Probation Is Waiting

Here we have Lord Timpson's speech to the PGA a few days ago. I wonder how long it will be before he gets around to addressing probation's problems?

Prison Governors Association Speech

Lord Timpson, Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, sets out why prison governors are at the forefront of efforts to drive down reoffending.

Thank you for that introduction, Graham, and for the invitation to speak – it’s great to be here. Thanks to everyone involved for putting this event together. Let me start by saying just how grateful I am for the PGA’s work. You speak up for change, where change is needed…You push Government, where it needs to be pushed…And you do it not just for those you represent, but in the interests of public safety too. Your voice is valued, and we thank you for it… even when you say things we don’t necessarily want to hear.

I know it’s your first annual conference since becoming PGA President, Tom – congratulations again on your appointment. Let me also congratulate your new Vice-Chairs, Mark, and Carl, on their appointments too. I’ve known Tom for a while now - we once even shadowed each other a few years ago, when he was Governor at HMP Wakefield, and I headed up the Timpson Group.

I took Tom to visit some of our shops – one branch was in Uttoxeter Tesco, as I recall – while I found out what it’s like to lead one of our toughest prisons. I know who has it harder…! And now I’m wearing a new hat, I did ask Tom if he fancied another job swap – but for some reason he wasn’t up for it. I can’t think why…

I realise that the CEO of a business and prison governor are very different roles – but there are similarities, too. Both manage complex organisations. Both need a strategic brain, excellent management skills, the ability to communicate, inspire and motivate. But the main difference is this: most people know what a CEO does, what their job entails.

You, on the other hand, are largely hidden from view. Even when prisons are plastered all over our TV screens, as they are right now. The average person would have little idea about your day-to-day – what it really means to lead a prison in 2024, as Tom has set out so starkly just now.

Working every hour, under extraordinary pressure, to run safe and secure regimes. Dealing with self-harm, deaths and the scourge of drugs on a daily basis. Supporting your teams and trying to nurture them in an environment more stressful than most could imagine. Every challenge amplified, because our prisons are full to bursting. These are the realities you face every day.

Now, prisons have always fascinated me – since I was a young boy, and my Mum, Alex, would take the babies she’d fostered into HMP Styal, so their mothers could see them. I’d sit outside in the car and wonder what was going on inside… What had these women done that was so terrible, that they couldn’t be with their babies? It was the start of a life-long interest.

And as you may know, around 10 percent of people who work for Timpson are ex-offenders. It all started by chance 22 years ago, when, as a new CEO, I visited a local prison and met Matt – who got into a fight after his A-levels, and instead of going to university, went to jail. Matt showed me around the wing, and I immediately liked him. He was bright, enthusiastic, and I thought he was just the sort of person we wanted in the business. So I told him – “when you get out, I’ll give you a job.” And the rest is history.

Matt went on to be one of our most successful branch managers – in a branch just a stone’s throw from the prison he served time in. He’s still there today. And while he hasn’t gone far physically, he’s travelled lightyears in terms of what he’s achieved…Because he had the will to turn his life around, and that extra support to get into work. I knew there must be more great people like Matt in our prisons, and from then on, we decided to proactively recruit ex-offenders.

Later, working with you, we set up prison training academies…Then to create Employment Advisory Boards, building those vital links between prisons and local employers. And, in 2016, I was honoured to become Chair of the Prison Reform Trust. So I’ve been behind the scenes.

And in that time, one constant has been your outstanding leadership, in the most challenging circumstances. It has been a privilege to get to know you, and to see the incredible work you do. Thank you. You have our deepest respect, and our gratitude.

Over the years there has been much debate about what prison is primarily for – be it punishment, public protection or deterrence. Of course, it’s all of these things. It’s right that dangerous people are taken off our streets – and that people who destroy lives and wreck our communities face the consequences. But if we cut to the core of it, prison should also be about reducing offending. That’s the only way we are genuinely going to protect the public.

I say ‘should’, here, because it’s something we haven’t always been very good at in this country. I know you’d agree. Serious criminals should see the inside of a jail cell – and the most dangerous should stay there. But what happens next to the many offenders who will someday be let out really matters.

For the vast majority of offenders, being locked up is a fork in the road. One way on that road can lead them to turn their lives around… The other will take them straight back to prison. Too often, it’s the latter. And I’ve no doubt how deeply frustrating it must be for you to see the same faces at your gates again and again.

The numbers are clear – 80 percent of offending in this country is reoffending. That is too high by any measure. But I know just how determined you are to turn that around. We all know what the answers are. I know that you know what needs to be done. My job is to help you realise those ambitions.

Having worked in the family business since I was 14, I hope I’ve learnt a few things about leadership and responsibility along the way. There are plenty of philosophies out there. I found that a strong culture and high standards – rooted in trust, and kindness – was what worked for us. And I firmly believe that strong leaders – you – are the single most important element in a good prison.

You set the culture… You set those high standards for your teams to follow, and for the prisoners you rehabilitate. And I can’t stress enough how important high standards are in our prisons. Put it this way - I’ve never known a great organisation to have poor standards. That starts with the basics - a clean, tidy, environment, where prisoners and staff respect the rules.

When I was a CEO, I’d check the Timpson head office car park for weeds and litter…Small things, I know. But they really matter…Those first impressions for people arriving really matter…And as leaders, it’s our job to lead by example. And in over 20 years of being involved with prisons, I can’t think of a time when your job has been tougher.

