§ Mr. CoxTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if it is the policy of his Department to ensure that proper records are kept at all prisons in England and Wales on serious attempts to commit suicide; and if he will make a statement. [19950]
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§ Mr. MacleanResponsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Director General of the Prison Service, who has been asked to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Dr. Rosemary Wool to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 27 April 1995:
The Home Secretary has asked me, in the absence of the Director General from the office, to reply to your recent Question about our policy towards the keeping of proper records at prisons on serious attempts to commit suicide.In April 1994 the Prison Service introduced a revised strategy designed to enable a high quality of care to be given to prisoners who are identified as being at possible risk of self harm or suicide. Among the new procedures introduced then was a system for identifying those at risk of self harm by the use of a new Self Harm at Risk Form. The instruction issued to Prison Service establishments when the revised strategy was introduced states that such a form is to be raised following any incident of self harm or attempted suicide. It is made clear on the form that the details of any incident of actual self harm must be recorded in the section headed "daily supervision and support record'.There is no absolute rule about the length of time a Self Harm at Risk Form should remain open. Some crises pass very quickly, whereas other prisoners may require special monitoring and support over a long period. Once raised, a Self Harm at Risk Form may only be closed, by the unit manager after a case review, once the prisoner concerned appears to be coping satisfactorily. Closed forms are then filed in prisoners' personal records.