APPENDIX 2
Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from
the Chief Executive Northern Ireland Prison Service
ENQUIRY INTO THE NORTHERN IRELAND PRISON SERVICE
In your letter of 2 June 1998, you outlined
some specific areas on which the Committee required comments and
also stated that I could add to any of the answers which had been
given at the oral session. I will deal initially with the questions
you asked in your letter.
MANAGEMENT OF
SEX OFFENDERS
Traditionally, convicted sex offenders have
been integrated with other inmates in Northern Ireland prisons.
Some sex offenders are of course vulnerable to bullying and physical
attacks. More recently there has been an increase in both the
number of sex offenders in the system and in the publicity given
to their offences, and this has given rise to concerns about the
safety of this group.
However all serious incidents are reported and
analysed, and so far the evidence does not suggest that the policy
of integration is significantly detrimental to this group.
It is important to bear in mind that sex offenders
are not an homogenous group. Of the 100 such offenders in our
system half are rapists, one third have been convicted of indecent
assault and the rest of offences involving children, incest and
buggery.
Experience elsewhere confirms our belief that
segregation would be no guarantee of an end to bullying. It leads
to inflexibility in the use of accommodation (an important factor
in a small service) and can make the task of preparing for release
into the community more difficult.
We do however accept the need to take particular
care to protect the vulnerable, and each prison is presently introducing
an updated anti-bullying strategy.
DEATHS IN
MAGHABERRY
You also asked how many deaths had occurred
recently in Maghaberry and in what circumstances. Since December
1994 there have been six deaths by suicide (although in three
cases, the cause of death has not yet been confirmed by a coroner's
inquest). The three confirmed cases were all caused by hanging.
There was one suicide in 1994, one in 1995 and three in 1996 and
one in 1997. In April 1996 Maghaberry became the committal prison
with the closure of HMP Belfast and this clearly brought a new
set of difficulties in relation to the management of remand and
sentenced prisoners.
I very much regret that a remand prisoner was
found dead hanged in his cell at Maghaberry on the afternoon of
22 June.
CHAIRMAN'S
QUESTION NO.
57
With regard to the Chairman's question at No.
57, perhaps I could report a number of areas where work is being
taken forward:
(a) A programme of extensive training was carried
out in 1996-97 during which all Governor grades received training
in the Command of Serious Incidents Model which was being adopted.
Separate training has continued to be provided for the management
of hostage incidents, based on a core team principle. Plans are
now well advanced to integrate these two models following which
a new Contingency Planning Manual will be issued and a new programme
of training implemented. To this end a Working Group was set up
in June 1998 to identify the competencies and skills required
for hostage response. This has led to the setting up of a new
Hostage training Team to deliver a new competence based programme.
The first of these courses is scheduled to take place at the end
of October. Two courses are planned within the current financial
year, training up to 30 staff;
(b) Additionally, since 1994, a series of Table
Top exercises has taken place which identify and explore issues
which relate to the attendance of the emergency services at serious
incidents within prisons. The Prison Service is fully supported
by the RUC, Fire Authority and Ambulance Service in planning and
carrying out these exercises. The responsibility for the exercises
has now been devolved to establishments with the addition of some
"live" exercises being carried out. In 1997-98, 16 "live"
exercises were carried out in establishments and five table top
and 16 "live"exercises are planned for the current financial
year. This of course is in addition to dealing with real incidents
of which regrettably, we have regular experience. Each significant
incident is full investigated and where appropriate lessons are
learned for future use;
(c) The Service continually keeps abreast of
developments throughout the world in the use of techniques for
the use of force and riot control. A representative from our Research
and Development Unit was recently sent to an international security
conference and exhibition in Australia where the latest developments
were demonstrated and discussed. Additionally, a system of security
auditing is now in place where a team working to the Director
of Operational Management examines security procedures and service
delivery in establishments.
PERSONNEL STRATEGY
I would like to take this opportunity to add
to some of the answers givne to the Committee at the oral hearing.
Mr Salter asked questions about the existence of a personnel strategy
and training within the Service. The HR Strategy for the Prison
Service is contained in the Report of the Prison Service Review
Team. The strategy was published in October 1997 and a summary
of its recommendations was issued to all staff.
The strategy flows from an extensive and detailed
analysis of existing organisational and management arrangements
which involved widespread consultation and discussion with staff
at all levels and across all disciplines. Trade Unions were also
consulted an encouraged to contribute. The primary aim of the
strategy is to develop and implement new organisational and human
resource arrangements which will better meet the business needs
of the Prison Service and support and encourage staff to improve
performance and develop to their full potential. The key recommendations
provide for:
— a more strategic role for Headquarters
dealing predominantly with policy making, long-term planning and
strategic management including target setting and monitoring of
performance;
— maximum delegation of operational, finance
and personnel management responsibilities to Establishments and
line managers;
— new, flatter management structures to
improve the speed and quality of decision making by placing responsibility
and accountability closer to the point of delivery;
— the introduction of a new prison service
specific job evaluation system to measure the contribution of
individual jobs;
— new pay and grading arrangements supporting
an integrated structure which incorporates all groups of staff
including governors, uniform grades and civilians to provide greater
corporate identity;
— new performance management systems which
more directly link individual performance to the business objectives
of the Service and which supports the individual development needs
of staff;
— new arrangements for promotion, selection
and recruitment;
— increased emphasis on training and development
at both the corporate and individual levels.