For too long, you’ve been doing your best in very challenging circumstances. People don’t turn up to work to get beaten up, they turn up to inspire people, and to and turn lives around. Yet our crammed prisons are breeding violence – which threatens everyone’s safety, staff and prisoners alike…Staff shortages - and a lack of experienced staff - stretch your ability to run the kind of regimes you want to run. While so many of your prisons are dilapidated, in desperate need of repair…

I’m grateful to Charlie Taylor – who is up next – for HMIP’s unflinching focus on these issues. And I know it hasn’t been easy, trying to rehabilitate offenders in a system teetering on the edge of disaster. A system that, when we came into government, had been run at 99 percent capacity for months. I should emphasise - none of this is your doing – in fact, the PGA has been sounding the alarm loud and clear. That’s why we had to take the tough decision to bring in changes to automatic release to ease the pressure on our prisons.

It was, quite literally, a rescue effort. If we hadn’t acted, the justice system would have ground to a halt: Courts would have been unable to hold trials and police unable to make arrests. We would have faced the total breakdown of law and order. We only have to look at the recent disorder on our streets to see how close to catastrophe we came…Because we could deliver justice swiftly, we brought the violence to an end.

But, in the process, we came dangerously close to running out of prison space entirely. We had no choice but to introduce emergency measures in the first few days of this new Government. It was only thanks to the heroic efforts of prison and probation staff, that we pulled through. We didn’t want to do this. But we were left with no choice…To attempt to delay any further, would have allowed our justice system to collapse. We could never have allowed that: This Government will always put the safety of the public – first.

Throughout all of this you have been under immense pressure. Offender management units, in particular, have borne the brunt of several emergency measures…While more broadly the estate has coped with higher numbers of late arrivals and redirections. It’s in times like these that strong leadership matters most. We couldn’t have managed this crisis without you. And while there is still work to be done ahead of the next releases later this month, I want to thank you, again, for everything you’ve done to get us to this point.

So, our changes have bought us some time. Time for the system to catch its breath. But these challenges haven’t just disappeared, and the crisis isn’t over. If things don’t change, we’ll end up in the same position all over again… Sooner than we care to mention. I want us to get a point where you can run your prisons how you want to run them…

That is why the Justice Secretary has been clear that getting prisons built is a priority for her. That is why we will take control of the planning process, and deem prison development of national importance. And we also need decent regimes, that help offenders turn their backs on crime for good.

I know there is brilliant, innovative work going on, and I want to encourage more of it. But innovating is difficult – impossible, even - when you’re so full that you can’t let prisoners out of their cells. That’s why it is essential we resolve this capacity crisis…So we can support and empower you to go even further to reduce reoffending. And, if we create the right conditions for you to do your jobs as you’d want to do them – I hope to see more of you staying in post for longer, too.

Stability at the top is crucial. Because our prisons are on a journey, and there’s a long road ahead. Culture change doesn’t happen overnight. In my experience, it can take anywhere from three to five years to really move an organisation on. Much of our success will be down to you, our prison leaders. So I want to see more of you staying on that road for longer – and I want you to tell me how we can support you to do that.

Great prisons need great leaders. But second, they need hardworking dedicated staff, like the officers in your teams. Fundamentally, prisons are a people business – like any company. As a CEO, I found that the happier people are in their jobs, the better they work. If they feel valued, trusted and cared for, they are going to perform well for you. And in your teams, people are working under such intense pressure day in, day out.

The relationships - between you, and your staff… and your staff and your prisoners – go right to the core of safe, decent prisons. If we invest in officer training – in their well-being, and development – we empower them to do much more than simply maintain order. We empower them to become agents of change – to help people turn their lives around.

I’ve met plenty of men and women who say that a prison officer transformed their life. Officers who took the time to mentor them - who really got to know the people on their wing. Who knew if their mum wasn’t well, or when their kids were starting school. But to be a prison officer requires a unique set of skills – quite unlike any other job. That ‘jailcraft’ equips officers for the challenges they will face every day. It takes time, and continual learning.

Before joining the Government, I had the privilege of leading a review of prison officer training – speaking to hundreds of officers across the estate. It’s clear we have some decent foundations – but we can do so much more. I want to see more in-depth training that fully prepares officers for the realities of the role, right from the start. 

Greater consistency – with a strong curriculum and clear standards…More local ownership of training…Clear channels of accountability…And a culture of ongoing learning throughout an officer’s career…One that rightly builds pride in this absolutely critical role. I want to push forward with these changes, and I’ll say more about this as soon as I can.

The third element of a good prison is, of course, purposeful activity. Prison education and training has a huge influence on the path offenders choose to take. It’s crucial that we get this right if we are to release better citizens, not better criminals. Yet I’ve seen people leave prison not even knowing how to use a computer.

When we spend so much of our lives - and jobs - online, how are they supposed to get on in the modern world? That’s just one example. There are many others. But the point is clear: when you don’t have the right skills to get a job, slipping back into old habits is all too easy. And the lure of easy cash might feel like the only way to put money in your pocket.

So, it might not come as a surprise that I’m passionate about prison education and training. Training that opens doors – that gives prisoners pride - and real skills that today’s employers want. I’m clear that prison is a punishment. But that’s no reason to stop the one in four working-age people in the UK who have criminal records from getting jobs.

We know that prison leavers are less likely to reoffend if they have a job within a year of release. So, getting them into work doesn’t just cut crime, it boosts our economy too. That’s a win-win we can’t ignore. But for many, the process of applying for jobs can be daunting.

That’s why I’m pleased to see a new partnership - between the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development Trust and the New Futures Network. It will embed HR professionals in EABs…Ensure that prison leavers can access HR advice to support them into work…Provide mentoring for Prison Employment Leads…And help us to create even closer links between prisons and local employers. And, I can testify, former prisoners make great colleagues.

