Open Prisons Rehabilitation Placements 2025-12-16
2025-12-16
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Q1
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Context
The Member is concerned about the high turnover among prisoners due to the 'third, third, third' model and shorter sentences, which affects the ability to run rehabilitation programmes effectively. The early release programme and planned sentencing reforms are causing significant challenges for institutions like Kirkham Prison in Fylde.
I agree with what the Minister just said, but through the early release programme, and given the “third, third, third” model that the Government want to introduce to split sentencing in custody, prisons such as Kirkham in my constituency in Lancashire are seeing a much higher turnover among their open prison population; prisoners are increasingly serving shorter sentences and in such prisons for much shorter periods. They are effectively becoming cat C prisons but without the walls, the security or the resources. We are concerned about the knock-on effect that that will have on the ability to run rehabilitation programmes, which are designed for significant amounts of time at the end of prisoners’ sentences. What additional resources will the Government put in place to support rehabilitation programmes in open prisons?
The hon. Member raises an important point. The Sentencing Bill will hopefully receive Royal Assent next year, and there are certainly operational challenges to ensure that those reforms and changes to sentencing in our prison system work smoothly. One of the major measures in the Bill, which the Conservative party opposes, is to reduce short-term sentences for the reason that the hon. Member set out. I am happy to have a discussion about the prison in his constituency, and ensure that the Department is working with it closely, so that it is ready for the changes that, hopefully, will come into effect next year.
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Assessment & feedback
The specific request for additional resources was not addressed directly.
Under Review
Discussing With Constituency
Response accuracy