Prison
Worrying increase in the self-inflicted deaths of IPP prisoners
Prisons & Probation Ombudsman bulletin on the worrying increase in self-inflicted deaths of IPP prisoners.
8th September 2023
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Prisons & Probation Ombudsman bulletin on the worrying increase in self-inflicted deaths of IPP prisoners.
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman reveals that 35% of all self-inflicted deaths in 2022 were of prisoners on remand.
This litany of figures hides of course the distress and tragedy behind all these individual incidents for both prisoners and staff. For just as self-harm incidents have increased by over one fifth, serious assaults on staff are up by over two fifths.
Delaying action until the resource position is easier is not an option. Unless progress is made, young people will continue to die unnecessarily in our prisons and we will continue to waste countless millions of pounds in failing to rehabilitate those who could be rehabilitated
The number of prison suicides and incidents of self-harm has risen sharply recently. Despite the best intentions of the Ombudsman, I fear it is reasonable to expect the figures to get worse and for more human lives to be needlessly lost as the Ministry of Justice embarks on another round of cuts.
It’s my depressing conclusion that much of the YJB’s meticulous work to prevent any more children dying in custody may be undone by the creation of large Secure Colleges such as the initial 320 bed institution currently under development in Leicestershire.
