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Prison education scheme 'failed' Prison education scheme 'failed'
(1 day later)
A government initiative to improve prisoners' education "has not succeeded", MPs have said. Schemes to improve prisoners' basic skills and qualifications in English jails have "failed in almost every respect", an MPs' committee has said.
The Commons public accounts committee found inmates' learning plans were "frequently deficient". They were of "little practical use" to those serving less than a year and those moving between prisons could find themselves unable to continue.
Despite the initiative, only about a fifth of prisoners with serious literacy or numeracy needs had enrolled on a course to help them, it added. Only 20% of those who needed help the most had joined a course, MPs said.
Half of people in custody have no qualifications, while almost four fifths have a reading age below 11. But ministers said there had been "significant progress" and the service was "far from failing".
'Limited use' In its report the Commons public accounts committee said helping prisoners improve basic and vocations skills was a major plank of the government's policy to cut reoffending.
Alcohol problems
Many prisoners had "severe" learning problems, nearly 40% had a reading age below that expected of an 11-year-old and half of people in custody had no qualifications, they said.
Since 2006, the Offenders' Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) has handled inmates' education provision in England.Since 2006, the Offenders' Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) has handled inmates' education provision in England.
But the committee said the programmes on offer were "likely to be of limited practical use to prisoners serving less than 12 months". But the committee said only about a fifth of those with "serious literacy or numeracy needs" enrol on a course that would help them and more could be done to motivate them.
Meanwhile, reconviction rates for these prisoners affected were "not improving". The people who are responsible are those who actually run our prisons, they seem to want to have above all a quiet life, they want to have tame prisoners who are locked up Edward LeighCommittee chairman
The committee's chairman, Conservative MP Edward Leigh, said: "A large proportion of prisoners and offenders serving community sentences have a desperate need of improved learning and skills, if they are to get a job on release." It notes there are challenges as many prisoners have mental health, alcohol or drugs problems and the "operational requirements" of prisons had to take priority over learning.
He added that "progress has been stymied both by inadequate joint working between the bodies responsible for delivering learning and skills to offenders and by failures in the delivery process itself". But it says there appeared to be "confusion" over how funding should be prioritised, "tensions" over objectives and a risk that "performance incentives" for those providing the service did not encourage them to reach out to the hardest-to-reach prisoners.
The OLSS had "failed in almost every respect", he said. "Payments are made to providers irrespective of offender take-up, attendance or achievement," the report said.
Mr Leigh added: "Funding is distributed between prisons without reference to need... "The programmes currently on offer are likely to be of limited practical use to prisoners serving less than 12 months, and reconviction rates for these prisoners are not improving."
"The different agencies involved in this, including the Learning and Skills Council, the Prison Service and the Department, must work together to sort out this counter-productive and wasteful situation." 'Far from failing'
It also raised concerns about a lack of assessment of some prisoners, "frequently deficient" learning plans and the lack of a core curriculum, which meant if inmates moved prisons they could find it hard to continue their courses.
The committee's Conservative chairman, Edward Leigh, told the BBC: "The people who are responsible are those who actually run our prisons, they seem to want to have above all a quiet life, they want to have tame prisoners who are locked up.
OLASS has made significant progress since its creation with a solid growth in the number of offenders learning new skills Ministers' statement
He added: "I think you want to have a vigorous really committed service which believes in the power of resurrection of these people and says 'I'm going to give these people a life skill'."
In a statement with the report, he added: "OLASS was set up to overcome long-standing problems in the delivery of skills and learning for offenders. In practice, it has failed in almost every respect."
But the government said the report had been based on a National Audit Office study which focused on "very early days" in the service, since when significant changes and a "marked improvement" had been made.
In a joint statement, further education minister Sion Simon and minister for offender management David Hanson MP said the service was "far from failing".
They said nearly 40% of inmates had taken part in training courses in 2007/8, compared with less than 30% when the service before 2006.
"OLASS has made significant progress since its creation with a solid growth in the number of offenders learning new skills," they said.
"All the agencies involved in offender learning will continue to work together and are wholly focused on reducing reoffending through skills and employment."