HL Deb 01 June 1992 vol 537 cc52-3WA
Lord Avebury

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will publish a list of Home Office publications which are printed in prison workshops, and if they have any plans for training prisoners in the use of desktop publishing systems, so that more of the work on government publications generally can be done in prisons.

The Minister of State, Home Office (Earl Ferrers)

Prison printing workshops print a wide range of publications and stationery items for government departments and public bodies. In the majority of workshops advanced computerised typesetting facilities are used and inmates receive training in these techniques. In 1991, 2,500 orders were completed and annual sales exceeded £2 million.

The main Home Office publications produced in prison printing workshops in 1991 were:

  • Prison Service Journal
  • Newlife—The Prison Service Chaplaincy Review
  • Handbook for the Board of Visitors
  • Handbook for the Clerk of the Board of Visitors
  • Handbook for Prison Visitors
  • National Victim Support Manual
  • Pre Release Manuals (5 volumes)
  • "How to Cope" Booklet (for inmates with problems associated with gambling)
  • "Temper Control" Booklet
  • "Preparing for Resource Management Information Systems" (Probation Services Division)
  • Various information leaflets for the Immigration and Nationality Department

Vocational training courses in desktop publishing are provided at two prison establishments, Whatton and Risley, and vocational training courses in information technology, which include a desktop publishing element, are also provided at 15 other establishments.

There are no current plans to introduce desktop publishing as an industry in prisons. The prison printing industry is better suited to conditions in which there is a constantly changing workforce. The majority of workshops use advanced computerised typesetting facilities, so inmates receive useful training, and there is a large market for the product.