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Written Submission to the House of Commons Justice Committee Role of the Prison Officer Report

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posted on 2024-10-14, 09:49 authored by House of Commons Justice Commitee

1. This inquiry was, in part, inspired by our concerns over the difficulties in negotiating a rapidly changing and increasingly complex criminal justice landscape for the people administering sentences and endeavouring to reduce re-offending on an everyday basis. In addition, an e-consultation we held in another inquiry, into the overall allocation of resources across the criminal justice system, and other evidence showed us that individuals can have enormous influence on whether particular offenders go on achieve a law-abiding lifestyle.1 Prison officers, in day-to-day contact with those in custody, have the opportunity and potential to exert this kind of influence.

2. This report focuses on the uniformed officers who have day-to-day contact with prisoners, from the ‘residential’ or ‘landing’ prison officer to the uniformed grades with line management responsibilities, senior and principal officers. We sought the views of officers ‘on the wings’ as well as their colleagues through an e-consultation to which they could contribute independently and anonymously. Details of the e-consultation are set out in an annex to this report.

3. We also considered this inquiry timely in view of the changes proposed by the Government to working practices amongst prison staff. The “Workforce Modernisation” programme is a fundamental reform of all existing working practices, terms and conditions and pay and grading of posts within the Prison Service. The overall aim of the project is to deliver greater efficiencies and productivity, one of its key aims being to tackle the Service’s biggest cost expenditure—its pay bill. Following the collapse of negotiations with the unions in February 2009, the National Offender Management Service has announced its intention of implementing the proposals in a limited form for all staff joining the Service from September 2009.

4. During our inquiry the Government announced the abandonment of its proposals to introduce the high-capacity prisons known as “Titans” and instead build a number of 1,500 place prisons. We have already welcomed the abandonment of the Titan prison proposals while expressing our concern that the Government appears prepared to pursue policies likely to lead to the highest prison population in Western Europe.2 We consider the implications of the new proposals for institutional structures, both new prisons and clustering of existing institutions below.

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The Stationery Office Limited

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London

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Note

Written evidence (available here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmjust/361/361we08.htm) submitted to The House of Commons Justice Committee call for evidence on 'the role of the prison officer'. My evidence was then cited in the resulting report (available here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmjust/361/361.pdf) several times.

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