Template for prisoner and Families
URGENT
FAO The
Governing Governor
HMP [insert
prison and address]
Dear Sir / Madam
[insert prisoner’s name: prison number : D.O.B] COVID 19
*URGENT*
I am writing in relation to the above-named prisoner or IPP prisoner, who is
currently detained at HMP [insert prison]. I am seriously concerned for her/his
health and believe her/him to be at risk of serious harm or death.
I therefore ask that you consider recommending to PPCS that s/he
is granted Early Release on Compassionate Grounds. [insert details of health
condition / disability / vulnerability to COVID including any evidence, medical
advice, doctor’s letters etc].
I also ask that you consider an application for temporary release.
It is hard to see in the current situation how Mr/Ms [insert
name] can be kept shielded and in receipt of adequate medical care in custody.
As you will be aware, the Secretary of State has
the legal authority to grant early release on compassionate grounds under s248 Criminal Justice Act 2003 which
provides:
The
Secretary of State may at any time release a fixed term prisoner on licence if
he is satisfied that exceptional circumstances exist which justify the
prisoner’s release on compassionate grounds.
Further guidance on such applications regarding
early release or temporary release is found under PSO 6000 Chapter 12: page 8
APPENDIX A (copied here for convenience).
COMPASSIONATE RELEASE CRITERIA
The criteria applied in medical
and tragic family circumstances cases are as follows:
(i) Medical
- the
prisoner is suffering from a terminal illness and death is likely to occur
soon; or the prisoner is bedridden or
similarly incapacitated; and
- the
risk of re-offending is past; and
- there are adequate arrangements for the prisoner's care and treatment
outside prison; and
- early
release will bring some significant benefit to the prisoner or his/her family.
[our emphasis]
I believe that the above criteria are met in Mr/Ms
[insert name’s] case.
AND / OR [delete
as appropriate]
(iii) General
The following factors need also
to be considered:
- whether temporary release under the Prison Rules could significantly reduce the prisoner's
and/or family's suffering;
- the length of the sentence
still outstanding; the effect on the overall sentence passed by the court if
early release is granted; and any remarks which the trial judge made on
sentencing which may have a bearing on the question of release;
- the wishes of the prisoner and his/her family and the level of benefit
which would derive to the prisoner and/or the family from permanent release;
- in medical cases, the diagnosis
and prognosis; in particular whether there is a specific estimate of life
expectancy; and
the degree of
incapacitation.
In
addition the Secretary of State may release a prisoner if he is satisfied that
other exceptional circumstances exist.
[our emphasis]
The COVID-19 outbreak, particularly in prisons,
clearly meets the requirement of ‘exceptional circumstances’. I am therefore
asking that you recommend to the Secretary of State that he exercise his
discretion to protect this prisoner’s life by granting Early Release on
Compassionate Grounds, and that you also consider whether Mr/Ms_____ can be granted Temporary Release within the
guidelines set out in the Release on Temporary Licence Framework (see paragraph
6.31 on ‘other tragic, or exceptional, personal, or family circumstances’).
If you are unable to do either of these things,
please provide the information requested below regarding the steps you are
taking to safeguard Mr/Ms X’s life and health.
You will be aware the government issued guidance on
13th March 2020 regarding Covid-19 policy in places of
detention. Updated guidance of the 26th
March 2020 encourages contacting the prison where a prisoner may be at risk.
There can be no dispute that Mr/Ms X [delete as
appropriate] is at high risk in light of his/her age
and/or pre-existing health condition. It is accepted that the prison is likely
to be taking significant measures to protect the health of staff and prisoners;
however, I am asking you to provide written confirmation of what if any steps
have been taken in particular to safeguard Mr / Ms X who is particularly at
high risk of death from the Covid-19 virus.
As you will appreciate, in the current health
crisis Articles 2, 3 and 8 of the ECHR (Right to Life: Prevention of Inhuman
and Degrading Treatment, Right to Respect for Private Life including physical
and moral integrity) are clearly engaged. These Articles require public
authorities to refrain from conduct that places the life, health or physical
integrity of individuals at grave risk. They may also require public
authorities to take positive steps to minimise risk to life, to protect
physical and mental health and to avoid breaches of these rights. Article 14
also prohibits the discriminatory failure to protect these rights by reason of
a protected characteristic. This means that the Secretary of State is obliged
to take steps to ensure that those with a protected characteristic are not at a
disadvantage in securing protection of their fundamental rights.