In my experience, they work hard, they turn up on time, and they are trustworthy – because they are so hungry to prove themselves. The amount they can achieve – starting from rock bottom – is nothing short of extraordinary. It’s no exaggeration to say that some of the most accomplished people I know were once in prison. They want to grasp that second chance with both hands. Together - let’s make sure they get it.

Our fourth route to reducing reoffending is by tackling the scourge of drugs in our prisons. As you know so well, drugs undermine rehabilitation, fuel violence, debt, and are a sure path back into crime. Nearly half of prisoners have a history of drug misuse. Many will have addictions when they turn up at your gates, but too many who were clean on the outside are drawn into drugs on the inside. That flies in the face of what we want our prisons to achieve.

The answer is clear. First, we need to stop drugs getting into prison. We can hardly expect prisoners to kick the habit if our jails are a sweetshop for drugs. We know what you are up against. Not least the growing use of drones to smuggle drugs - and the phones that power the illicit market - over your walls…And the increasing threat of synthetic opioids…

We have to adapt rapidly if we are to protect our staff and prisoners. Second, we need prisons to drive demand for drugs down, not up. Purposeful activity is so important here. If prisoners have meaningful ways to spend their time, they’re less likely to turn to drugs through boredom, or distress. Staff training is crucial too. Your teams have to understand drugs, and addiction, so they can make sure prisoners get the right support, and are helped to recover.

Third, prisoners with an addiction need treatment. There is good evidence to show this reduces reoffending – but we also need to make sure they stay in treatment after release. That groundwork starts in prison. 

And fourth – where it’s safe and appropriate - we should be driving more people with a drug problem away from prison and into treatment. That could include greater use of drug and alcohol treatment requirements attached to community sentences, for example.

There are no easy solutions, but I want to work with you to create a system where people leave custody prepared to lead productive, drug-free lives. I know there is innovative work going on out there – and I want to explore how we can replicate that work elsewhere.

As I come to a close, let me say again - this is the beginning of a new journey for our prisons. This Government will rebuild and reform the system. We’ll accelerate the prison building programme, to make sure we have the cells we need. We’ll soon publish our ten-year capacity strategy, setting out how we will acquire new land for prisons, and reform the planning process. And, as you’re aware, we will carry out a review of sentencing - with a focus on how it both protects the public and reduces reoffending.

We’ll soon be in a position to share the terms of reference of that independent review and announce its chair – and I know the PGA will play its full part once it is underway. As I’ve said, change takes time. It also takes stamina. The last Government hardly led by example - 14 Prison Ministers in as many years isn’t a record to be proud of. So I can assure you – it’s very much my intention to stay the course.

I want you to judge me on my actions. When I’m back here next year, and the year after that, let’s see where we’ve got to. I’m fortunate to have started this job with a good working knowledge of prisons, but it’s been humbling to visit some of you recently, and be reminded of the complex and challenging work you do every day.

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to talk to me so far –

Aled at Holme House…
Pete at Five Wells…
Amy at Downview…
Andy at Wandsworth…
Emily at High Down…
Dan at Preston…
And many, many more…

I should say that getting out into the estate is another of my top priorities…So you can tell me straight - what’s really going on in the system, what you’re up against, and how, together, we can make it better. I hear the last Minister to go to Isle of Wight prison was Anne Widdecombe. So, Dougie, you’ve been forewarned. I’ll be coming down!

Let me finish by saying thank you, again…To you, to your teams, and every single person who keeps the system running – the teachers, nurses, psychologists, and non-operational staff. As leaders, your role goes far beyond managing institutions. You are protecting communities..You are shaping lives…And ultimately, you are strengthening our society.

Thank you.

Duty of Care

There's been much written about the situation in prisons over the last few days and especially regarding the failure to carry through with supposed plans for executive early releases. We hear of staffing shortages, construction of temporary cell blocks, infections and sadly deaths, but this from Inside Time last week is worth mentioning:-  

Beyond the Call of Duty

Prisoners thank staff

When prisons moved to “lockdown” to curb the spread of coronavirus there were fears that it would lead to riots. Only a fortnight earlier, disturbances in Italian prisons sparked by anti-virus restrictions had left 12 prisoners dead.

But in the first week of UK prisoners being confined to their cells, there was little sign of trouble – and even an unexpected surge in goodwill. At jails across England, some prisoners wrote notes, drew pictures and made signs thanking officers for coming to work in the face of the health risk. At Low Newton, one prisoner put up a handmade sign in her cell window stating simply: “Thanks staff”. The prison posted a photo on social media and commented: “It’s great to see the women of Low Newton showing support for our staff, despite it being difficult and challenging time for them. We will get through this together.”

A handwritten letter from a prisoner at Nottingham, addressed “To all A wing staff”, read: “Now this is something I would never normally do. I’ve always looked at it as cons vs screws. But I give credit when credit is due. And since the restricted regime came in I feel A wing staff have gone above and beyond the call of duty.



“We as prisoners are sometimes very selfish and forget that behind the uniform there is a normal person who worry about there friends and family who risk getting COVID-19 every day they travel to work, but come in to work to look after us. Yes, you hold the keys to my freedom, but it was my own stupid actions that put me here and lost me my freedom. I want to say a big thank you to all A wing staff, even the ones I thought were shit screws, for getting up each morning and despite your own worries and fears, come in to work and help us prisoners to have time out of our cells and keep us updated and for treating us as equals. I have seen prison officers in a new light.”

