Despite the lifting of the final pandemic restrictions in May
2022, many prisons are still failing to return to pre-pandemic
regimes which support prisoners’ rehabilitation, the Chief
Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, warns in his 2022–23 annual
report.
The report, which draws on data from 83 reports from inspections,
independent reviews of progress and thematic reviews, highlights
the continuing decline in the provision of purposeful activity.
This was particularly marked across the men’s estate, where
standards of purposeful activity were rated poor or
insufficiently good in all but one prison inspected, marking a
decline in standards in 17 of those jails since their previous
inspection. With prison population figures only expected to
increase, the Inspectorate will be monitoring the impact of
overcrowding very closely, not least the effect it has on
purposeful activity and time out of cell.
Charlie Taylor commented:
“Over the last year I have consistently raised concerns with
governors, the prison service and ministers that prisoners who
have not had sufficient opportunities to become involved with
education, training or work, and have spent their sentences
languishing in their cells, are more likely to reoffend when they
come out. While I recognise the challenges in reopening regimes
and am not encouraging practice that would increase the risk of
violence for either prisoners or staff, I have become
increasingly frustrated by prisons whose future plans are so
vague that it is hard to see when progress is going to be made.”
Mr Taylor said he was particularly concerned by the situation in
category C prisons, where men can spend many years, making their
role in supporting prisoners’ progress crucial. Many, such as
Onley and Ranby, are situated in large, open sites with some very
good facilities. It was therefore disappointing to find in such
prisons empty workshops, overgrown farms and gardens, broken
greenhouses and demotivated and disillusioned prisoners either
locked in their cells or aimlessly stuck on the wing with nothing
meaningful to do. While in some category C jails there were acute
staffing difficulties, there did not appear to be an overall
correlation between staffing levels and levels of purposeful
activity.
Women also continued to be locked in their cells for long periods
of time, which, given the lower risk posed by most female
prisoners, was unacceptable. Mr Taylor also noted particular
concerns about the treatment of women who were suffering from the
most extreme mental health difficulties, particularly those who
prolifically self-harmed.
Violence, meanwhile, remained a significant issue in youth
custody with institutions falling back into the use of ‘keep
aparts’ to manage high levels of conflict between groups. This
had far-reaching consequences: many children continued to spend
far too long locked in their cells and far too little time in
education and other purposeful activity.
Inspections of immigration removal centres were largely positive,
with improvements in conditions for women in particular, although
the Home Office continued to take too long to process cases,
creating uncertainty and frustration for detainees and
considerable cost to the taxpayer. Inspection of the short-term
holding facilities in Kent, meanwhile, noted improvements from
previous facilities at Tug Haven, but serious underlying
weaknesses in the leadership of the site which resulted in severe
overcrowding and spread of infectious disease by autumn 2022.
Mr Taylor commented:
“In every setting that we inspect, it is the quality of
leadership that makes the most difference in all places of
detention. One of the most valuable resources in our prisons is
the best 20 or 30 governors who are visionary, dynamic,
courageous and inspiring. In the next year I hope to see a
significant improvement in the amount of time prisoners are
spending in purposeful activity. The best governors have showed
us what is possible; it is time for others to follow.”
Mr Taylor concluded:
“If prisoners are locked up all day, they won’t be rehabilitated
or learn the skills they need to get a job on release, that makes
them even more likely to reoffend.”