It is to date unclear what if any policy, practice
or steps are actively being taken to safeguard prisoners such as [insert name],
who are at heightened risk of death.
I am very concerned that if there is an on-going
risk of death or inhuman and degrading treatment that Mr/Ms [insert name] may
become detained unlawfully. This may give rise to an application for Habeas
Corpus. However, there is already such a serious risk to Mr/Ms X‘s life and
ability to receive adequate medical care, that I am urging you to take steps
now to protect his/her health and welfare.
Please provide the following information and
documents:
1.Confirmation
that a recommendation for Early Release on Compassionate Grounds is being made
to the Secretary of State; or
2.Confirmation
that you have considered and granted Temporary Release; or
3.In the
event that Early Release is not recommended, or Temporary release granted,
written reasons for your decisions;
4.Information
concerning Mr/Ms X [insert name] and what if any steps are being taken to
safeguard him/her.
5.Copies of
any policy documents which ensure compliance with safeguarding those detained
in your prison.
6.Any
information of what if any steps will be taken in light of the current situation
to facilitate contact with Mr/Ms X [insert name] if the need becomes urgent.
Given the
circumstances and the urgency I am asking you to reply within 3 days if
possible.
Yours
faithfully
[insert
your name]
.................................................................................................
I don’t
believe death would be part of my sentence!
How coronavirus is spreading through UK prisons
As the whole nation grapples with isolation, sombre news
updates, supply shortages and fear of an unknown future, is being in
prison is a curse? with many inmates
sharing cramped cells for 23 hours every day. Communal showers, laundry
procedures, the need for exercise, and healthcare facilities limit the true
meaning of social distancing. weeks since “outbreak” status was
confirmed in prison, the Ministry of Justice appears at best muddled about what
to do as the virus spreads through our prisons. many mistakes
have been made by the government: personal protective equipment. For
years, prisons have been underfunded and overcrowded breeding grounds for
crime, drug abuse and mental health decline. With inaccurate statistical and
lack of reporting, and the abrupt change of strategy’s have added massive death
toll prisoners and massive long term failing on IPP prisoners. It was said if the Covid-19 spreads throughout the
prison population it will be an avoidable catastrophe sadly it has and its
spreading and the government has a duty of care but why are we not hearing about the statistics the releases or regular media
updates like hospital care homes etc. The
government are discriminating, demonstrating prisoners don’t matter prisoners
have children and extended family and are deeply worried. Iran is reported to
have released at least 85,000 prisoners during this unprecedented global
crisis.Why are we little or to late. But, so far, the Ministry of Justice
has released only around 50 pregnant inmates. In early April there was talk of
releasing 4,000 low-risk prisoners (less than 5 per cent of the prison
population. But this programme has been paused. With around a third of prison
officers across the country self-isolating we need more action.This is not just about our own safety its essential to think
about the mental health of prisoners.Government address the prison issue
before there are more deaths in custody. No, not all prisoners are safe to be
released, but the many that are would slim down numbers to create a safer
environment for inmates and staff alike.In concerned another death each day
that passes Robert Buckland, the Justice Secretary,should be held accountable
as he was given the advice of the Prisoners Advice Service to slow down the
emergency in our prisons by releasing the following groups of inmates:
·
All
prisoners with physical disabilities.
·
Imprisonment
for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners whose IPP tariffs have expired.
·
People
held under immigration detention powers.
·
Everybody
over the age of 75, no matter what their conviction. (They would be tagged and
strictly monitored.)
·
Those
over 50 whose convictions aren’t for violent or sexual crimes. People awaiting
extradition.
Most of these proposals are supported by Nick Hardwick, the
former chief inspector of prisons. All those released – not just the most
dangerous – would be tagged and monitored in their community. I am in a working prison, but almost all work has stopped.
Education has stopped, the chapel is closed, and most men are locked up for 23
hours every day. I have no internet access. Amid an already volatile situation,
there is £2.02 to provide three meals per day for each prisoner. Something
must happen and soon.