Governors at the prison were so moved by the letter that they posted it on social media. The prison’s spokesman said “Staff were genuinely touched to receive this from a prisoner,” adding: “Had a little chuckle at the ‘shit screws’ comment.”

Nottingham was not alone. At Lowdham Grange, a prisoner wrote a note stating: “Big thank you officers of Lowdham ‘G’. If it wasn’t for you putting yourselves at risk to come and care for us, we would all be in trouble. You may feel unappreciated, but we appreciate you. So thanks again from K-wing inmates – me especially. God bless!”

And at Dovegate one resident wrote: “You should all be commended and recognised for the respectful and professional way you all have contributed to the smooth as possible running of HMP Dovegate. We recognise the selfless act of putting your own health at risk in the protection of others. Just turning up for duty is heroic and bravery of the highest order, crossed compassion and respect … On behalf of us that see your dedication to the care, safety, security and health of others, we stand to attention and salute you one and all.”

At HMP Humber, a prisoner drew a picture of an officer with the caption “Thank you HMP – stay safe”. The prison commented: “In amongst the clouds came a ray of sunshine. This beautiful picture was received yesterday and brightened our day.”

--oo00oo--

Meanwhile Rob Allen in his latest blog post muses on the whole thorny issue of oversight and accountability during times of crisis like this:- 

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Update on Scrutiny of Criminal Justice in a Time of Crisis

In these extraordinary times, everyone is having to adapt to the requirements of social distancing - not least the institutions that hold the authorities to account. There’s been much talk today of the need for Parliament to resume as soon and as effectively as possible. Although it’s in recess for another week - normally a period in which neither House meets to conduct business - work has continued not least in relation to criminal justice.

Four emergency Statutory Instruments (SIs) came into force last week; to allow prison governors to release prisoners temporarily; to allow those prisoners to be accommodated in Probation hostels and to access means tested benefits during the period of their release. The fourth enables the increased demand for electronic tagging to be met by a new provider – Attenti .

There was no opportunity for MPs to debate the measures – and disappointingly no impact assessments attached to the SI’s despite an assurance in the explanatory memoranda that there would be. The Justice Committee were however able to ask questions of Justice Secretary Robert Buckland and Prison and Probation Chief Jo Farrar on Tuesday. They concentrated on the early release provisions, asking for estimates of the numbers and rates of release, why low risk Category D prisoners were not being prioritised for release, whether all prisoners really need to be tagged.

The session seems to have formed part of a belatedly established inquiry into the impact of Coronavirus on prison probation and courts, announced on 31 March – three weeks after the Home Affairs Committee announced their inquiry into Home Office preparedness for Covid19. But at least the Justice Committee has been able to hold two meetings with Buckland and will question prison and probation minister Lucy Frazer this week.

As well as focusing on how probation is managing to operate in the current climate, Tuesdays’ hearing should also look at three questions that were neglected in last week’s meeting with Buckland.

The first is staffing. Prisons are really struggling with staff either sick or self-isolating. Some staff have been redeployed from HQ into jails and Operation Quickthorn could be activated to allow troops to backfill "non facing" roles . But under what circumstances would the military be involved, what exactly would they do and under whose authority. Could they assist probation as well?

The second question relates to the 500 new prison places being created, how they will be used and what physical conditions they will provide. There’s been concern expressed by reformers that expanding capacity in this way will mean that prisoners eligible for temporary release may be kept in prison instead and that the numbers freed will not reach the estimated 4,000 let alone the 15,000 reportedly recommended by Public Health England.

Third, the Justice Committee should ask about the work of the bodies charged with monitoring prisons and probation. Independent Monitoring Boards are continuing to monitor both prisons and immigration detention during the pandemic, though “much of this will necessarily be remote monitoring”. The Prison and Probation Ombudsman cannot read and reply to letters from prisoners who wish to make complaints. The PPO has also ceased all visits to prisons so their investigation of fatal incidents – including deaths of prisoners from Coronavirus is affected. They “will continue to be informed of all deaths and will open new investigations as normal, but it is likely that we will need to extend our timetables and/or suspend cases until we are able to gather information and investigate safely”.

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons announced this week that they have created – in collaboration with HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and the Ministry of Justice -an adapted approach for the Coronavirus period, involving short scrutiny visits to prisons. These will focus on core issues such as healthcare, nutrition and hygiene; contact with families, friends and the outside world; legal rights; use of time and the need for meaningful human contact; support for those at risk of self-harm and suicide; and support and risk management for those being released.

What looks like a pragmatic approach from the Inspectorate received short shrift from the Prison Governors Association who consider that the visits are not needed and will put undue pressure on governors and their staff. Somewhat disturbingly, the PGA’s strongly worded response talked of the "fear of inspection"some of their members have, and the likelihood that no tangible benefits will result from any inspection report.

Whatever the Governors say, there is no doubt that some form of monitoring must take place. The UN and WHO have stated that monitoring bodies, should continue to have access to places of detention. The Council of Europe’s (CoE) Committee for the Prevention of Torture has said that monitoring by independent bodies remains an essential safeguard against ill-treatment. The question must be not whether inspection visits take place but how.

The CoE Commissioner for Human Rights argued this week that prisons need a humane and comprehensive crisis plan which should be formulated “in consultation and co-operation with relevant human rights stakeholders, in particular National Preventive Mechanisms, other independent monitoring bodies, national human rights structures and human rights NGOs”.

MPs should ask Miss Frazer whether this is the approach that is being adopted in England and Wales - as a concrete example, are the plans for new build accommodation being discussed in advance with inspectors to check they meet minimum standards?

