House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 18 Dec 1996 (pt 32)

Prisons (Disabled Visitor Access)

Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which prisons have been adapted to enable visitors to have access with (a) a wheelchair and (b) physical disabilities not requiring a wheelchair; what adaptations have been made to the prisons; and if he will make a statement. [9125]

Miss Widdecombe [holding answer 17 December 1996]: Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Richard Tilt to Mr. Alex Carlile, dated 18 December 1996:

The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your recent question about which prisons have been adapted to enable visitors to have access with wheelchairs and other physical disabilities.

Facilities for disabled visitors have generally been provided as a result of local minor work and we do not therefore have comprehensive central records of modifications made to buildings for this purpose. A survey carried out in 1995, however, revealed that the attached list of establishments have facilities for disabled visitors.

Examples of the type of facilities provided include ramps, lifts, wide doors and specially adapted toilets. The establishments listed may have all or any of these.

Our standard briefing guides for new buildings provide for access ramps, lifts, toilets, and for circulation routes to be made suitable for the passage of wheelchairs. Wherever practical these guides are also taken into account when existing facilities are refurbished.

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Prisoners (Learning Disabilities)

Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what is the current Prison Service policy with regard to prisoners identified as having learning disabilities and dyslexia; and if he will make a statement; [9127]

(a)

(b)

Miss Widdecombe [holding answer 17 December 1996]: Responsibility for these matters has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Richard Tilt to Mr. Alex Carlile, dated 18 December 1996:

The Home Secretary has asked me to reply to your two recent Questions about prisoners with learning disabilities and dyslexia.

The policy of the Prisons Board towards prisoners who have any learning disabilities, including dyslexia, is that those who need to improve basic literacy and are prepared to attend education classes will be given every opportunity to do so. Contractors providing education to prisons are required to offer a basic skills screening test in numeracy and literacy to all prisoners. Basic literacy is included in the Prison Service's core education curriculum. A number of prisons are also trying to find better ways of giving basic skills training as part of vocational training and in the course of daily work in prison workshops. This work is being supported by the Basic Skills Agency, with whom the Prison Service works closely. The Unit has contracted Amersham and Wycombe College to provide a national support project to this end.

The number of prisoners identified by the Basic Skills Screening test as having a learning disability is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Crime Victims (Young People)

Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what assessment he has made of the number of young people who were victims of crime in each of the last 17 years and of that number relative to the number of adult victims for each category of crime; and if he will make a statement; [9100]

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Mr. Maclean [holding answer 17 December 1996]: Information on the age of victims of crime recorded by the police is not routinely collected by the Home Office. However, information from an ad hoc survey on violent crime shows the rates of recorded offences per 100,000 population by age and sex of victims for each of the violent crime offence categories. This information is published in table 2 of the Home Office statistical findings 1/96 "Victims of Violent Crime Recorded by the Police, 1990-94". A copy of this publication is available in the Library.

No estimate has been made of the percentage of young people who have been victims of overall violent crime. However, information from the youth life styles survey carried out by the Home Office in 1993, based on a sample of around 1,700 young people aged between 14 and 25, found that 17 per cent. of young people in this age group reported being a victim of a "violent act" in the previous 12 months. The term "violent act" is not the same as "violent crime". The youth life styles survey defined a "violent act" as being where the victim was

"deliberately hit or kicked or had force used against them".

Sexual offences are not included.

Police (Secure Transport)

Mr. Spearing: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the cost to public funds of (a) arrested but unconvicted persons by the Metropolitan police in relation to court proceedings, (b) costs incurred by (i) the Metropolitan police and (ii) the Home Office for secure transport of those convicted and (c) the total costs of transport for the years (1) 1994-95 and (2) 1995-96, indicating the number of specialist vehicles and persons used by the providers in each year. [8808]

Miss Widdecombe [holding answer 16 December 1996]: The cost to public funds of arrested but unconvicted persons by the Metropolitan police in relation to court proceedings is not available in the form requested.

Costs incurred by (i) the Metropolitan police and (ii) the Home Office for secure transport of those convicted are as follows:

1994-95 1995-96

Total cost to the Metropolitan police £3.9 million £1.4 million

Recovery from the Home Office £1.5 million £0.8 million

Net cost to Metropolitan police £2.4 million £0.6 million

Cost to the Metropolitan police of vehicles (included in costs above) £505 thousand £127 thousand

Costs to Home Office of vehicles (included in costs above) £426 thousand £235 thousand

Number of vehicles 52 30

Number of staff 77 26

	1994-95	1995-96
Total cost to the Metropolitan police	£3.9 million	£1.4 million
Recovery from the Home Office	£1.5 million	£0.8 million
Net cost to Metropolitan police	£2.4 million	£0.6 million
Cost to the Metropolitan police of vehicles (included in costs above)	£505 thousand	£127 thousand
Costs to Home Office of vehicles (included in costs above)	£426 thousand	£235 thousand
Number of vehicles	52	30
Number of staff	77	26

The costs do not include the costs of special escort duties provided by the Metropolitan police or the Home Office in the conveyance of prisoners between Crown court and prison.

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In the years 1994-95 and 1995-96 the responsibility for the escort of prisoners in London, other than those in the highest security category, to and from court was in the process of being transferred from the police and the Prison Service to Securicor Custodial Services. This exercise was only completed in July 1995.

The contract covers the full escort service, together with the responsibility for the custody of prisoners while at court. It is on a fixed-price basis and the component elements, such as transportation, are not costed separately. The requested information is not, therefore, available.

In 1995-96, Securicor employed approximately 900 staff and 150 specialist vehicles on the contract. The total value is approximately £96 million over five years.

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