Comments
Lewis
This bloody sentence was abolished and should of been right
across the board , absolutely heart-breaking knowing there’s no end of sentence
for these prisoners , being kept in well past tariff some of May re offend all prisoners could its a yes or no, not May.
Fears for
dad in ninth year of 'soul destroying' indefinite sentence for stealing phone
Thomas White who's serving an IPP sentence and is currently
in Garth. I'd appreciate your comments
EXCLUSIVE: Thomas White has made attempts on his own life
while spending time inside various UK prisons during an Imprisonment for Public
Protection sentence, which could see him locked up until the day he dies
dad-of-two is struggling to cope as he enters his ninth
year of an indefinite prison sentence for stealing a phone.
In 2011, Thomas White was handed an Imprisonment for Public
Protection (IPP) sentence with a minimum term of two years for street robbery,
which means he can only be released once he passes parole.
The 36-year-old has been crushed by the weight of his never
ending sentence, leaving him emotionally exhausted, with severe mental health
issues and prone to lash out at prison guards.
As he battles through each day inside by keeping his young
sons in mind, Thomas is also trying to work out how to take courses which
aren't offered at his prison but are essential for his parole approval.
Outside, his sister Clara is calling for his release
alongside Donna Mooney, whose brother Tommy Nicol tragically took his own life
while inside in strikingly similar circumstances.
"It's been nine years of a two year sentence,"
Thomas told Mirror Online from inside HMP Garth in Lancashire.
"It is soul destroying. Two times I have seriously
considered suicide. I have hung nooses up. I have tried to take my own life.
"I know it is not the way. There has to be light at the
end of the tunnel, I just need to be given a chance."
Thomas first found himself in trouble with the law as a child
growing up in Manchester.
A life in-and-out of foster care and a family home disrupted
by domestic violence and alcoholism left Thomas 'tormented', Clara said.
A robbery related charge at the age of 11 preceded troubled
teenage years, in which Thomas smoked cannabis, drank alcohol, and stole phones
and money.
After his release from a four year sentence Thomas robbed a
phone from a couple in Manchester city centre after a night of drinking.
C. Rosina. This hit my heart as many families
and friends of a loved one stuck on ipp suffer also
He pleaded guilty to the offence and was given a IPP sentence
- an indefinite term introduced under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 to keep
dangerous prisoners who did not warrant life stretches away from the public.
They were abolished in 2012 by then Justice Secretary Ken
Clarke, who described IPPs as a 'stain' on the system.
Those serving IPP sentences already were not released and
some 2,039 remain inside UK prisons, with no idea of when or if they will be
released and with 94% having served more than their minimum term.
The toll of the indefinite sentence on Thomas, combined with
what the family claim is substandard mental health care, has been immense.
“The mental health service in prison has let him down
terribly,” Clara claimed.
“He's never been diagnosed even though they know he's unwell.
“My mum went to see him one time. She was disturbed. He was
convinced he was Jesus' disciples.”
Thomas’s mental health issues have been exasperated by
smoking spice, which leads him to act erratically.
On three occasions during his nine year stretch he has
assaulted a prison officer - once by spitting through the doors of a
segregation unit at a member of staff.
Thomas has received additional 16 week terms for each attack,
which do not alter his IPP sentence beyond acting as a black mark against his
name when it comes to parole hearings.
In its annual report, the Independent Monitoring Board for
HMP Garth warned IPP prisoners there had “lost hope”, causing their behaviour
to deteriorate so much it is “likely that they will never be deemed safe to
release.”
“He's done most of his prison sentence in a segregation
unit,” Clara said.
“He becomes a target for people in the main prison wing
because he's trying to bless everyone.
“I've spoken to him on the phone and he told me he has met
the devil. It's really disturbing.
“Your mind goes when
you're left alone like that. He has called me up and told me he's going to end
his life.
“I've had to ring the prison and tell him I need him to be
watched.
“He spent so much time alone he has lost all touch with
reality.
“In Norwich he spent a lot of time in segregation, getting
sicker and sicker. They leave the light on, so you lose track of what day
you're on.”
Clara claims that Thomas has been stabbed by other prisoners
while inside and left with no clothes in segregation units.
Each evening at 8.45pm Clara, Thomas and their mum Margaret
come together in prayer from their respective rooms, asking that he may soon be
released.
hey desperately want him moved to the Beacon mental health
unit at Garth so he can receive proper treatment, followed by admission to a
mental health hospital upon his release.