This would indicate the kind of collaborative approach which is likely to serve the system best during the crisis and protect the health of those involved in it.

Rob Allen

Prison News 2

Here we have Rob Allen's take on the current situation:-

Fired Up about Prison Reform

It’s less than 18 months since David Cameron cast prison reform as “a great progressive cause in British politics”. His vision was for “the leadership team of a prison to be highly-motivated, to be entrepreneurial and to be fired up about their work”. The President of the Prison Governors Association is certainly fired up alright but less with enthusiasm than exasperation. I can’t recall such a broadside being delivered by a public servant to her bosses - nor one that is so (almost) wholly justified - as that which was delivered by Andrea Albutt today.

Cameron’s hubristic vision of a modern, more effective, truly 21st century prison system looks as far away as ever. The levels of violence, drug-taking and self-harm which he thought should shame us all in February 2016 have continued to soar.

So what’s gone wrong? Three things. First was the failure - wilful or otherwise - to see the severity of the impact which budget reductions would make on the stability of prisons. There was never really a “Golden Years pre austerity” as Andrea Albutt has put it. But all too often, “too great a degree of tolerance of poor standards and of risk” as Robert Francis QC said of Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust. Such a tolerance was one of the reasons why numerous warning signs did not alert the health system to developing problems in Mid Staffs. The same is true of many prisons which were never truly stable enough to withstand the level of cutbacks, particularly when Ken Clarke’s efforts to reduce the population were shelved.

Second the government applied a formula approach to reform which ignored some of the distinctive challenges of prisons. Cameron promised to "bring the academies model that has revolutionised our schools to the prisons system". It was a mistake. An approach is needed that recognises that individual prisons cannot float free in the same way as schools and their customers have no choice over which establishment they attend. Given the risk averseness of government, whatever ministers may say, innovation is always likely to be closely controlled from the centre. The so called empowerment agenda has, says Andrea Albutt, yet to gain any traction, with governors now accounting both to their headquarters and the Ministry- the result of a ‘perverse’ severance of policy from operations which has so far added cost but little benefit.

Third there has been an optimism bias about the reform agenda. I’m not sure whether Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is still in vogue, but it should have been obvious that without safety and security, loftier ambitions about rehabilitation have no chance of success, however flowery the rhetoric. Too many stakeholders have been taken for a ride. The National Audit Office for example, will presumably look back with some embarrassment on their 2013 assessment that "the strategy for the prison estate is the most coherent and comprehensive for many years, has quickly cut operating costs, and is a significant improvement in value for money on the approaches of the past". Their view that the Ministry of Justice make good use of forecasts of prisoner numbers and have good contingency plans is flatly contradicted by the PGA’s view that the recent rise in the population, unforeseen by the statisticians in MOJ, has left virtually no headroom in prison spaces.

So what to do? First to stabilise the population, create that headroom and make a dent on overcrowding, some kind of early release scheme should be introduced while longer term plans to reduce the population are put in place. There’s no shortage of ways of doing that -only a shortage of political courage to do so. The new Secretary of State for Justice needs to show that.

Second, some structural changes. Shifting responsibility for juveniles out of the MOJ and prisons into the education ministry; a Youth Justice Board for young adults, a new body to deliver alternative accommodation for elderly prisoners. Devolving financial responsibilities for prisons to local areas. They won’t produce quick fixes but could help take the pressure off an overburdened prison system in the medium to long term.

Finally, capable prison governors working in Whitehall should be returned to the front line and experienced staff who have left the service in the last five years lured back into it whatever it takes. Plans to recruit more and better qualified staff are promising but will take time the service has not got. Some of the capital resources intended to build new prisons should be converted to revenue to pay for staff .There is growing scepticism that the £1.3 billion secured from the Treasury for new prisons can be spent by 2020. Some of it should be used to repair the current arrangements rather than establishing new ones.

In less than three months, the largest annual gathering of international prison professionals takes place in London for a week of discussions about “Innovation in Rehabilitation: Building Better Futures”. Its focus is on improving outcomes for prisoners. But that won’t happen unless they are improved for prisons first.

Rob Allen

--oo00oo--

Meanwhile, the fallout from the Grenfell fire continues to have ramifications in a number of directions, such as here:- 

Peter Clarke

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons

3rd August 2017. 

Dear Peter,

No doubt you will have seen the media coverage on the serious issue of failing fire safety in prisons today? I write to ask if you will in future take with you during your inspection of prisons specialist Guest Inspectors from all disciplines for which the Inspectorate does not have in-house experts - and especially one from the Crown Properties Fire Inspection Group (CPFIG) to inform you about fire safety in the prison you are inspecting? 

Currently you do not concern yourself with inspecting fire safety, and I fail to understand this irrational approach. But more seriously your current approach to prison inspections, and your failure to address fire safety, demonstrably results in reports that are completely misleading. Let me explain. 

Your approach is irrational because you do not concern yourself with 'fire safety' on the basis that fire safety is the responsibility of a separate statutory regulator - CPFIG. Yet you always inspect and report on 'healthcare' during your inspections, despite the fact that healthcare is the responsibility of another separate statutory regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This approach doesn't make any sense. 

You report on healthcare because you take along with you a Guest Inspector from the CQC; so why not take with you a Guest Inspector from CPFIG to report on fire safety? Both are critical issues of health and safety. More seriously, however, your current flawed approach to this results in reports that are misleading, and here is why. 

