January 25, 2006: New Report On Recalled Prisoners

The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) urgently needs to improve the systems for managing recalled prisoners, said Anne Owers, Chief Inspector of Prisons, publishing Recalled prisoners, a short review of recalled adult male determinate sentenced prisoners.

Anne Owers said:

"Neither recalled prisoners nor receiving prisons are adequately prepared. Recalled prisoners often arrived without sufficient information and with limited understanding of their situation. Receiving prisons often had little warning of their arrival and struggled to advise recalled prisoners adequately, given the complexities of their legal situation, the lack of adequate IT systems and failures of communication with the recall section of NOMS."

Inspectors found that there has been a 350% increase over the past five years in the number of offenders recalled to prison for apparent breach of their conditions and recalled prisoners now make up nearly 11% of the prison population of local prisons.

The review found that prisons have been struggling to keep up with this huge rise, and those recalled do not always receive appropriate information, care and advice.

• The process for reviewing the appropriateness of recall decisions was slow and complicated and few prisons had staff trained to guide prisoners as to their entitlements.
• Where, as at HMP Bristol, a specialist legal services officer took responsibility, the process was well managed and prisoners were given early advice about their right of appeal and opportunities for re-release.
• The report records the case of one recalled prisoner who had originally been sentenced for 18 months and who hanged himself after receiving a slip of paper, with no explanation, telling him he would have to serve four more years in prison. A day later, the dossier explaining his situation and his right of appeal arrived.
• Recalled prisoners remained outside some normal prison routines, which could mean risks and needs were not picked up as with other newly received prisoners; vulnerabilities to suicide, self-harm or discrimination could therefore go unnoticed.
• In none of the local prisons visited was there a comprehensive strategy for managing prisoners on recall and providing information and ongoing support. Residential staff were mostly unaware of who the recalled prisoners were.

Among the report's key recommendations are:

• Prisons and offenders should immediately be made aware of the reasons for recall.
• Parole dossiers should arrive more promptly and the calculation of re-release dates speeded up.
• There should be better communication between the Parole Board and prisons and prisoners.
• Prisons should provide safe reception, induction and safer custody support, effective legal advice, proper access to regimes and preparation for re-release for recalled prisoners.