Nearly half the money that GEOAmey paid to the Scottish government in fines over its failure to transport prisoners was handed straight back as ‘support’ to the company in a renegotiated contract. GEOAmey was hit with £4 million worth of fines after repeated failures in the deliver
Prison
A decision to give prison officers immunity from prosecution over one of Scotland's most high-profile custody deaths was "incorrect", new documents seen by the BBC show. Allan Marshall, 30, died in March 2015 at HMP Edinburgh after being restrained.
Concerns have been raised that prisoners' right to an hour of exercise in the fresh air every day is “clearly being breached” at Scotland’s holding facility for children and young offenders. HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) stated in its latest report on HMP YOI
Scotland’s prison system is facing considerable risks, including the poor performance of the company that transports prisoners to and from custody, according to a new report. The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) contracted GEOAmey in 2018 to transfer prisoners between prisons, courts, police cust
The longest periods prisoners in Scotland have spent on remand continue to increase, new figures show. While median time on remand before departure remained at 21 days in 2022-23, the longest periods spent on remand have risen significantly. In 2017-18, 90 per cent of remand departures had occurred
Prison governors have written to MSPs over "significant concerns" about the rising number of inmates in Scotland. Natalie Beal, chair of the Prison Governors’ Association Scotland (PGAS), said staff were under "significant strain" and called for "urgent mitigation".
The Scottish Prison Service is installing landline phones in cells for the first time to support family contact, mental health and wellbeing, and reduce the risk of reoffending. They will replace prison-issued mobile phones, which were introduced as a temporary measure during the pandemic, when in-p
The Scottish Prison Service has opened the doors for the first time to the new £85.7 million HMP & YOI Stirling, a replacement facility for HMP Cornton Vale.
The UK government is considering plans to reduce reoffending and address labour shortages in England and Wales by allowing more prisoners to go on day release and work in industries such as construction, haulage, and hospitality. Currently, only a quarter of those leaving prison have a job within si
New research suggests that the burden of care and costs associated with supporting someone in prison in Scotland falls disproportionately on women, with many spending half their income or more in costs relating to their family member’s imprisonment. The families of people held in prison overwh
Legal Services Agency has launched a new project which will provide support to people detained in HMP Greenock and Low Moss by offering tailored legal advice and representation, to empower individuals to understand their housing options and navigate legal processes. The project, Disrupting Cycles of
MSPs on the Scottish Parliament’s Criminal Justice Committee are to examine plans put forward by the Scottish government which would overhaul systems in place around the release of prisoners and use of bail by courts. The new Bail and Release from Custody Bill, which the government hopes will
Scotland has the highest prison population rate in the UK and one of the highest in Europe, a new report shows. The 47-nation Council of Europe has today published its Annual Penal Statistics for 2021, compiled by the University of Lausanne.
Under-18s should not be sent to jail, Scotland's chief inspector of prisons has said. Wendy Sinclair Gieben has written to ministers calling for new laws to end imprisonment of 16 and 17-year-olds by the end of March.
Balfour Beatty has been awarded the contract for the first stage of the Scottish Prison Service’s (SPS) project for the design and construction of HMP Highland, designed by BakerHicks.