Clara, who described Thomas’s sentence as like ‘being on
death row’, wants him to be re-sentenced as quickly as possible at the very
least.
Thomas has found another supporter on the outside in the form
of Donna Mooney.
Since her brother Tommy killed himself five years and nine
months into an IPP for robbery Donna has campaigned for the sentences to be
reformed.
She believes IPP prisoners should be given better mental
health support, clear and accessible pathways to parole, and a chance to be
re-sentenced.
"It takes away any power that they could have over their
lives," Donna said of the IPP sentences, which Tommy described as
‘psychological torture’ before his death.
"It takes away any hope. My brother, he lost all hope.
He tried everything that was in his power but it still didn't work."
Like Thomas, Tommy found himself at a prison - HMP Coldingley
- where there were no relevant courses for him to complete.
During his time there he wrote a formal complaint that he had
not been offered relevant mental health support.
Tommy was transferred twice more to prisons where his
behaviour became increasingly erratic, particularly after he was told his next
parole review would be in two years' time.
He went on hunger strike, set fire to his cell, self-harmed
and made a mask from a paper plate.
No mental health support was offered.
On September 21, 2015, Tommy took his own life.
"When his parole got knocked back it was like dangling a
carrot in front of him," Donna said.
"They're (IPP prisoners) doing everything that they can
but the parole knocks them back so much."
Thomas has failed three parole hearings in the course of his
sentence so far, with his next scheduled for June this year.
On one previous occasion he was too depressed to leave his
cell and argue for his release.
Part of his struggle to stay on track toward parole has been
the inconsistency of his time inside.
During his nine year stretch Thomas has been moved from
prison to prison 16 times.
The transfers disrupt his mental health care plans, Clara
claims, often leaving him without the right medication.
His spirits reached a particular low during stints in HMP
Norwich and HMP Chelmsford earlier this year, when Thomas began to suffer from
intense delusion.
“In Norwich I really wanted to end my life,” he said.
"I went back to how I was when I was a child. I sat in
the corner and soiled and wet myself. I think I have PTSD but I haven't been
diagnosed with it yet.
"In Chelmsford I was hearing things and seeing
things."
As haphazard and faltering as his attempts to receive parole
have been, he has not yet given up hope.
"My two babies need me there," Thomas said.
"I haven't seen my boys since they were little babies.
My oldest, the last time I saw him was when he was one. It is one of the things
that keeps me going - that I am going to be able to hold my babies again.
"I pray to the lord that I will be able to see them
again. To do things as a family. To sit down around the table at Christmas.”
A Parole Board spokesman said: “The Parole Board is very
aware of the understandable concerns that have been raised about the progress
of prisoners serving an IPP sentence.
a sentence set up to fail and a government who did
provide the courses so prisoners can prove there not a risk .
thousands of IPP prisoners death's covered up a decade
on and the figures are shocking . many IPP prisoner are up to12 years
over there sentence due failing then. ive hear all the poor
accuses words like finding a strategy ,lack of parole, they all will be
released by 2020 im not are satisfied those IPP prisoners are
12 years and recall for no offenses destroying there mental health is
well documented.A justice sec again failing to deal with viruse andwith
staggering deaths. And not a word since his last appearance the media
spot light. stratiges to keep all quite with no intention to act urgent because
again what is the words they keep saying we are finding strategies that why we
have the highest death than any other regarding the COVID_ 19,we cant
wait until there all dead.
Comments
Borgan.
How
devastating! My brother is in a very similar situation! He’s on an IPP and he’s
done just shy of 10years. he,s will not be allowed to an open he
Absconded
but came
back he didn't see and end to his setence a bit of mental being over that
long and any ipp/lifer prisoner can only be released from an open prison! Where
does he stand?? In his 6ft by 6ft cell! His mental has rapidly deteriorated
over the years too, as you can imagine. But he’ll stay strong
Lewis
This
bloody sentence was abolished and should of been right across the board ,
absolutely heart-breaking knowing there’s no end of sentence for these
prisoners
Briggs
I
don't know whether the rules have changed in the last few years but my IPP OH
was released from Hull which is not open.
