The starting point
6 In 1997 the Government inherited an approach
to education in prison which focused too much on
education for recreational purposes. Real
improvements have been made since then.
7 Learning and skills provision now gives a higher
priority to learning that is relevant for the labour
market. There is a clear focus on raising
achievement in literacy and numeracy skills and on
other learning geared to employment needs. There
are important links in place between the Prison
Service and other organisations, including the
Employment Service and the National Probation
Service, the further education sector and many
voluntary bodies. A number of Government initiatives
such as the Connexions Service, New Deal and the
Prison Service Welfare to Work programme provide
targeted support for prisoners and ex-offenders. All
of these initiatives will help improve employability and
the prospects of finding work and so reduce the risk
of prisoners’ re-offending.
8 There have been some very positive outcomes as
a result of these policies. This year we will exceed
last year’s figure of 60,000 certificates for units of
attainment leading to nationally recognised
qualifications. They include some 9,000 literacy and
numeracy level 2 qualifications, the level significant
for employment. For many prisoners this will be their
first certificate which may help them become
employable for the first time. The average time spent
in formal learning per prisoner across the country
has increased to nearly six hours per week. Six
Resettlement Pathfinder projects will help establish
how most effectively we can resettle prisoners. There
are many other examples of good practice in our
prisons, some of which are included in this
statement.
9 The Government has put additional resources
into education and training in prison. Direct
expenditure on education and library provision alone
currently stands at just under £50m for all prisoners
including juveniles. To provide a clear focus for
prison education and training, key targets have been
agreed to raise skill standards and help prisoners
back into work. As part of its Service Delivery
Agreement, the Prison Service will:
- achieve 23,400 accredited educational/vocational
full qualifications in 2001-02 and 36,000 in
2003-04. This includes a planned increase in the
number of level 2 basic skills awards to 21,000
over the period;
- through the Custody to Work initiative, double the
proportion of prisoners getting jobs on release by
31 March 2004;
- work with the new Adult Basic Skills Strategy Unit
to establish entry level and level one targets for
prisoners, as part of the national adult literacy and
numeracy strategy.
10 However, much remains to be done to ensure
that the best practice in some prisons becomes
common practice in all:
- there is considerable variation in the funding
allocated to education and training in prisons.
Though there may be a rationale for some of it,
resources vary by a factor of around 1:10, roughly
£200 to £2000 per prisoner per year. This creates
inequalities in access to learning amongst
prisoners even when they are in the same kind of
prison. We do not want mechanistic equalisation
of expenditure regardless of circumstances, but
to look at how individual prisons can best be
developed to meet the partnership’s aims;
- as with other areas of education and training,
there is unacceptable variation in the quality of
provision. The best facilities offer education and
training which is relevant to prisoners’ skills and
learning needs, and can meet reasonably
aspirations to learn by all whatever their ability.
But not all our prisons are in this position: funding
is a key factor, but we also need to address
the organisational and physical barriers to
effective delivery;
- all too often there is a lack of continuity between
prisons and agencies who contribute to
resettlement so that once outside the prison gate
there is no coherent effort by all concerned to help
ensure individuals have a job or further education
and training to go to.
11 Addressing the need for improvements will be a
large task for which we need:
- clear, measurable and realistic objectives setting
out what we seek to achieve over the longer term;
- an agenda for immediate action;
- effective delivery arrangements in prisons and
resettlement agencies;
- new Government machinery to ensure joined-up
action by all the key partners.
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Case Study
Employment Service, Prison Service and
Probation Service – Welfare to Work in
prison
The Prison Service is a partner in the Government’s
Welfare to Work initiative, which aims to help long-term
unemployed 18 – 24 year olds into work.
Twelve prisons, including Glen Parva in partnership
with Matthew Boulton further education college,
are participating in a pilot to improve the
employability of young prisoners – for example by
gaining maximum benefit from the New Deal
Gateway programme on release. Over 1,500
prisoners have completed the programme so far
gaining an average of 6 certificates each, with three
quarters having pre-arranged Job Centre interviews
before release.
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