Prisons 'must take action' over jump in female prisoner suicides, says watchdog

An official watchdog has hit out at a "lack of concerted and sustained action" following a jump in suicides among female prisoners.

Prisons and Probation Ombudsman Nigel Newcomen said lessons identified in a new review of cases had been highlighted previously by his office.

And he warned that sweeping reform envisaged a decade ago on the back of a review of the experiences of vulnerable women in the criminal justice system has yet to be delivered.

The review was prompted by a rise in the number of women who have died by suicide in prison. Drawing on its investigations into 19 cases between 2013 and 2016, the PPO concludes that prison staff must take action to prevent further tragedies.

Self-inflicted deaths among women inmates have been on the increase, with 12 recorded last year - more than double the number in 2015.

The report says care from individual staff was often very good but it also highlights areas of "weak practice" and "basic failings".

There was a "clear theme" of poor joint working between mental health and custodial staff, according to the assessment.

It found that there were examples where risk was not handled appropriately and identified evidence of inappropriate use of punitive approaches to address instances of self-harm.

The paper re-emphasises a number of lessons for prisons, saying that many are a reminder of what already appears in their own rules and processes.

Mr Newcomen said:

Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Vera Baird DBE QC, has also commented:

The Howard League for Penal Reform has responded to the learning lessons bulletin on self-inflicted deaths among female prisoners, published today, on Tuesday 28th March by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

Andrew Neilson, Director of Campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said:

In response to the criticism, a government spokeswoman has said: