Section Three The second year – activities and key issues by type of detention
to be addressed. For example, the board
at Hydebank Wood welcomed efforts to
increase the length of time that prisoners
spend out of their cell but noted that this
could be increased even further. It also
welcomed a newly extended visiting facility,
where mothers and their children can spend
quality, private time together. Nonetheless,
the board recommended fundamental
changes at Hydebank Wood:
• the board believes the prison is unsuitable
for under-18s and that they should be
held separately from older prisoners. It
recommends under-18s be held in the
Juvenile Justice Centre rather than in
prison
• there should be a stand-alone women’s
prison. Women prisoners require different
approaches, facilities and staff trained to
deal with them but the current provision
at Hydebank Wood is inadequate.
The protest by separated republican
prisoners at Maghaberry was closely
monitored by the IMB. It welcomed a new
search facility and a revised searching
policy which sought to address some of the
prisoners’ concerns.
The boards at all three prisons expressed
concerns which mirror those identified in
inspections by CJINI and HMIP. These included
concerns about those prisoners with mental
health problems who required admission to a
secure hospital but were instead being cared
for in prison; the availability of drugs; limited
time out of cell; an insufficient quantity
and range of purposeful activity; a lack of
adequate educational provision, particularly
for young prisoners; and overcrowding.
25
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