Locked up in lockdown: How coronavirus has exposed the flaws
in our prison system
For those not intimately acquainted with the prison
system, it can seem obscure and remote – a world where the barriers separating
those inside and outside are more than architectural.
Paddy Wivell’s recent
Bafta-nominated Prison series has illuminated the manifold pressures
facing the system, but prior to this, knowledge of UK prisons felt easier to
glean from distorted, commercialised portrayals in popular films than from real
people’s experiences.
At a time when coronavirus is devastating prisons,
in the context of an already pressing urgency for prison reform, the need for
wider public understanding could not be more critical.
Charities have warned the Citizen that
they are increasingly worried about the physical and mental welfare of inmates,
with lockdown measures upending external visits and workshops, and severely
restricting their movements inside prison.
""Charities have also called on the
Ministry of Justice to immediately speed up the implementation of the Temporary Release Scheme which
is designed to stop the spread of Covid through prisons by releasing a number
of prisoners where it is safe to do so.
As with so many other societal issues, the pandemic
has laid bare the fractures and fault lines pulsating beneath the surface of
the criminal justice system.
There is fresh scrutiny on the efficacy of
short-term prison sentences, whether jail time is the best way of
rehabilitating non-violent offenders, and if there is adequate support for
staff.
Pentonville prison is one of the closest to
Hackney. An Ofsted inspection in 2019 deemed it so unsafe that inspectors
considered triggering the Urgent Notification process to alert the Justice
Secretary to the difficulties it faced.
The inspection noted that many prisoners were
forced to live in unsanitary conditions, 29 per cent of those randomly drug tested
posted positive results, and one third of the population reported feeling
unsafe.
A follow-up visit in February this year found few
constructive changes.
The report found Pentonville was characteristic of
a generation of Victorian prisons struggling to contain an entirely different
cohort to those they were initially designed to house.
Prison populations can magnify the social
challenges of wider society, and the physical configuration of prisons can
exacerbate these problems.
Prisons are increasingly confining a disaffected
younger population who have had limited educational, community and mental
health services available to them, having come of age in the era of austerity.
Many inmates have gang affiliations which are
further consolidated within the confines of prison walls, driving up rates of
serious violence and drug use.
In 2015, the government announced prison reforms,
which then Chancellor George Osborne declared would “modernise the prison
estate”.
He said at the time: “So many of our jails are
relics from Victorian times […] we are going to reform the infrastructure of
our prison system, building new institutions which are modern, suitable and
rehabilitative.”
Despite these promises, many of London’s prisons –
Pentonville, Wandsworth, Wormwood Scrubs, Brixton – continue to occupy
Victorian buildings poorly designed for 21st century needs.
The Prisoners’ Advice Service (PAS) is a charity
which provides specialist guidance to inmates and their families on their legal
and human rights.
Director Lubia Begum-Rob told the Citizen:
“The Covid-19 pandemic is having a devastating impact on prisoners and their
families.
“Despite introducing various early release schemes,
the government has been extremely slow to actually release any prisoners under
them, and has only released the guidelines on the schemes in the context of
legal action.”
She added: “Our advisers are responding every day
to many queries from prisoners and their outside supporters, who are anxious
both about the threat to their health and about the consequential effects of
prisons being in a complete lockdown with no end in sight.
“This is having a terrible toll on prisoners’
physical and mental health, and that of those trying their best to support them
from the outside.”
Although there are many commonalities in the
experiences of those in prison, women face a unique set of challenges, which
research suggests the the system is poorly equipped to address.
Women in Prison, a charity founded to support and
advocate for women negatively impacted by the prison system, has identified a
significant increase in the harshness of UK sentences.
Its research shows 80 per cent of women in
prison have been incarcerated for non-violent offences.
The charity also discovered that women constitute
five per cent of the overall prison population, but are responsible for 18 per
cent of the total number of self-harm incidents.
Worryingly, Women in Prison found there is no
centralised system to monitor the proportion of imprisoned women with dependent
children, raising concerns that they are more likely to fall through the gaps.
Women also face more structural obstructions than
men as they try to rebuild their lives once prison ends.
Although it is widely accepted that employment can
be a key conduit to rehabilitation, the Prison Reform Trust’s Working It Out report in February found
women were three times less likely than men to be employed in the six weeks
after leaving prison.
