Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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44. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the extent to which educational and rehabilitative training remain available throughout the prison service with particular reference to the availability of such facilities to first-time offenders; the extent to which the results of this training continue to be monitored with particular reference to preventing recidivism; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5330/14]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware from my replies to previous Parliamentary Questions that the Irish Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative programmes that include education, vocational training, healthcare, psychiatric, psychological, counselling, welfare and spiritual services. These programmes are available in all prisons and all prisoners are eligible to use the services. On committal, all prisoners are interviewed by the Governor and are informed of the services available in the prison. At this point prisoners may be referred to services or they can self-refer at a later date. Where Governors consider, on the information available, that a prisoner needs a particular intervention they will initiate a referral.

The Irish Prison Service has also been expanding the number of accredited courses and opportunities available to prisoners in Work Training in recent years. Enhanced partnership arrangements with accrediting bodies such as City and Guilds, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA), and the Guild of Launders and Cleaners and the centralising of co-ordination and quality assurance arrangements have enabled the extension of the number of available courses and activities with certification.

The development of prisoner programmes forms a central part of the Irish Prison Service Three Year Strategic Plan 2012 - 2015. There is a clear commitment in the Strategy to enhance sentence planning, including Integrated Sentence Management and the delivery of prison based rehabilitative programmes such as education, work training and resettlement programmes. International research indicates that vocational training and employment can reduce the risk of re-offending. However, there is no comparable research currently available on the Irish System.