the specific needs of children have been considered. It is also unclear why … Read more We recommend that the MoJ and Youth Custody Service set out how they have responded to the crisis in the context of the children’s estate and how the specific needs of children have been considered. It is also unclear why there is such a disparity in the regimes provided across the youth estate; the MoJ and Youth Custody Service should set out what is being done to address disparities and ensure that all children in the estate receive equivalent provision. Show less

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The Covid-19 pandemic poses an urgent threat to public health and safety. It is an unprecedented situation that has required an immediate response by the prison service to protect the NHS and save lives. We praise the Prison Service and wider stakeholders for the vital work they are doing to …

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The Committee recognise the necessity of the measures introduced to minimise the spread of the virus and save lives and commend staff and prisoners for adapting to these changes. However, we do not believe that the current regime is sustainable in the long term and are concerned about the effect …

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We are not clear as to why there is such wide variance across the estate in type of regime and time out of cell. We agree with the Independent Monitoring Board and recommend that the Ministry of Justice set out clear expectations of the minimum time out of cell and …

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The Committee recognise the severity of the current regime in prisons and commend both staff and prisoners for responding and adapting to current circumstances. We are pleased to hear reports that the prison population have been largely compliant with changes made, but we share concerns about the potential long-term impact …

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It is vital that prisoners are able to maintain contact with family and friends, particularly at such an uncertain time. Family contact is essential to a prisoner’s wellbeing and resettlement, and we welcome measures taken to ensure that prisoners are able to maintain contact with family. We welcome the decision …

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We are pleased to hear that more than 98% of the prison estate now has cohorting in place. This appears to have been an effective strategy for containing the spread of the virus and protect the lives of staff and prisoners. The Committee thank all of the staff who have …

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The Committee welcome the Government’s decision to temporarily release pregnant women and women in prison with their children, whenever it is safe to do so. The Committee recognise that this cohort of women require specialist support in the community, but in the 14 weeks since the announcement was made, only …

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We ask the Government to set out how many prisoners were actively considered for release under the scheme and the principal reasons why just over 5 per cent were in fact released early.

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It is not clear what impact increased court activity will have on the prison population, and how MoJ and HMPPS intend to manage any potential influx as a result of increased court activity. The Committee are pleased to note that work has already begun on understanding the effects of renewed …

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We are concerned that there does not appear to be a sufficiently clear, separate plan on how the youth custodial estate will transition out of the current lockdown phase. We agree that plans need to be flexible enough to accommodate different circumstances and situation of prisons, but we do not …

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