The Trust found that difficulties in obtaining
childcare, punitive social attitudes, and the impracticality of Universal
Credit all contributed to women finding it difficult to attain employment.
It also reported that women exiting prison find it
harder to procure stable accommodation or bank accounts, which are
prerequisites for entering formal employment.
Prison has an especially adverse impact on those
from already marginalised groups like BAME women, Muslim women and those with
substance dependencies who can face further social discrimination once they
have a criminal record.
Women are also more likely than men to be the
principal carers for children, meaning even in ordinary circumstances, a prison
sentence can have a devastating impact on family units.
In the era of social distancing, the most basic
physical interactions between mothers and their children are now ruled out and
replaced by limited, sporadic telephone contact.
Whilst lockdown has led to many families spending
increasing amounts of time together, for those in prison, even the most
intrinsic manifestations of parental love such as hugging, touching and kissing
have now become an impossibility.
Women’s charities have raised serious concerns
about the physical, psychological and developmental implications of this for
children.
Kate Paradine, CEO of Women in Prison, told
the Citizen: “Parental and caring roles often do not end when a woman is
imprisoned – many women continue to care and look after their children and
families through regular phone calls and prison visits.
“The lockdown has ended this – visits have stopped,
and in some prisons, people only have very limited time to call their families,
collect their medication and get lunch.”
She added: “This has a devastating impact on both
the children and the mother. Children have lost a vital support during an
already uncertain and scary time, while mothers will be locked in their cells
for almost 24 hours a day, worrying about whether their children are safe and
well.
“This is why the government must include people
with caring responsibilities in their plans for release and release them
urgently.
“Failure to do so will deny children their right to
a family life and cause unnecessary pain and trauma.”
The Ministry of Justice is yet to respond to the
issues raised by the Prisoners’ Advice Service and Women in Prison.
A Prison Service spokesperson did, however, state:
“We have robust and flexible plans in place across England and Wales to keep
prisoners, staff and the wider public safe based on the latest advice from
Public Health England.”
Addressing concerns about those who are leaving
prison, a spokesperson for the Prison and Probation Service told
the Citizen: “Probation officers are continuing supervising in person
those who pose the highest risk, ensuring the monitoring of high-risk
offenders remains as tough as it always is.
“If staff believe it is the right thing to do,
offenders can always be recalled to prison […] At the same time, we are using
technology more to supervise lower-risk offenders to reduce the spread of the
virus.”
The conundrum of how prisons should be organised is
one of the most fundamental questions in any society.
There are certainly no straightforward answers and
the debate will rumble on well after the pandemic.
Those who want to see further prison reform will
hope that this pandemic has exposed indisputable flaws in the system, paving
the way for one that is more humane and rehabilitative – not just for
prisoners, but for society as a whole.
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...............................................................................
Hundreds
deaths since the article has been printed so what is the true amount Justice
Secretary !1st of May coronavirus cases in theEast of England prisons
A report published this week by Public Health
England (PHE), says there have been over 100 ‘probable’ cases of coronavirus in prisons in the East of
England.
The data, compiled up to 24 April, is part of a
report looking into mitigation strategies in prisons to slow and prevent the
spread of the disease amongst prisoners.
The report says there have been: The 1st May
of May reported
115 ‘probable’ cases of coronavirus
35 confirmed coronavirus cases
four coronavirus related hospitalisations
three deaths connected to coronavirus
Access to tests for prisoners has been “limited and
variable”, leading to the inclusion of possible/probable cases in its data.
Individuals were classified under this category
when they met the clinical case definition of COVID-19 and where usually five
or more positive cases from prisoners had come from the same facility already.
In total, the PHE data states that there were 304
confirmed cases of coronavirus across the prison estate in England and Wales,
1,783 ‘probable’, 35 hospitalisations and 15 deaths.
Separately, four prison staff have so far died due
to the virus.
The majority of prisons in England and Wales have
had at least one confirmed case of coronavirus, although the Bedford
Independent did not receive a response from Bedford Prison when asked
how many cases they had so far.
As part of the report’s main findings, it is stated
that measures implemented in prisons have prevented an “explosive outbreak”
from occurring.
The data compiled by the report also indicates that
the number of confirmed cases per day of COVID-19 in prisons peaked in early
April.
