§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many women aged (a) 21 years; and (b) 18 years, serving custodial sentences, are currently pregnant; whether they will provide similar figures for women remanded in custody; and what percentage these represent of the total number of women held in each case. [HL1430]
64WA
§ Baroness Scotland of AsthalInformation on the number of females in prison establishments who are pregnant is not recorded centrally.
On 31 December 2004 there were 108 females aged 21 years and 55 females aged 18 years under immediate custodial sentence in prison establishments in England and Wales. On the same date there were 31 females aged 21 years and 21 females aged 18 years on remand. This information is as recorded on the Prison Service IT system.
§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether pregnant women in custody receive prenatal and post-natal care and services equal to those available to other mothers. [HL1431]
§ Baroness Scotland of AsthalThat will be the position in all women's prisons from 1 April 2005. Under the partnership between the Prison Service and the NHS, responsibility for the provision of primary healthcare services in public prisons, including pre-natal and post-natal care, is being assumed by local primary care trusts. PCTs began taking on this responsibility from 1 April 2004 and by 1 April this year they will cover all public prisons for women. Equal standards of care apply in those private prisons that hold or will shortly hold women prisoners.