Bronzefield

The way accommodation services are commissioned by the Probation Service changed at the point of unification in 2021. It is now delivered by providers based in the community where people reside or are due to be released. For female prisoners, the accommodation service is delivered as part of a holistic Women’s service addressing a range of needs. This ensures local knowledge and access to local providers. It enables ongoing post-release support if circumstances change or in the event of a very short prison sentence. Providers of these services are expected to build good relationships with accommodation providers and to provide additional support to enable people to sustain tenancies.
At HMP/YOI Bronzefield, a Housing Specialist role has been funded and directly employed by Sodexo. This strategic post allows for close working with housing stakeholders across Kent, Surrey, Sussex, and London, to develop solutions to the barriers that prison leavers face in trying to access accommodation. The Probation Service in London, where the majority of Women return to from HMP/YOI Bronzefield, together with Kent Surrey and Sussex, are working closely with the prison and Commissioned Rehabilitation Services providers to track accommodation outcomes for Women. The Probation Service has the advantage of data from its case management system, which records information about the accommodation status of women using the agreed national performance target. On release, women attend appointments with housing providers and with the relevant Local Authority, which may mean that accommodation is secured for their first night following discharge.

Measures to counter drugs entering all establishments is ongoing. In relation to policy, the National Security Framework is under review, and the Conveyance Policy Framework which forms part of this, is being drafted for pilot in seven sites. This provides policy information and requirements specific to the identified risks of conveyance into the establishment via Gate, Visits, Reception, Staff and Correspondence. In addition to this, HMPPS’ Directorate of Security has produced a number of guidance documents, best practice information, and briefings, to support establishments in tackling this issue. All of this information has been circulated to the establishments and is also available on the Security Hub for ease of access for prisons. I can further confirm that HMPPS is seeking funding to expand Enhanced Gate Security measures to the Women’s Estate. At HMP/YOI Bronzefield, the prison has undertaken a proactive approach to managing drug supply and reduction and some of these key initiatives include reintroduction of psychosocial interventions, reintroduction of Mandatory Drug Testing, and partnerships with external agencies to tackle county lines and organised crime nominals.

The rate of self-harm in the women’s estate, including at HMP/YOI Bronzefield is too high, and HMPPS is determined to address this. We have already rolled out a revised version 6 of the Assessment Care in Custody and Teamwork process that will provide a better framework for supporting women at risk of self-harm through a more tailored and multi-disciplinary support model that focuses on the needs of the individual. We have also rolled out the Offender Management in Custody model in the female estate that will provide each woman with a dedicated Key Worker or Prison Offender Manager who will be able to better support them and identify concerns at an early stage so that women receive the right support at the right time.
The team at HMP/YOI Bronzefield continues to work closely with the Women’s Estate Regional Safer Custody Team that visited during the pandemic to offer support, and the Director is a member of the Women’s Estate Self Harm Taskforce chaired by Alan Scott (Executive Director for Public Sector Prisons North and Women’s Estate). As regime restrictions were eased as per the national framework, HMP/YOI Bronzefield also began to experience a reducing trend of self-harm incidents.
Strategically, and for the longer term, we have established a multidisciplinary Women’s Self-Harm Taskforce to gather and evaluate evidence and implement actions to address the drivers and increase support for women in prison who may be at risk of self-harm. The taskforce is continuing to widen access to Support through Enhanced Management, a trauma-informed initiative developed and piloted in women from 2018 onwards to support women and those working with them.

The director at HMP/YOI Bronzefield has responded by asking Sodexo for an in-depth analysis and is keeping the Board informed.

Regarding the related and repeated matter of prisoners released with no fixed abode, my officials have liaised with the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) and have been advised that MOPAC has developed the London Blueprint for Women in Contact with the Criminal Justice System. Within this a specific Accommodation & Housing Task & Finish Group has been set up, which in partnership with the Safe Homes for Women Leaving Prison Initiative, is nearing completion of a Women’s Prison Release Protocol for London. This has been worked through in consultation with Lambeth and Southwark councils, who are recognised as having an effective system in place, and HMP Bronzefield. MOPAC has jointly commissioned with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ)/HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) a Pan London Female Offender Service aimed at meeting a range of women’s rehabilitative needs. It will be used to scale up best practice and expand the existing footprint of women’s support services across all London’s 32 boroughs. Within this the MoJ and Probation Service have recognised the gap in provision for women leaving HMP/YOI Bronzefield and have identified additional funding for a Housing Advocate. Learning from this will be used to explore models for future commissioning.