However, while there remains no reliable vaccine or
other treatment, “risk of large outbreaks in the prison estate will remain”.
Prison visits remain suspended and Bedford Prison
continues to run an automated message on its main switch line, advising callers
that due to a high volume of calls, they should only hold if they have a
safeguarding issue.
Meanwhile, a Coronavirus Payment Scheme was
introduced on 23 March to further remunerate prison staff willing to work extra
hours to help cover staff shortages due to self-isolation or suspected
symptoms.
At around the same time in March, 10% of the total
prison workforce were unavailable due to self-isolation or sickness.
If a prison officer signs up for four-weeks of
nine-hours overtime each week, they are entitled to a £500 bonus payment, which
on top of overtime pay, adds up to an additional total of £1,292.
If they sign up for 12 weeks on the same hours per
week rate, the bonus increases to £1,750 and the prison officer will earn £4,126
additional pay in total.
Prison governors, meanwhile, are entitled to a
£1,500 bonus under the payment scheme with no minimum number of hours required
to be eligible for it.
A spokesperson for the Prison Officers Association
(POA) described this as “grossly unfair” in comparison to other prison staff.
Earlier this month, as a result of the slow
implementation of the planned early release of 4,000 prisoners in England and
Wales, the Howard League for Penal Reform and Prison Reform Trust joined
together to begin legal action against the government for its management of
containing the spread in prisons.
On 27 April, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland
confirmed that so far only 33 of 4,000 prisoners eligible for early release to
help slow the spread of COVID-19 in prisons, had been released.
According to Ministry of Justice data, as of March
2020, Bedford Prison held 359 prisoners, a rise of 3 from the corresponding
figure for February.
The Category B Male offender prison has an
operational capacity of 409 and a baseline certified normal accommodation (CNA)
capacity of 314.
Prisoner found at Waterlooville flat after walking out of HMP
Ford told police 'he'd had enough'
A PRISONER in an open jail walked off to a nearby railway
station after saying' he’d had enough,’ a court heard.
Brian Chapman, 39, was spotted hiding his face and walking
to the station by a probation officer who was driving to HMP Ford.
Portsmouth Crown Court heard she raised the alarm with
prison guards, a roll call was held and he was discovered to have absconded.
Armed police found Chapman
at a flat in Waterlooville nearly 10 days later on February 7 at
3.30pm.
‘In interview he admitted he’d had enough and he walked
out,’ prosecutor Robert Bryan told the remote court hearing.
The court heard Chapman has previous convictions for
assaults, and was given an imprisonment for public protection with a minimum
21-month term for robbery and grievous bodily harm offences in 2007.
He was out of jail by at the latest by March 2017 - when he
was then sentenced to 12 weeks for assaulting a police officer.
Once back in custody he was moved from HMP Stocken in Oakham
to HMP Ford, near Arundel, West Sussex, on October 21 last year.
By January 29 he decided he’d had enough and left the
category D open jail. The roll call was held at 9.45am.
Today judge William Ashworth imposed a six-month jail
sentence. But the court heard Chapman was not due to have a Parole Board
hearing until next April, meaning he will stay in custody under his IPP until
then.
Philip Allman, for Chapman, said: ‘He said he didn’t know
why he did it. What he did communicate to me was that it was a regretful
decision and one for which he has shown remorse.’
He added Chapman’s actions were ‘impulsive’ but he wanted to
reintegrate into society when released. me
............................................................................
Please help us Release Nicholas Waszczuk IPP
Prisoner fighting for his life after 15 years
PLEASE Spare 5 minutes too sign
this petition too help us release....... Nicholas an Ipp Prisoner who have
spent nearly 15 years inside prison, Nicholas has confined himself for many
years with the belief he will never be released, he has lost all hope an faith
in the justice system, I as a friend have had enough of his misery that he has
been handed and goes through, Britain release paedophiles and terrorists back
into our society on the quiet and turn a blind eye. BUT NICHOLAS IS
NEITHER ONE OF THESE PERPATRATORS and have served more time than any terrorist
in Britain .NICHOLAS is a good soul poses no threats and met all requirements
the system has asked him too,
A 17 YEAR OLD BOY NOW A 32 YEAR
MAN DESERVES A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE, NOT LIFE WITH A SECOND SENTENCE. Please
help us by signing thank you for your time and patients.
