§ Sir John WheelerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the average sick leave figure in the prison service; how many days are lost in the 23 establishments with the worst record; and if he will make a statement on the work of the consultant and the prison headquarters team set up to examine this problem.
§ Mr. Peter LloydFigures for the whole of the Prison Service are not readily available; but the average number of prison officer days lost through sick absence in the 12 month period ending March 1992 was 13.97 days and the average number of days lost in the 23 establishments with the highest level of sick absence was 21.12 days.
An external consultant was commissioned in autumn 1991 to review the Prison Service's handling of sick absence. She found that the average sick absence rate for prison officers was not out of line with other large organisations, although there was cause for concern in some establishments. She did, however, identify a number of ways in which the management of sick absence in the Prison Service could be improved.
In response to the consultant's report, a co-ordinating group, drawn from staff at headquarters and in the field, has been set up to assess the practicality of the recommendations and to oversee their implementation. The group will concentrate action on three main areas: monitoring and reporting, training and procedures for dealing with sick absence.
A guidance document on the management of sick absence was issued to all managers in prison establishments in March 1992.