Between 20th February and 3rd March 2017 you inspected HMP Coldingley where you concluded in terms of 'Safety' that: "Outcomes for prisoners were reasonably good against this healthy prison test." But that simply wasn't true. 

Three weeks after your Inspection, on 29th and 30th March 2017, CPFIG inspected Coldingley and they found that in terms of fire safety the place was so dangerous they served the prison with a Statutory NonCompliance Notice, giving them 28 days to correct the fire safety defects or they would issue a Crown Enforcement Notice.

CPFIG Inspection found failings, among other things, that included:

• The procedure is not always followed for removing cigarette lighters and matches from prisoners in Segregation who appear to be at increased risk of self-harming through fire. 
• Normal and/or emergency lighting doesn’t provide sufficient illumination to implement the Cell Fire Response plan including the removal of a prisoner from the cell. 
• The measures to reduce the spread of fire and smoke were inadequate. 
• There was insufficient evidence available to demonstrate the effectiveness of the smoke control arrangements for E wing after it was confirmed to have extraction only. 
• The generic cell fire response plan was not suitable for the circumstances in which prisoners are not locked in their cells (night san). 
• The training package delivered to staff does not provide sufficient practical instruction on the use of Inundation equipment. 
• An insufficient number of prison staff members working in residential wings are in date with their training in RPE wearing. 
• The number of trained prison response staff members available was not always sufficient to implement the cell fire response plan effectively. 
• The fire safety measures were not always being tested and maintained in good condition and effective working order. 

How on earth could you describe this less than a month earlier as a 'safe' prison? Had you taken with you a Guest Inspector from CPFIG during your inspection the fire safety failures identified less than a month after you left would have been identified sooner, removing the risk to life that your flawed approach allowed to continue unchecked - and which you signed off as 'safe'. 

What we need is obvious: a joined up Prisons Inspectorate You are the Chief Inspector of Prisons, and 'Prisons' means what it says. Conducting an inspection of a 'Prison' is not like some a la carte menu, where you pick and choose what parts you want to inspect and those you choose to ignore - it is the 'prison' as a whole that should attract your full attention; as indeed it used to do. 

Lord Ramsbotham, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons from 1995 to 2001, told me in a recent email communication that during his time as Chief Inspector: "We always took a Civil Engineer, who looked at Fire Safety, he once prevented HMP Canterbury from blowing up because he found that the boiler had been installed the wrong way round!" 

I do not mean to be rude, but you will be the first to admit that you have little experience of prisons, and certainly no operational experience of managing one. After 34 years as a police officer, and just over a year into your current job, it’s hardly surprising. 

Given that lack of operational prison experience it is vital that to discharge your obligations as Chief Inspector of Prisons properly you surround yourself with as many relevant experts as possible; and your lamentable failure to identify the serious fire safety defects at HMP Coldingley in March 2017 demonstrate beyond doubt that from this point on your inspection teams must include an expert on fire safety. 

Grenfell changed everything, and that means it has to change things inside HM Prisons Inspectorate too. With 2,580 fires in prisons during 2016, almost 50 blazes a week, having missed the glaringly obvious fire defects at Coldingley in March this year and after Grenfell, I hope to find that I am knocking at an open door. 

I look forward to your response. 

Kind regards 

Yours sincerely,

Mark Leech FRSA 

Editor: The Prisons Handbook.

MoJ Under Siege

Well those MoJ spin doctors certainly had their work cut out today. Wall-to-wall negative coverage of a department fast becoming 'unfit for purpose' and still no minister in sight.

Following on from serious prison disturbances at HMP The Mount and HMP Erlestoke, the day started in earnest with news of the Prison Governors Association putting the boot in, as well as some assiduous behind-the-scenes work by Harry Fletcher, former Napo Assistant General Secretary, bearing some fruit and the media at last showing signs of joining some dots up about the link between SFOs and the TR omnishambles. This in the Guardian:-

Increase in serious crimes by offenders on probation, figures show

There has been an increase in serious crimes committed by offenders under supervision in the community since the controversial privatisation of the probation service, figures suggest. The number of offenders on probation charged with murder, manslaughter, rape and other serious violent or sexual crimes has risen by more than 25% since changes to the service in England and Wales.

Plaid Cymru, which obtained the figures, said the trend was “extremely worrying” and called for the government to renationalise the probation service. The party also found that offenders in many parts of England and Wales are reporting to the new private-sector community rehabilitation companies (CRC), which are responsible for supervising offenders judged to be of low or medium risk, via phone call rather than in person.

The government played down the figures, saying that since the reforms many more offenders are supervised in the community after leaving prison, which makes an accurate comparison of the before and after pictures impossible. It said reporting via phone was just one technique used by CRCs.

According to the figures, in 2012-13 – before privatisation – 409 serious further offence reviews were triggered. By 2016-17, the number of SFOs had increased to 517. The figures also show that between February 2015 and the end of 2016, 46 offenders were convicted of murder while subject to supervision by a CRC. This is likely to rise as a number of other cases are still going through the legal process.

Plaid Cymru’s justice spokesperson, the MP Liz Saville Roberts, said: “This is an extremely worrying rise in serious crime committed by people who are supposedly under supervision. These are offenders who, under the supervision of the probation service, committed murder, manslaughter, rape or another serious violent or sexual offence. That the number of instances of this kind has surged by 26% since the probation service was privatised is deeply worrying. The British government needs to admit it was wrong and commit to renationalising the probation service.”

The justice secretary, David Lidington, said last month that the privatised probation service had encountered “unforeseen challenges”.

