Prisons

A body independent of the Scottish government and prison service should investigate every prison death, a new report published today has recommended. The report of the Independent Review of the Response to Deaths in Prison Custody follows two years of research, analysis and engagement with families

Scottish Labour has backed calls for a full public inquiry into the 2015 death of a 30-year-old prisoner after being violently restrained by prison guards. Allan Marshall was a remand prisoner in HMP Edinburgh and was days way from release when he died from serious injuries sustained from prison gua

A harrowing incident in which a baby died in Europe's largest women's prison, with the 18-year-old mother giving birth in her cell alone despite repeated calls for help, "should never have happened", a watchdog has said. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) for England and Wales yesterday publi

There are now more than 100 confirmed Covid cases at HMP Perth. As of yesterday, there were 645 individuals self-isolating across four Scottish Prison Service (SPS) establishments. A significant number of individuals are self-isolating due to potential contact with a confirmed case.

Nearly 100 prisoners in HMP Perth have tested positive for Covid-19 in a significant outbreak, the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) announced over the weekend. Prison bosses said there were 97 confirmed cases on Friday, of which a "significant number" are asymptomatic positives.

The Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland has expressed concern over the treatment and care of vulnerable women with mental ill health in Cornton Vale prison. In a new report it highlights the lack of available beds in specific units in Scotland’s mental health facilities and raises critical

A contingency measure to help prisoners affected by drug use during the pandemic is to be rolled out into the wider community after a pilot project was shown to be a success. Last year the Scottish government allocated £1.9 million to support people in prison on prescribed opiate substitution

The Scottish courts should make greater use of video-link technology to reduce the number of people in custody being brought to court for short procedural appearances, prison inspectors have said. In a new report, HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) said there had been an increase in cou

A new right to welfare, housing and healthcare appointments for prisoners has been proposed by the Scottish Liberal Democrats in its manifesto published today. Research by the party revealed that Scotland's prisons are completely overwhelmed, with the population reaching record levels in recent year

Children, families and friends have had around 18,000 ‘virtual visits’ with prisoners in Scotland in the six months since secure online conferencing was rolled-out across the country. The introduction of virtual visits, alongside the provision of mobile telephone handsets with appropriat

Social distancing guidelines were not always followed at a prison in which six inmates have tested positive for coronavirus. HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland found that staff at HMP Kilmarnock occasionally failed to wear personal protective equipment when they were unable to observe the two-m

The average daily prison population rose sharply in 2018-19 and 2019-20 despite fewer people being imprisoned, according to statistics published by the chief statistician today. Following several years of steady decline, the average daily population in Scotland’s prisons rose from 7,464 in 201

HMP Barlinnie is “no longer fit for purpose”, according to prison inspectors. HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland found that the prison's holding cells, “first condemned 25 years ago”, are still in use and that they may fall foul of human rights law.

The Scottish Human Rights Commission has written to Holyrood's Justice Committee to highlight concerns about measures being taken in prisons during the pandemic. The commission expressed concern that the current conditions being experienced by some people in Scottish prisons could amount to inhuman

Karyn McCluskey explains why the status quo on prison numbers cannot continue. The words you use matter. To give a random example, If I tell you to "stay alert" you might be a bit confused as to what you’re being asked to do. You might not necessarily assume I mean “stay at home as much