Chamber and committees

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

“On 16 January 2013 the number of offenders in custody including those on remand was 7750 if which 7459 were British. The following table shows the nationality of the remaining 291.”

Funding allocated to each Community Justice Authority (CJA) under section 27 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968, for the current financial year (2012-13), is provided in the following table:

In addition, each Community Justice Authority has been able to submit applications under Section 27 for additional funding from the Payback Sports Facilities Fund, up to a maximum of £375k per CJA over the two years 2011-12 - 2012-13. The aim of the fund is to promote the rehabilitation of offenders and help reduce reoffending by maintaining and improving sports amenities available to communities throughout Scotland.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

“A life prisoner or those serving a sentence of more than 14 months who has served at least six months may apply to the Governor to start accumulating visits. If the Governor gives permission for this then the prisoner will be moved to another prison closer to visitors to participate in such visits for a maximum period of two months.”

The Scottish Government sets national direction of policy and provides funding to agencies to support implementation of policy. The management of local actions in implementing this policy is the responsibility of these relevant local agencies, based on local need, including geography and rurality.

In the Mental Health Stategy: 2012-15 we set out a number of approaches which will assist in tackling mental health problems in rural areas. There is a strong focus throughout the strategy on actions that people can take for themselves, and in their own communities, to maintain and improve their own health.

Locally, NHS boards continue to develop and deliver self-help services according to need, with many of these services and resources being available through primary care. Nationally, existing services and resources include the NHS Living Life service, delivered through NHS 24, and the Steps for Stress resources, managed by NHS Health Scotland.

We have committed to work with partners, including the Royal College of General Practitioners and Long Term Conditions Alliance Scotland, to increase local knowledge of social prescribing opportunities, including through new technologies.

We have committed to the effective use of modern technology to provide information and deliver evidence-based services. We have begun, and will continue through the period of the strategy, to develop, with NHS 24, a Scotland-wide approach to improving mental health through new technology.

An example of recent innovative use of new technology is the use of video conferencing for patients with mental health problems at Abbeyfield Care Home in Ballachulish. Patients and care home staff now have access to services, support and advice from specialist teams in Inverness, with no need for travel.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

“No prison should be describing the process for bonding visits as a contract.

As I advised when I wrote to Mary Fee MSP on 25 September 2012, I have instructed a review of the current arrangement which is on-going and revised guidance will be issued to all prisons shortly. Central to this revised guidance will be that the rights of the child are paramount and recognising a prisoners right under European Convention on Human Right to a family life.”

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

“The evaluation of rehabilitation programmes for individual prisoners is undertaken by analysing data gathered before, during and after the delivery of programmes. This includes reviewing psychological risk tools, psychometric tests, clinical observation and monitoring offenders’ behaviour.

The Scottish Prison Service has not individually evaluated the effectiveness of these programmes however there is a significant body of research from around the world that demonstrates the effectiveness of these in reducing reoffending.

SPS is currently in the process of reviewing and updating its suite of rehabilitation programmes to create a robust framework of evaluation.”

In relation to reviews of sentencing, following a person's conviction, the court will decide on an appropriate sentence within the overall legal framework provided by Parliament. The court has wide discretion to consider what an appropriate sentence should be for specific cases and will take into account a range of relevant factors such as the circumstances of the offender including their family circumstances. Any offender can seek to appeal against their sentence and it will for the Appeal Court to consider the merits of the appeal. There is also an exceptional process by which an offender can seek to have the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) refer their case back to court for a further appeal. An offenders' family can of course assist in helping appeals and applications to the SCCRC, but they do not have a formal role in these processes.

In relation to the review of the care of offenders in custody the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) actively encourages offenders and their families to contribute to the prisons Integrated Case Management process for those subject to post release supervision and to attend their annual case conference. The SPS also invites families, with the offenders’ approval, to the Act2Care case conference as part of its Suicide Risk Management Strategy where the offender is at risk of suicide or self harm.

In addition, community-based social workers regularly meet with families in their home to consider the supports and services required and to take account of their views on a possible return to the family home when offenders are being considered for any form of release.

The following table shows the number of local authority and registered social landlord (RSL) owned lettable dwellings which had been void for 6 months or more as at 31 March 2012.

Following housing stock transfers there is no local authority housing stock in Argyll & Bute, Dumfries & Galloway, Eilean Siar, Glasgow City, Inverclyde or Scottish Borders.

Figures for local authority owned voids include a number of dwellings which are identified as low demand. The RSL figures do not include these.

Source: Local authority owned - Stock2 returns by local authorities to the Scottish Government, Communities Analytical Services (Housing Statistics). RSL owned - The Scottish Housing Regulator Registered Social Landlord Annual Performance and Statistical Return 2011-12

The table excludes unlettable dwellings, many of which are awaiting demolition or rehabilitation and so are not available for letting.

The figures used differ from the estimates of empty dwellings available from the council tax database which are used for council tax purposes. The council tax database was recently used to answer a similar question – S4W-10614 on
15 November 2012 – as this asked for figures for all sectors (including the private sector). However the council tax database cannot provide a breakdown of council and social housing and so it has not been used in this case.

The data sources will differ. Empty properties identified in the council tax database are those which receive a discount as being classed as unoccupied. The properties identified in the table above are those which are identified as unoccupied for 6 months or more, and these may or may not be considered as empty homes for the purposes of council tax discount.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at;

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.