Bure

I recognise the concerns you have raised regarding the sentencing position of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners. I want to be clear that public protection will always be our top priority and as such we cannot commit to a full or partial resentencing exercise. It would pose an unacceptable level of risk to members of the public and in particular to victims.
That being said, the Government remains determined to support the rehabilitation of IPP offenders through a refreshed action plan, which was published in November 2024 in our IPP Annual Report. The refreshed plan puts an important emphasis on effective frontline delivery in our prisons and the Probation Service, to ensure that those serving IPP sentences have robust and effective sentence plans, which they are actively engaging with, and that they are in the correct prison to access the right interventions and rehabilitative services. I can assure you the Government is committed to working with organisations and campaign groups to ensure the appropriate course of action is taken to support those still serving IPP sentences.

I also appreciate the issues you raise regarding the varying rates of pay for prisoners and note your request that a national minimum wage be considered. Governors do have the discretion to pay above the nationally set minimum rates of pay and are required to review their local pay policy annually. Within HMP Bure, prisoners are consulted on local pay rates via the Prisoner council. HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) reviews policies regularly and will explore whether any further changes need to be made to national prisoner pay policy.

In all prisons the education offer is reviewed on a regular basis with an annual needs analysis taking place which informs the education offer commissioned by the Governor. HMPPS continues to seek opportunities to improve both the quantity and quality of our Education, Skills and Work offer. At HMP Bure the Waste Management area has been relocated, enabling a plan to increase workplaces through a partnership with a community recycling company to be progressed. There has also been an increase in the number of workplaces on the prisoner maintenance team by relocating that service. All residential areas now have a range of activity groups running, which prisoners can access when they are not at work, this has been a particular focus along with ensuring the needs of the older and younger population are reflected in this provision. Six of the seven wings now have additional garden spaces adjacent to the building which prisoners can use when not at work, increasing time in the open air and providing additional space on wings that have very limited communal space for the number of prisoners that live on them.

The funding available to enable dedicated employment initiatives and resourcing covered 93 prisons, including all resettlement prisons at the time. Prisons that did not receive the funding for initiatives can set these up voluntarily, to meet the needs of their cohort. At HMP Bure the Governor has funded a Prison Employment Lead to add to the other locally resourced Resettlement services, to ensure that prisoners being released are appropriately supported. A new operational Policy Framework on employment was published in April. This provides guidance on best practice regarding how to resource and operate employment initiatives, to support prisoners on this part of their resettlement journey.

In relation to the lack of CCTV at HMP Bure, the Area Property Operations Manager will be discussing this matter with the prison with a view to submitting a business case for funding for this project. All requests from the establishment will be considered, noting that demands for maintenance are much greater than the available funding. Therefore, once a bid for a project is received, HMPPS must prioritise works very carefully to make best use of that funding, focusing on risk to life and risk to capacity and decency.

Following the conclusion of an evidence-based whole system review of adjudications in May 2023, legislative and non-legislative work was conducted to make improvements to the adjudications system, including clarifying the existing policy and new charges and rehabilitative options. HMPPS are building on the recommendations given in the whole system review to improve the processes used in the behaviour management of prisoners across the estate. This will include looking at tech options, as suggested by the board, along with other possible solutions.