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Police (Child Protection)
Mr. Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what key performance indicators have been set by or for the police in respect of child protection. [5410]
Mr. Denham: There are currently no specific best value performance indicators set for the police in respect of child protection. It is open to police authorities to set local performance indicators, in addition to those set centrally, if they wish.
Prison Service
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the rates of sickness absence in the Prison Service were in each of the last four years. [5503]
15 Oct 2001 : Column: 910W
Beverley Hughes: The annual sickness absence rates per member of staff since January 1999 are shown in the table. Sickness absence data prior to January 1999 are not available.
| Working days lost | Annualised rate of sickness absence | |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 537,269 | 12.56 |
| 2000 | 588,078 | 13.43 |
| 2001(24) | 407,611 | 13.93 |
(24) January to August
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the revenue expenditure was per prisoner of the Prison Service (a) nationally, (b) in the southern area and (c) for Isle of Wight prisons for each year since 1997, expressed (i) in cash terms and (ii) as a percentage of 1997 expenditure. [7183]
Beverley Hughes: The cost per prisoner of the Prison Service (a) nationally, (b) in the southern area and (c) for the Isle of Wight (IoW) for each year since 1997 expressed in (i) cash terms and (ii) as a percentage of 1997 expenditure is set out in the table.
| 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National cost per prisoner (£ cash) | 18,696 | 20,502 | 21,932 | 23,292 |
| Southern area (£ cash) | 20,612 | 20,091 | 21,204 | 21,915 |
| Southern area as a percentage of 1997 expenditure | 6.6 | 6.9 | 7.3 | 7.5 |
| IoW prisons (£ cash) | 21,520 | 21,355 | 21,872 | 21,886 |
| IoW prisons as a percentage of 1997 expenditure | 2.3 | 2.4 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
Southern area data have been derived by summing the 10 establishments in the Prison Service area Thames Valley and Hampshire. The prisons on the Isle of Wight are Albany, Camp Hill and Parkhurst. The national cost per prisoner does not include headquarters overheads and is therefore not comparable to the Prison Service cost per prisoner key performance indicator. Data on expenditure, population and other key performance indicators are published in the Prison Service Annual Report and Accounts.
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the capital budget was of HM Prison Service (a) nationally, (b) in the southern area and (c) for Isle of Wight prisons, for each year since 1997 (i) in cash terms and (ii) as a percentage of 1997 budgets. [7182]
Beverley Hughes: The table shows actual expenditure on capital for the years 1997–98 to 2000–01 for the Prison Service, for the Thames Valley, Hampshire and Isle of Wight area and for the three Isle of Wight prisons: Albany, Camp Hill and Parkhurst. For comparison purposes the figures have been converted to 1997–98 prices.
The Isle of Wight prisons fall within the Thames Valley, Hampshire and Isle of Wight area. This area has been in existence only since April 2000 when the area structure of the Prison Service was revised to bring it into line with other criminal justice agencies. The area figures for earlier years have been adjusted so that they cover the same group of prisons. The figures for the Thames Valley, Hampshire and Isle of Wight area and for the three Isle of Wight prisons cover only capital spend incurred locally; they do not include any major capital projects which would have been funded centrally by Construction Unit in Prison Service headquarters.
15 Oct 2001 : Column: 911W
Miss Widdecombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the management of the Prison Service facilities for juveniles and young adults. [6376]
Beverley Hughes: From April 2000, the Youth Justice Board took responsibility for commissioning and purchasing all secure accommodation including Prison Service accommodation for children and young persons sentenced to custody.
The creation of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales sees for the first time a single organisation with oversight and responsibility for the care and well-being of 10 to 17-year-old offenders. The board's purpose is to monitor the operation of the youth justice system, to identify and promote good practice and to advise the Home Secretary how to deliver the statutory aim of preventing offending by children and young people. The board is also responsible for commissioning services for young offenders in secure facilities.
In response to these changes the Prison Service has created a new distinct estate for 15 to 17-year-old boys, comprising both designated juvenile units in young offender institutions. For the first time, the vast majority of under-18s are held in dedicated under-18 establishments, or in dedicated under-18 living units within other establishments.
As part of the Juvenile Estate three special units have been opened at Castington, Huntercombe and Hollesley Bay offering enhanced regimes for the more vulnerable boys who have been convicted of serious offences and have been given longer sentences under section 90 or 91 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 (formerly section 53 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933).
Improvements are being made to the quality of accommodation, the level of care and to regime standards. The new regimes are underpinned by a Prison Service Order (PSO 4950), which defines the principles upon which governors must build and operate regimes.
From 1 April 2001, a new Operational Manager (Assistant Director, Juveniles) has taken direct responsibility within the Prison Service for the operational management of four establishments holding juveniles (Ashfield, Huntercombe, Werrington and Wetherby) and for the regimes and performance of the juvenile side of young offender institutions holding both juveniles and young offenders.
There is a manifesto commitment to build on the Government's youth justice reforms to improve the standard of custodial accommodation and offending programmes for 18 to 20-year-olds. I am currently considering with others what is needed for young adult offenders and how best to deliver it.
15 Oct 2001 : Column: 912W
Prison Staff
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff are employed on governor grades as a percentage of the total number of prison officers in each prison. [5504]
Beverley Hughes: The number of staff employed on governor grades as a percentage of the total number of prison officers in each prison is shown in the table.
15 Oct 2001 : Column: 914W
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of violence to prison officers have been recorded (a) nationally, (b) in the southern area, and (c) in Isle of Wight prisons for each year since 1997, expressed (i) in total and (ii) per 1,000 officers. [7187]
Beverley Hughes: The information requested is set out in the tables.
| England | Wales | Southern area | Isle of Wight | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 2,184 | 33 | 505 | 24 |
| 1998 | 2,345 | 54 | 573 | 32 |
| 1999 | 2,295 | 36 | 552 | 28 |
| 2000 | 2,346 | 33 | 601 | 25 |
| 2001(26) | 1,965 | 18 | 509 | 39 |
| England | Wales | Southern area | Isle of Wight | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 121.7 | 88.2 | 151.3 | 50.2 |
| 1998 | 128.8 | 148.4 | 170.6 | 77.5 |
| 1999 | 124.1 | 98.4 | 161.4 | 69.7 |
| 2000 | 126.0 | 89.4 | 175.2 | 65.6 |
| 2001(26) | — | — | — | — |
(25) Figures cannot be added to make area totals as prisoners appear in more than one category
(26) From 1 January to 30 September
(27) Figures do not include private prisons, and are for 31 March of each year
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