Ms Anne Costello:

I thank the Chair. There is agreement that it is the period in the few months immediately after release that is a very precarious time for prisoners. It is the time they are most likely to reoffend and end up back in prison. This is why it is so important that they are prepared for this pre-release and that there is proper preparation. We have organisations such as the Irish Association for the Social Integration of Offenders, IASIO, and we are working closely with them but we need more. We need proper training in prison so people come out with real skills and have career guidance in prison to look at where their skills are. Many of them have no idea of their potential because it has never been tapped. This is why this type of career guidance is important, as is looking at the jobs market and trying to match up the training people get in prison with real jobs in the community.

Traveller organisations are open to supporting travellers when they come out of prison. Again, resources are so scarce in Traveller organisations that they are often torn between who they can support and they do not have enough resources to do this work.

Traveller women in prison is a heartbreaking issue. At least 15% of all the women in prison are Traveller women. We have interviewed them and written up their stories. We spoke to 12 women in particular in the Dóchas Centre and Limerick Prison about how they ended up there. Their stories are of trauma, abuse, neglect, being in care and their children being in care. We speak about the Magdalen laundries and this is it all over again, not just for Traveller women but for so many women in prison. We need to put the spotlight on them. Unfortunately, many of them are so broken and traumatised that employment is not on the cards but for those who are anywhere near it we need to do a lot more to support them.