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There are 4,679 people in prison with a home address in Wales, 2,653 of whom are currently serving their sentence in a prison in Wales. The four Welsh prisons—Cardiff, Swansea, Usk/Prescoed and Parc in Bridgend—are all overcrowded by an average of 137%. The comparable figure in England is 111%. Despite this severe overcrowding, prisons in Wales are generally performing better than prisons in England. The consequences of overcrowding go beyond cramped living accommodation: the real problem lies in a shortage of activity places and resettlement processes, and this poses a serious barrier to the effective rehabilitation of offenders.
The new prison at Wrexham will play an important role in allowing more Welsh prisoners to serve part or all of their sentence in Wales. However, it would be incorrect to portray the new North Wales Prison as a facility created to serve Welsh justice requirements alone. The Government should learn the clear lessons from the opening of HMP Oakwood, and open the new prison slowly and steadily. Each of the three blocks at Wrexham should have its own identity and be run by a head of unit invested with significant autonomy and visibility.
The data collected on Welsh speakers in prison is unacceptably poor. We recommend that the Ministry of Justice, NOMS, the Welsh Language and HM Inspectorate of Prisons work together to evaluate thoroughly the need for and quality of Welsh language support in prisons in England and Wales.
Although criminal justice is currently the responsibility of the UK Government, the Welsh Government has significant responsibilities, particularly in the areas of health, education, housing and substance misuse. Co-ordination and co-operation between all the relevant parties must continue.
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