14 Not Addressed

The ageing prison population has and will continue to increase the need for end-of- life...

Recommendation
The ageing prison population has and will continue to increase the need for end-of- life and palliative care in prisons. We welcome the publication of the Dying Well in Custody Charter and the good practice at some establishments. But standards are not consistent across the estate. In addition, as mentioned previously, we recognise that there has been delay in providing justice for the victims of some prisoners. Again, attention must be given to the needs of the victims of those crimes. The MoJ must ensure that provision of end-of-life and palliative care is properly resourced and coordinated to reflect the current and future needs of the prison population. The MoJ should also review whether, in certain circumstances, terminally ill prisoners nearing the end of their lives would be better cared for outside of the prison estate and how effectively current arrangements for compassionate release are operating in practice.
Government Response Summary
The government's response focused on pre-release planning for older offenders under a new resettlement model, which did not address the recommendation to ensure properly resourced palliative care in prisons or to review care outside prison for terminally ill prisoners and the effectiveness of compassionate release.
Paragraph Reference
96
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government Not Addressed
• Under the new resettlement model, pre-release planning with a service user will now include face to face interaction with a National Probation Service responsible community offender manager. These offender managers will be in a position to provide information and support specific to service users’ requirements, including those which particularly affect older offenders.
Addressee Bodies
Ministry of Justice
Timeline
Recommendation age 6.0 yrs
Report published 27 Jul 2020