Saville Roberts drew attention to leaked documents, first published by the Guardian in 2013, warning that there was a more than 80% risk that the proposals introduced by the then justice secretary, Chris Grayling, would lead to “an unacceptable drop in operational performance” triggering “delivery failures and reputational damage”.

She said: “It is astonishing that ministers are claiming the difficulties faced since privatisation were unforeseen when a leaked internal risk management document shows that they were warned.”

Harry Fletcher, a justice campaigner and former probation worker, said: “That the justice secretary claims that problems with the sell-off of the probation service were unforeseen is astonishing. The leaked risk assessment from 2013 was damning and warned about these problems but the British government ignored it.”

Under the changes to the service, the caseload was divided between the public sector National Probation Service – which took on higher-risk offenders – and 21 CRCs.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “In 2014, we reformed our approach to probation so that for the first time ever, all offenders given a custodial sentence receive probation support and supervision on release. It is therefore misleading to compare the number of Serious Further Offences prior to our reforms with subsequent figures, as the number of people on probation is now significantly higher than before. A thorough investigation is always carried out when someone commits a serious further offence to see whether anything could have been done differently.”

--oo00oo--

It should be noted that the best efforts by the MoJ spin doctors above have been thoroughly demolished here. Is it possible though that the senior staff are on holiday and the juniors are left running the show? "so that for the first time ever..."  No doubt those with long memories will recall we used to be called 'The Probation and After Care Service' .This seen on Facebook:-

"Surely the MoJ spokesperson contribution in this article is incorrect? It was John Major's Conservative Gov't that brought in the 1991 CJAct which removed probation support for short-term prisoners. As the then Xxxxxx ACPO responsible for throughcare, I implemented Xxxxxxx service level agreement with Xxxxxxxx to ensure that training and process was in place in order that our short-term prisoners received a service."

I understand Ian Lawrence, Napo General Secretary, was interviewed on LBC, but if his performance was anything like that on the Victoria Derbyshire tv programme, it's to be hoped the union can find a more able spokesperson in the not-too-distant future. Tune in at 49.26 and make your own mind up.

--oo00oo--

We'll round things off with this comment piece, again from the Guardian:-

Why are prisoners rioting? Serial ministerial incompetence

Our justice system is collapsing because key issues were never addressed by Chris Grayling and Michael Gove when they had the chance

Today is the second day of rioting at the Mount prison, and “disturbances” across the prison system in England and Wales are becoming increasingly frequent. Levels of violence and self-harm in our prisons are the highest they’ve been in decades. The president of the Prison Governors Association, Andrea Albutt, was right to express “grave concerns” and call for a stronger government response.

The basic reasons for the riots, violence and self-harm in prison are not complicated. There are 25% fewer operational staff, and the staff there are aren’t sufficiently skilled or experienced. Staff are hampered by poorly designed buildings. The dilapidated HMP Wandsworth is a prime example of a historically fascinating and eerily beautiful architecture – a perfect panopticon – but moving prisoners around its narrow corridors and steep stairways safely is far from easy. Overcrowding is acute across the estate – and contributes to a claustrophobic atmosphere. There’s little time for so-called “constructive activity” and inmates are trapped in their cells for ever-longer periods as governors try to reduce the chances of violence, but inevitably increase inmates’ frustration in doing so. Less is being done to rehabilitate prisoners in prison – and their chances are further undermined by the declining performance of probation services that were hastily outsourced by Chris Grayling, when justice secretary, in 2015.

The underlying reason for these obvious problems is an astounding level of political negligence and arrogance. Our problems today have been long in the making and must be seen through the stories of our rapidly changing cast of justice secretaries. We’ve had five of them since 2010 and they boast an average tenure of less than 18 months – barely enough time to understand the job, let alone do anything.

In 2010, Ken Clarke made it clear he supported the government’s goal of controlling public spending but he did give serious thought as to how this could be achieved sensibly. He realised tough choices were needed to reduce prison numbers, and former prime minister David Cameron and then-chancellor George Osborne promised to back him. Only they changed their minds and fired him in 2011 after the right of the party applied pressure and Clarke left himself politically exposed through a painfully misjudged interview.

Since then, every justice minister has felt obliged to pretend they could square the circle of cutting the Ministry of Justice’s budget by 25% over five years, while dealing with the same volume of prisoners. It might just have been possible, with careful attention to retaining the best prison staff, detailed work to improve the day-to-day management practices in prison, and work to pull in charitable funding and other sources of support for rehabilitation work. But then came Grayling. Proud of his outsourcing of employment services (despite its mixed results), he decided probation would work better if the private sector did it. And he ensured that his department focused almost exclusively on this programme rather than the mounting problems in prisons.

Then came Michael Gove. He was oddly heralded as a reformer, after setting up six “reform prisons” and saying lovely things about rehabilitation and the judges. But he ducked the need for more funds, agreeing to a 2015 budget settlement that promised more savings even as violence against staff doubled and suicides reached record highs. He also distracted the entire system when it should have been focused on the basics of recovering order in prisons – and when he must have known full well that he would be out of the job soon. As soon as he declared himself pro-leave before the EU referendum, he was a goner, destined to be promoted by Boris Johnson in the case of a leave victory, or sacked by Cameron in the case of a remain win. The fact he somehow managed to get fired after his side won is an alarming feat.

In 2016, the government finally promised it would recruit more officers. This was an achievement by Liz Truss, who replaced Gove, but a modest one. She, however, got the boot not because she was failing to manage the practicalities of the job but – reading between the lines – because she kept making enemies.

Cue 2017 and the arrival of David Lidington. So far, he has been virtually invisible, which is perhaps a reason for today’s salvo from the Prison Governors Association.

