Government plans to ease prison capacity pressure and manage the needs of vulnerable prisoners

Approximate read time: 9 minutes

On 12 September 2024 the House of Lords is due to consider the following question for short debate:

Baroness Burt of Solihull (Liberal Democrat) to ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to address challenges around prison capacities, and to ensure the safety and wellbeing needs of vulnerable prisoners.

1.   Prison capacity in England and Wales

Prisons in England and Wales are almost full. Official prison population figures for 6 September 2024 showed the total prison population to be 88,521, split between 84,865 across the male estate and 3,656 across the female estate.^[1] Useable operational capacity for the system stood at 89,619. The Ministry of Justice’s latest prison population projections for England and Wales, published in February 2024, estimated the prison population would increase to between 94,600 and 114,800 by March 2028, with a central estimate of 105,800.^[2]

Recent rioting in the wake of the murder of three young girls in Southport in July 2024 has also placed further pressure on prison capacity.^[3] Figures from national law enforcement coordination body the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) published on 6 September 2024 showed that of the 1,380 arrests made in connection with the disorder, the Crown Prosecution Service and police had brought 863 charges up until that date.^[4] Additionally, the NPCC had earlier said that police had identified “hundreds more” suspects.^[5] The Prison Governors’ Association has warned that a potential surge of inmates following the riots could “destabilise” England’s prisons.^[6]

2.   Government plans to ease prison capacity pressure

2.1 Short-term measures

To free up prison places quickly, in July 2024 the Labour government sought, and Parliament approved, changes to the law which stipulates when prisoners serving determinate sentences can be automatically released from prison on licence into the community.^[7] A ‘determinate sentence’ is one that has a fixed end date. It includes a period of time in prison and a period on licence in the community.^[8] Under the previous law, offenders serving determinate sentences were usually released from prison automatically at the half-way point (50%) of their sentence. The Labour government changed the automatic release point to enable eligible prisoners to be released on licence after serving 40% of their sentence in prison.^[9] However, this change will not apply to all prisoners. Those serving sentences for certain sexual, violent, domestic abuse, terrorism and national security offences are excluded. The Labour government’s plans are built on measures taken by the previous Conservative government to release pressure on prison capacity.^[10]

The law change comes into force on 10 September 2024 for those serving sentences of less than five years, and 22 October 2024 for those serving sentences of five years or more. Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the changes would mean around 5,500 offenders would be released across the two tranches.^[11] To help manage the early release of prisoners, the justice secretary said at least 1,000 new trainee probation officers would be recruited by the end of March 2025.^[12] She advised that the new release scheme was only a temporary measure and would be reviewed within 18 months.^[13] Additionally, she stated that the government would publish quarterly data on the number of offenders released. Ms Mahmood also announced plans to introduce a legal requirement for a prison capacity statement to be published annually.

In addition to the new release scheme, the government has also said it would make over 500 more prison places available from mid-August 2024.^[14] Courts Minister Heidi Alexander stated the new places would be spread across a new housing block at Stocken Prison in Rutland and the newly repurposed HMP Cookham Wood in Kent.^[15]

The government has also recently activated emergency measures to help manage the flow of offenders going to prison. On 19 August 2024, the government triggered ‘Operation Early Dawn’ in certain parts of the north of England and the Midlands.^[16] Offenders in those areas will only be summoned to court once it has been confirmed that a prison cell is ready for them, should they be remanded to custody. This means some offenders will be held in police station cells until they are summoned to court.

To free up more prison cells, some parliamentarians have asked whether the government would consider expanding the new release scheme to include prisoners serving sentences of imprisonment for public protection (IPP sentences). IPP sentences were indeterminate sentences given to serious offenders who were deemed to pose a significant risk of serious harm to the public. Although the IPP sentence was abolished in 2012, 1,132 prisoners subject to such a sentence were still in prison on 30 June 2024, according to recent prison population data.^[17] In a recent House of Commons debate, Shabana Mahmood confirmed the new release scheme would not apply to IPP prisoners.^[18] She argued it would not be appropriate to make changes in relation to IPP prisoners due to “a different order of public protection risk”. However, the justice secretary said she was determined to make progress on IPP prisoners and would build upon the work of the previous Conservative government on this issue. More information on the actions taken on IPP sentences by the previous Conservative government can be found in the House of Lords Library briefings, ‘Sentences of imprisonment for public protection: Updated action plan’ (19 May 2023) and ‘Current Affairs Digest: Law’ (6 February 2024).

2.2 Long-term measures

Whilst the new release scheme is expected to ease pressure on prisons in the short-term, the government has also set out longer-term plans to stop prisons becoming full. Plans include accelerating the building of new prisons by reforming the planning system.^[19] The justice secretary has announced plans to publish a 10-year capacity strategy outlining steps the government would take to acquire land for new prison sites.

Additionally, Ms Mahmood has said the government would designate prisons as being of national importance. During the general election campaign, she explained that this measure would accelerate prison estate building by enabling government ministers to have the final say when approving the building of new prisons.^[20] However, even with new prisons being built, the Institute for Government has projected there could be a shortfall of 8,000 prison places by 2028.^[21]

3.   Vulnerable prisoners

Some prisoners are deemed vulnerable, including those with addictions, mental ill-heath and those at risk of homelessness. According to the UK government website, prison staff are trained to identify prisoners who are at risk of bullying, suicide or self-harm.^[22] Some prisoners receive their own case manager. This person is responsible for asking about the prisoner’s mental health and ensuring that they get regular support from a health specialist. Most prisons also have ‘listener schemes’. These are normally undertaken by fellow prisoners and aim to provide confidential emotional support. Prisoners can also be moved to a secure psychiatric hospital for their own safety if they meet certain conditions under the Mental Health Act 1983.

Official government statistics have shown a recent increase in violence and self-harm across the prison estate in England and Wales. In the 12 months to March 2024, there was a 24% increase in the number of self-harm incidents and a 27% rise in the number of assault incidents compared with the previous year.^[23] Self-harm is now at its highest level since the time series began in 2004. Incidents of self-harm and assaults have increased in both male and female prisons over the past 12 months, with the number of assaults in female prisons and self-harm incidents in both male and female establishments reaching their highest level.

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor has warned of the impact of prison overcrowding on prisoner wellbeing.^[24] In July 2024 he said many prisons did not have enough staff, with “far too many” delivering “barely two hours out of cell” time a day for prisoners. Mr Taylor also said there had been multiple inspection reports that had cited a lack of meaningful employment or education in prisons to help prisoners secure employment on release. He stated the inspectorate had seen a resurgence in the demand for illegal drugs across the prison estate. One recent inspection found more than half of male prisoners had tested positive for illicit drugs. Mr Taylor warned that increased drugs in prisons led to increased violence. In addition, he described the resettlement support for those leaving prison as “stretched”. He said the inspectorate had frequently reported on male prisoners who were homeless being recalled to prison within days of being released.

Some charities have called for better mental health support for prisoners. National charity the Centre for Mental Health has said the government’s commitment to reform the prison system must go alongside improvements to mental health support both inside and outside of the criminal justice system.^[25] Chief Executive Andy Bell said that most prisoners have a complex mix of health and social problems. He argued that “too many [were leaving] prison with inadequate help for their mental health”. London-based prison rehabilitation charity Switchback has also called for better mental health support for prison leavers.^[26] It emphasised that the prison release system needed to respond to the emotional challenges that people leaving prison often faced.

4.   Read more

• House of Lords Library, ‘Addressing prison capacity pressure’, 4 September 2024

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