§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What plans they have for involving spouses and partners of prisoners in sentence planning. [HL5185]
§ Baroness Scotland of AsthalThere are no plans to require Prison Service establishments in England and Wales to routinely involve spouses, partners, or other family members in sentence planning for offenders over the age of 18. A few establishments do involve families. This is good practice, though not a mandatory requirement.
In respect of offenders under the age of 18, and all those sentenced to the detention and training order, there is a mandatory requirement that governors must ensure that, where appropriate, families are given the opportunity to contribute to the sentence planning process throughout the custodial part of the sentence.
The Northern Ireland Prison Service is currently examining ways of allowing prisoners' spouses and partners to participate in resettlement planning.
Information relating to Scotland is a matter for the Scottish Executive.