Who allowed this systematic irresponsibility? Civil servants could no doubt have been more robust in their advice. But the truth is that Grayling and Gove at least did not broach any challenge. Any senior officials that they felt were obstructing their plans or raising awkward questions were edged out. It’s tough to push back when your job is at stake.

No doubt some governors and prison officers could have done more to raise problems and find solutions – but most of them had crises to manage.

The only conclusion I can really draw is that the blame lies with the politicians. They cut prison budgets without having a good understanding of the likely impact, then carried on cutting long after those consequences were clear. They focused on pet projects rather than getting the basics right.

They were supported in doing so from the very top. Cameron and Osborne made the call that people didn’t much care about the condition of our prisons, and if budgets were to be cut this was a place to cut particularly deeply. They ignored signs that the system was creaking, and forgot that changing your justice secretary every 18 months is a sure-fire way to create problems. Most important, they forgot that there is no better symbol that government is out of control than riots within the facilities they are meant to run.

Tom Gash is an honorary senior lecturer at UCL’s Jill Dando Institute of Security and Crime Science

Governors Put Boot In

Here's that letter from Andrea Albutt of the Prison Governors Association in full:-

1 August 2017

Dear Colleagues, 

A Personal Message from the President 

I thought it really important that I write to you about the current crisis in our prisons and acknowledge the unacceptable stress and anxiety you face on a daily basis. I want you to know that the PGA is constantly fighting your corner, escalating all issues up to and including the Secretary of State. 

The recent increase in concerted indiscipline is of grave concern. The rise in our population, unforeseen by the statisticians in MOJ, has left us with virtually no headroom in prison spaces. This has coincided with summer peak leave period putting further strain on limited staffing resources. I know that governor grades are spending more and more time on landings bolstering numbers so some kind of regime can be delivered. The instability we are seeing is clearly linked to a poor regime. Further loss of accommodation, like those lost during the current, ongoing incidents at The Mount over the last couple of days, means drafts of prisoners are being moved across the country, compromising the Families Pathway and de-stabilising the receiving prisons as they try to maintain order amongst disaffected displaced men. This toxic mix does not have a quick fix and the future looks like more of the same. 

REFORM is the answer to all our woes and wouldn't it be great if that was the case. Members are telling me that they have seen nothing tangible coming out of MOJ to ease the burden to date. The decision to separate policy from operations seems a perverse one and certainly not cost effective when we are given messages that budgets remain very stretched. MOJ Prison Reform Programme consists of a Chief Executive Officer, Justin Russell who has a team of around 20 Directors/Deputy Directors, supported by approximately 450 other grades of staff. As the policy leads are predominantly generalist civil servants from other government departments, it leaves a gaping hole in operational knowledge. How has this hole been filled? By taking operational experts (our grades) out of prisons and putting them into MOJ. At a time when SMT's in prisons need competence, resilience and stability to deal with the intolerable pressure they are under, we are finding that temporary promotion into SMT's could be as high as 30%. I put this whole argument to Richard Heaton, Permanent Secretary, last week. His response was less than satisfactory and the example he gave a poor one. He stated he made no apologies for having IT experts working on IT Reform! An example of the madness of the split is recruitment. MOJ deal with all recruitment, up until the point when new staff are booked onto POELT courses then it is passed over to HMPPS. Why? Governor development also sits in MOJ and is headed by people who have absolutely no concept of what being a Governor means and requires; it is so much more than general leadership. 

The issue of Recruitment remains critical. In the year 16/17 there was a net increase of only 75 prison officers. This year it is ramping up, but with that comes further issues as members tell me that they have concerns about their new recruits. They say that the selection process is allowing many unsuitable people through, and the quality of training is poor. It has been said that large numbers of new recruits can actually add to the instability in prisons rather than improve it. I suppose it is understandable that when trying to increase numbers at speed, quality may be compromised. However, the attrition rate is high and increasing, so MOJ and HMPPS need to do something to stop this very expensive recruitment campaign turning into a complete damp squib. Recent media coverage of quarterly statistics show the highest violence ever, this along with concerted indiscipline in our prisons is not an advert to join or stay. 

Empowerment has yet to gain any traction. The Deregulation Project stuttered and stumbled to a halt and failed totally to release Governors from the bureaucratic chains of 100's of PSI's. I understand that it is to be revitalised, so let's hope the review of IEP policy is not the speed of future deregulation. Members are informing us that rather than being enabled to work in an empowered way, they are seeing more assurance and monitoring as they now serve two machines. This is confusing and the rub between both partners is obvious when as a professional association we are required to deal with both. Who are the decision makers? This is probably one of the PGA's most asked questions and we still aren't clear! 

We know many prisons are in crisis and I deliberately use that term, because it can't be dressed up in any other way. We have 40 prisons of concern, 10 of which are very concerning. Of the ones that don't fit this criteria, they are still a distance away from where we were in the Golden Years pre austerity. The PGA will continue to voice concern and ramp up pressure on MOJ Prison Reform Programme in particular to start delivering and reacting in a much more timely manner to the situation we are in. That said, I remain firmly of the belief that you cannot separate policy and delivery when dealing with such a complex environment as ours. I will lobby Ministers on this very topic in October when we meet with Sam Gyimah for the first time since the Election. 

Whilst devastated at the complete decline of our Service, in a perverse way, these difficult times are often our finest hour as the total commitment of our members is so obvious when grappling with the day to day trials and tribulations of operational life. We will continue with pride to serve the membership as directed and deliver the very difficult messages you are unable to. 

Andrea