Prisoners facing incarceration beyond release date

Prisoners are facing incarceration beyond their release dates in Gloucestershire due to reduced availability in approved premises.

The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) for HMP Leyhill, an open prison for men near Wotton-under-Edge, has found that the reduced availability of spaces in suitable probation approved premises on release, leads to some prisoners facing incarceration beyond their release dates.

Prisoners have limited opportunities for overnight stays in approved premises. These stays help evidence their suitability for release and re-integration into society, according to the IMB’s annual report published today (July 29).

The reliability and availability of communication devices for prisoners in Leyhill is also not comparable to many closed prisons, according to the report.

Maintaining contact with friends and family while incarcerated is paramount to achieving successful resettlement and integration into the community on release, the IMB said.

Nearly all the 28 prisoners serving imprisonment for public protection sentences remain in prison beyond their indicative tariff date.

The IMB considers this profoundly unjust, especially in light of Parliament’s own recognition of the sentence’s inherent unfairness.

They have ongoing concerns about the continuously changing demographic of Leyhill, from a predominantly older population, consisting of those convicted of sexual offences, to one that is serving shorter sentences. The change in demographic provides challenges in all areas.

However, the IMB is also pleased that work to increase the operational capacity is underway.

Rapid deployment cells, with capacity for 97 prisoners, will be installed in the forthcoming year.

And plans for two phases of 120 bed units are progressing and the predicted operational capacity on completion of all programmes will increase from 460 to 825.

Kevin Masters, IMB Leyhill chairman, said: “The IMB has observed staff at HMP Leyhill treating prisoners with humanity and respect in a safe and supportive environment."

“However, the Board is concerned that prisoners do not have access to communication devices equivalent to those available in the majority of the closed estate to maintain contact with friends and family members."

“Additionally, the shortage of suitable spaces in approved premises leads to some prisoners facing incarceration beyond their release dates and many experiencing delays in progression towards their eligibility for parole.”

The IMB also said the care shown for vulnerable prisoners has been evident in meetings where they have observed. And self-harm incidents remain relatively low and are well-monitored by staff – with only one serious incident in the reporting period.

The work of the offender management unit continues to improve the processing of release on temporary licence paperwork, especially in the risk assessment of prisoners, so that more of them have become available for work in the wider community.