PARTIAL-RELEASE SCHEME (OPINION) cells, no dedicated personnel are assigned to them. Partial release is often neglected in remand prisons: no particular rules apply to it and sometimes it is not even mentioned in the institution’s internal regulations. Everything happens as if no particular attention needs to be paid to it. 4/ The social workers (prison advisers on employability and probation – CPIP) are present in the open prisons in the form of office hours (most often having an “open” environment, for which the head office in the administrative Department may be distant from the institution) and in the open wings in the form of appointments in the prison (in this case, these are often of the “closed” environment, which are attached to the institution). Their numbers are often insufficient. Thus, in one prison visited in 2011, there were theoretically eleven staff, nine in practice and this had to be reduced to eight a few weeks later. A single adviser was responsible for the persons held in the open wing, the “outgoing” section and those placed under electronic surveillance. Their times of presence are not necessarily adapted to the times during which those under partial release are present: in one centre, the office was open from 9 a.m. to 12 a.m. and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. With the CPIP, either time off must be taken from work or interviews must be missed. While the social workers should be concentrating on the effects of work, or treatment, or job seeking and employability, many interviews are for much more urgent purposes, particularly to obtain identity documents, which those under partial release do not have. At least for those who were previously in prison, it would be better to perform these operations during the prior detention period. It was not possible to do this, either due to staff shortages amongst social workers or because of the inflexibility of certain administrations. This means that under partial release, the support of the CPIP is related to subjects that are admittedly decisive, but have nothing to do with the personalities and the effort that has been deployed. The consequence is that certain necessary support procedures are impossible to perform. For example, concerning alcohol, the transition from being a prisoner under general law to partial release involves an absolute prohibition on drinking. Although alcoholic drinks are prohibited in the open prisons or wings, it is possible to consume them during release hours. One of the routine problems of these places is of those under partial release coming back in the evening in a state of intoxication. Support in the matter is almost non-existent. 133