HC Deb 11 November 2003 vol 413 cc247-9W
Mr. Oaten

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average cost is of imprisoning an offender at a young offender institution; and what the total cost of running YOIs was in each of the last five years. [135864]

Paul Goggins

The average annual cost of imprisoning an offender in a Young Offender Institution (YOI) is £29,721 in male closed Y01 establishments and £18,866 in male open YOI establishments. These figures include establishment costs but exclude the share of headquarters overheads. The number of YOIs has not remained constant over the five-year period. These figures are not comparable with the Prison Service cost per place Key Performance Indicators.

The following table shows the total cost of running young offender institutions in the last five years.

£
Male closed YOI Male open YOI Total
1998–99 122,460,000 9,410,000 131,870,000
1999–2000 137,066,308 9,653,734 146,720,042
2000–01 198,588,609 10,727,558 209,316,167
2001–02 162,536,448 11,475,992 174,012,440
2002–03 182,908,407 7,370,209 190,278,616

These year on year costs are not comparable due to a change in the accounting system from cash to resource. In addition the number of YOI establishments has decreased during this period, causing some fluctuation in the expenditure figures.

Mr. Oaten

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many hours on average offenders in young offender institutions spent on(a) education, broken down into (i) literacy, (ii) numeracy and (iii) other education-related activities, (b) exercise, (c) vocational work and (d) community work in the last year for which figures are available. [135867]

Paul Goggins

The Prison Service collects information on the average hours prisoners spend on education activities broken down into various categories. The education statistics are not broken down into literacy and numeracy as requested. The information available for 2002–03 is given in the table. It relates to establishments categorised as a young offender institution as their main role.

Activity Average hours per week Average hours per inmate per week
Basic skills education 17,035.4 2.68
Other education
Education leading to accreditation 10,179.4 1.60
Maintaining safe and secure environment 299.3 0.05
Health education clinics and promotion 1,363.5 0.21
Other education 6,091.4 0.96
Exercise
Physical education 18,922.1 2.98
Vocational work
Skills training leading to recognised national accreditation 9,476.4 1.49
Community work
Voluntary work 405.0 0.06
Total 63,772.4 10.04

Under the National Specification for learning and skills for young people serving a Detention and Training Order, juvenile offenders are expected to undertake one hour of private study per week in both literacy and numeracy, and a minimum of 12 hours of enrichment activities at the weekends.

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many children in young offender institutions(a) had special educational needs, (b) had educational statements and (c) suffered psychosis in 2002–03; if he will express these figures as a percentage of the total number of children in each institution in the UK; and if he will list the institutions; [137076]

(2) how many teachers, expressed as full-time equivalents, work in each young offender institution; and if he will express this as a percentage of the young offenders institution population; [137078]

(3) how many of the teachers within each young offender institution have been specifically trained to teach children; how many are special educational needs teachers; and if he will express these figures as a percentage of the total number of children in each young offender institution. [137079]

Paul Goggins

An analysis of "ASSET" assessment forms, published in December 2002, found that 25 per cent. of all young people in the youth justice system had been identified as having special educational needs and that 60 per cent. of these had formal statements.

Information about the number of children in young offender institutions diagnosed with psychosis in any particular year is not collected centrally. A survey of mental ill health in the prison population of England and Wales, undertaken in 1997 by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), indicated that 8 per cent. of young men aged 16 to 20 on remand and 10 per cent. of such sentenced young men had suffered from a functional psychosis in the previous year.

The table shows staff employed through the education contract in delivering or supporting education in establishments whose principal function is to hold Young Offenders. Data are from March 2003. Teaching staff include learning support assistants, and non-teaching staff include special educational needs co-ordinators.

Prisons Full-time lecturers Part-time lecturers Teaching Staff Non-teaching staff Population
Aylesbury 12 1 354
Stoke Heath 20 0 14 2 626
Lancaster Farms 14 3 16 6 460
Glen Parva 10 0 784
Onley 18 0 18 1 541
Feltham 20 1 14 1 629
Castington 10 7 19 1 300
Portland 8 23 446
Swinfen Hall 5 4 314
Thorn Cross 13 0 18 4 176
Brinsford 34 0 16 1 449
Huntercombe 26 13 11 2 320
Reading 9 14 265

On the basis of the information available, approximately 90 per cent. of teaching staff across the juvenile estate are qualified or are working towards a further education qualification. The Prison Service will be providing accredited training to learning support assistants later in the year to help them support learning in the juvenile estate. An inclusive learning handbook has been issued to help teachers, and other prison staff, identify and support prisoners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

The quality of teaching in custodial settings has improved through the introduction of the Common Inspection Framework. The new specification for teaching and learning we will introduce from September 2004 will also ensure quality control of teaching standards.