Since the publication of the Review Team's report,
there has been an extensive programme of communication carried
out throughout the Service to explain the strategy to staff at
all levels. Trade Unions have also been consulted and, while not
all the recommendations have been given an unqualified welcome,
they have shown an encouraging willingness to recognise the problem
and to accept the need for change. Project teams have now been
established and work has commenced to implement the Review Team's
recommendations over the next two years.
The Prison Service recognises that this presents
a daunting challenge to both management and staff given that,
over the same period, the Service faces a significant reduction
in staffing levels flowing from the Government's proposals for
accelerated release of prisoners. It has considered the risks
carefully but is convinced that there are benefits to both the
Service and staff in taking forward the change agenda promulgated
in the Review in tandem with the anticipated staffing reductions.
TRAINING
The Prison Service recognises that investment
in training and development is a critical factor in improving
standards of performance and meeting its business targets and
objectives. Its training priorities are centred on:
— improving the occupational and specialist
skills of staff across the Service;
— promoting a stronger management culture
focused on delivery of results and continuous improvement;
— meeting its statutory obligations in
respect of health and safety and fair employment/equal opportunity
practices.
Training plans are produced each year by establishments.
These are now based on structured Training Needs Analyses and
endorsed by the Senior Policy Group and Training Council. The
latter includes representatives from all of the recognised trade
unions. The training outturn for 1997-98 was 9,968 training days
representing an average of 3.08 training days per member of staff.
This fell short of the training target of five days per member
of staff because of the continuing difficulties in securing the
release of staff due to a combination of operational pressures
and high levels of sick absence.
Details of the training carried out in 1997-98
and the quality improvements delivered are set out in the Annual
Training Report.
NURSING
Mr Barnes asked some questions in connection
with nursing within the Service and I would like to clarify the
position. The aim of the Prison Service is to provide a level
of health care which is equivalent to that available in the community
and discussions have been on-going with the POA as to the structures
we believe are required to deliver that aim. We have recently
reached agreement on health care standards and associated health
care activities which has informed and confirmed the skill-mix
ratio while reducing slightly the number of qualified nurses originally
proposed. In addition, work on new pay and grading structures
has identified advantages to providing newly recruited qualified
nurses with prison officer training but the nurses will work solely
within the health care units.
This has enabled the POA to accept that some
17 vacant hospital officer posts will be filled by qualified nurses.
We have accepted that all non-nurse qualified staff may remain
in post on the understanding that they will attain relevant Health
Care qualifications within agreed timescales. An Implementation
Group with POA membership has been established and it is hoped
to conclude the process by November.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION
Mr Browne asked about the security classification
of prisoners and the scope for low security accommodation. The
current system of security categorisation which has been dominated
by the paramilitary influence and the use of confidential information
held by the RUC is to be revised. Security categories will be
determined by the Prison Service with a view to holding all prisoners
in the lowest security category consistent with risk. However
the availability of low security accommodation within the prison
estate is limited. There is scope for the expansion of low security
accommodation at Magilligan but it is too far from the main courts
to be used for the bulk of the remand population.
YOUNG FEMALE
PRISONER
Mr Browne also asked about the presence of a
15 year old female in Maghaberry. The young person in question
had previously been committed to Maghaberry on what is referred
to as a five week warrant, issued under Schedule 5 of the Children
and Young Person's Act (NI) 1968 which stated that she "is
so seriously unruly or subversive that it is necessary for maintaining
the discipline of the Centre that she should forthwith be removed
therefrom. . .". The Centre in question is a non-secure Training
School. On the occasion of the Committee's visit, the Training
School had all outstanding Training School Orders commuted to
a six month Young Offender's sentence. That sentence was completed
on 21 May 1998. She was re-committed to Maghaberry on 28 May on
a further five week warrant. As explained at the oral hearing
there is no secure training school for females in Northern Ireland.
Legislation currently proceeding through Parliament
(the Criminal Justice (Children) (Northern Ireland) Order) will
remove the capacity to transfer an individual (the five week warrant)
to a Young Offenders Centre temporarily. It will remain possible
to remand a 15 year old to a Young Offenders Centre or to transfer
to a Young Offenders Centre a child aged 15 or over who is likely
to injure him/herself or others. In this case the offender will
continue to be subject to the Juvenile Justice Centre Order which
they are presently serving.
CONCLUSION
There are two further points I would wish to
make. The POA has stated that the cost of the children's parties
in Maze was met from public funds. This is not correct. The parties
were entirely paid for from the Prisoners Amenities Fund (formerly
the Governor's Fund), the money for which comes from a percentage
of profits made at the prison shop and from the sale of telephone
cards to prisoners.
Finally, I wish to put on record my unease at
some of the questioning addressed to the POA which we felt went
beyond the remit of this enquiry. (Specifically questions at Nos
119, 126 and 129). These questions invited the opportunity for
inappropriate personal attacks from an individual who is not of
course a full time trade union official but is an employee of
the Prison Service. If the Committee is inclined to give any weight
to these personal criticisms then I would expect those concerned
to be given the opportunity to respond.
22 June 1998
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