Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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590. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the total number of prisoners currently incarcerated throughout the country; if all or many occupy shared or unshared cells; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16708/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I can advise the Deputy that the Irish Prison Service perform a quarterly census of the Prison estate and publish the results on their website at www.irishprisons.ie/information-centre/statistics-information/census-reports/

According to the latest census which was carried out on 18 January 2022, there were 3,389 usable cells across the estate.

Table 1 below provides a breakdown by prison of all usable cells as at 18th January 2022.

The key statistics from the Census relating to usable cells are as follows:

- There were 3,775 prisoners in custody.

- 2,030 (54%) cells accommodated one prisoner.

- 729 cells accommodated two prisoners (1,458 prisoners).

- 81 cells accommodated three prisoners (243 prisoners).

- 11 cells accommodated four or more prisoners (84 prisoners).

- 2 prisoners accommodated in Safety Observation Cell.

- 8 prisoners accommodated in Close Supervision Cells.

The Irish Prison Service are currently progressing a number of projects that will deliver additional prisoner spaces over the next twelve months. These projects include the reopening of the Training Unit to accommodate older prisoners, and will see 96 prisoner spaces return to operation.

In addition, the construction of a new male wing and a female prison is underway in Limerick Prison and will provide 90 additional male and 40 additional female cell spaces. This is expected to be completed by the end of Summer 2022 and the new accommodation will become operational by the end of quarter 4 of 2022. This timeline assumes no further impact on construction activity or supply chain issues due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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591. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the extent to which education and rehabilitation of prisoners takes place on an ongoing basis in all detention centres throughout the country with particular reference to first-time offenders with the objective of separating them from a life of crime; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16709/22]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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592. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of first-time offenders currently in prison at various locations throughout the country who are involved in a rehabilitation programme whilst is prison; the number who have been unsuccessful in their application for rehabilitation and education; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16710/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 591 and 592 together.

I am advised by the Irish Prison Service that on 28 February, there were 3,939 people in custody, of these 1,130 are first time offenders.

Number of people in custody

The Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative programmes to those in custody that aim to offer purposeful activity to prisoners while serving their sentences and encourage them to lead law abiding lives on release. All prisoners are eligible and allowed to use the services, including those who are first-time offenders. There is no application process and the Service does not collect data on the number of first time offenders who availed on these services.

The Prison Service Strategic Plan 2019 - 2022 commits to further develop the integration of prisoner care and support services to deliver more effective rehabilitation to prisoners. It aims to enhance sentence planning through Integrated Sentence Management to maximise the potential engagement of prisoners in constructive and structured activities during their time in custody.

The prisons Work and Training service make available work, work-training and other purposeful activities to all those in custody. Work Training Officers have been appointed and assigned to areas such as catering, laundry, industrial cleaning and industrial skills.

The "Working to Change Social Enterprise Strategy - 2021-2023" sets out my Department’s direction for supporting employment options for people with convictions by simultaneously working to remove systemic barriers so that people can make sustainable changes. It builds upon a solid foundation of employment supports already in place across the criminal justice sector and is a collaboration between the Prison and Probation Service and my Department.

The Joint Irish Prison Service/ETBI Education Strategy 2019 – 2022 commits to the provision of broad based education. The Department of Education and Skills provides an allocation of 220 whole time teacher equivalents to the Service. The focus is on providing education which is quality assured, student centred and which facilitates lifelong learning.

As well as seeking to draw on best practice in adult and further education in the community, curriculum development that is specific to prison circumstances have taken place, such as courses on addiction, health issues and offending behaviour. Other areas where there has been significant progress in prison education are in physical education, in the provision for higher education, in the arts, in preparing prisoners for release and supporting their transition to life, and often to education, on the outside.

The Prison Psychology Service provide assessment and intervention and operates a ‘proactive’ referral service for particular cohorts of people in custody. The Psychology Service proactively engages with the following groups of people:

- 18 – 24 year olds who are committed to custody with a sentence of one year or more, without Post Release Supervision with the Probation Service;

- People committed to custody with a sentence of two years or more for a violent offence, without Post Release Supervision with the Probation Service;

- People convicted of sexual violence;

- People sentenced to life imprisonment.

- The Probation Service have joined this initiative by engaging in assessments with those 18-24 year olds who have post release supervision orders. This multi-agency approach to offender management and rehabilitation is in place in order to reduce re-offending and improve prisoner outcomes.

Since 2020, due to the pandemic, every effort is made to ensure the delivery of services continued in so far as possible, with course materials and books delivered to people in cells if, for example, they were in quarantine. A TV Information Channel was also developed and a Covid Communications Group consisting of Red Cross, Healthcare, Psychology, Education, Chaplains, Resettlement member produced regular Prisoner Newsletters (also translated into the main languages) which were delivered to people in custody, to ensure they were kept up-to-date with information and any changes regarding rehabilitation, including educational and library services.