...........................................................................
Self-harm in English and Welsh prisons up 14% last year
Self-harming in prison custody has hit a record high in
England and Wales, figures reveal, with incidents recorded at an average rate
of one every eight minutes .
Self-harm incidents reached a record high of 63,328 in the 12
months to December 2019, up 14% from the previous 12 months, the Ministry of
Justice data showed.
The number of individuals self-harming increased by 3% in the
same period to 12,977 and the average number of incidents for each person
self-harming increased by 11% from 4.4 to 4.9.
However, the figures show that in the year to March 2020, the
number of self-inflicted deaths declined 8% to 80, while assaults were down 4%
in the 12 months to December to 32,669 incidents.
Frances Crook, the chief executive of the Howard League for
Penal Reform, said: “The government’s own figures, from before the coronavirus
lockdown began, reveal the sheer scale of human misery behind bars across
England and Wales. Assaults may be falling but the restricted regimes imposed
have caused further surges in the numbers of self-injury incidents.
“Since then prison regimes have tightened even further. But
these figures show that keeping prisoners safe during the pandemic involves so
much more than seeking to reduce rates of infection.
“The need to reduce the prison population could not be
clearer. It is intolerable that prisoners should be spending 23 hours or more
each day locked in cells, either in overcrowded conditions or prolonged
solitary confinement, with nothing to do.”
In the 12 months to December there were 63,328 self-harm
incidents in prisons in England and Wales
Separate data from the MoJ revealed there were 3,367
prisoners held under the terms of the controversial imprisonment
for public protection (IPP) sentence.
The IPP sentence, scrapped in 2012, was a form of
indeterminate sentence in which offenders were given a minimum jail tariff but
no maximum for a range of crimes.
Those given an IPP sentence are placed on licence
indefinitely after release, meaning they can be recalled to prison at any
stage.
The psychological impact of the IPP regime has been at
the heart of numerous deaths in prisons in recent years.
There were 2,039 unreleased IPP prisoners on 31 March 2020, a
fall of 15% in a year, but the number of those recalled increased in the same
period by 25% to 1,328.
Meanwhile, the proportion of the IPP prisoner population who
are past their minimum tariff continued to increase to 94% at 31 March compared
with 91% at the same time the previous year.
There were 9,995 assaults on prison staff in the 12 months to
December 2019, a 2% decrease from the previous 12 months.
In the same period, there were 3,813 serious assault
incidents, a decrease of 3% from the previous 12 months.
The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT),
part of the human rights organisation the Council of Europe, published
a damning report on visits to prisons in England last year.
The watchdog found that prison officers were allegedly
punching compliant inmates who they suspected might misbehave in the future, in
a practice known as “preventive strikes”.
More broadly, the committee said that despite some progress
since its last inspection in 2016, the prison system in England was in “deep
crisis”, finding the jails visited to be “violent, unsafe and overcrowded”.
Deborah Coles, the director of the charity Inquest, which
supports families of people who have died in custody, said: “People in prison
are totally dependent on the state for their safety. These latest figures show
around six people are dying in prison every week and that levels of self-harm
have shattered previous record highs. This reflects a long-running failure in
the government’s duty of care to protect lives in prison.
“Regretfully we fear the worst is yet to come as the impact
of the virus is felt throughout the prison estate. The frustration and despair
of prisoners faced with prolonged isolation in appalling conditions must be
closely monitored and addressed.”
We need answers not words or empty promises
Coronavirus: More than 2,000 prisoners may have been
infected, says PHE.The number of prisoners believed to have been infected with
coronavirus may be up to six times as many as the published figure, it has
emerged.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-52449920?fbclid=IwAR1Ac_YWP7ASgfqDdDQyRIVeDXKkNX9YinsX9ZnbGGdzMPqDDpmd47_yJScPost date IPP setence article https://www.rt.com/uk/405343-ipp-prisoners-sentence-limbo/
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/apr/30/self-harming-in-englands-prisons-up-14-hitting-record-high?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&fbclid=IwAR1W82VqPtfE4qlUYCBnmcFciAEaZV_oOAOHlUKLUrMDBlPwXNIKp0aosK4
https://www.newstatesman.com/science-tech/2020/05/how-coronavirus-spreading-through-uk-prisons
