Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Prison Officers: Years of Experience

Tuesday 18 May 2021 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The cumulative length of service by all band 3 to 5 prison officers as at 31 December 2020 was more than 243,000 years.
  • The number of prison officers has increased by more than 3,600 from late 2016 to the end of December 2020.
  • Violence in terms of assaults on prison officers has gone down by 20%.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Marie Rimmer Lab St Helens South and Whiston
Justice & Courts
Context

86,000 years of prison officer experience have been lost since 2010. This loss has affected safety in prisons.

Question

What recent estimate his Department has made of the cumulative number of years of experience held by currently serving prison officers?

Answer from Alex Chalk

As at 31 December 2020, the cumulative length of service by all band 3 to 5 prison officers was more than 243,000 years. From late 2016 to the end of December 2020, the number of prison officers has increased by more than 3,600.

Answered
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Q2 Marie Rimmer Lab St Helens South and Whiston
Justice & Courts Employment
Context

86,000 years of prison officer experience have been lost since 2010. This has affected safety in prisons.

Question

We both know that being a prison officer is a difficult job that takes years of experience to perfect, yet a combined 86,000 years of experience has been lost since 2010. Does he accept that this has had a catastrophic effect on safety, and will he commit to giving prison officers the pay rise his experts recommend to tackle the problem?

Answer from Alex Chalk

Our prison officers received between 2.5% and 7.5% increases last year despite difficult financial situations. We are also investing heavily in security equipment including PAVA spray, SPEAR training, body-worn video cameras.

Partly answered

Not addressed: commitment to pay rise

How: Working With Partners

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Q3 Lyn Brown Lab
Justice & Courts Employment
Context

Violence in prisons has increased significantly since 2010. Self-harm has doubled, and assaults on staff have tripled.

Question

The Minister must surely recognise that there are consequences to 86,000 years of staff experience being lost since 2010 because what happens when there are not enough experienced staff can be summed up in one word: violence. In 2019, violence was 134% higher than in 2010. Even last year, with prisoners locked up alone, violence was 38% higher. Self-harm has doubled and assaults on staff have tripled. Experience matters. With further cuts coming, thanks to the Minister's friends in the Treasury, will he recognise this? How is he going to make our prisons safer?

Answer from Alex Chalk

The leaving rate for prison officers has decreased by nearly 3%. Violence in terms of assaults on prison officers has gone down by 20%.

Partly answered

Not addressed: acknowledgement of violence increase

How: Working With Partners

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