Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

212. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the degree to which educational or rehabilitative provision is being made for first-time offenders while in prison, with a view to preventing recidivism; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25507/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The provision of education and training is key to reducing recidivism. The Irish Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative and educational programmes that offer purposeful activity to people while serving sentences and encourage them to lead law abiding lives on release, in order to prevent recidivism. These programmes are available in all prisons and everyone in custody is eligible to use the services.

The work and training function provides work, work-training and other purposeful activities to all those in custody and includes areas such as catering, laundry, industrial cleaning and industrial skills.

I am advised by the Irish Prison Service that it is not possible to provide statistics in relation education and rehabilitation availed of by first time offenders, as the manner in which statistics are compiled does not distinguish between first time offenders and repeat offenders.

I am further advised by the Irish Prison Service that a snapshot for the week of 27th March 2023 to 31st March 2023 has identified 1,789 prisoners engaged in educational courses and 920 prisoners engaged in work and training activities. Prisoners may attend one or more education classes and /or work and training activity per week.

The Irish Prison Service is in the process of developing its 2023 – 2025 Strategic Plan. Central to this strategy will be building on the lessons learned over the past number of years and further developing the new modalities of learning that have been introduced, including a move away from classroom only learning and adopting a blended approach to the delivery of education. By harnessing new technologies and methods for the delivery of educational content, the Irish Prison Service can ensure that prisoners are facilitated to continue their learning beyond scheduled classes and extend the delivery of education and training provision to people in their care.