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Written question asked by David Wilshire (Conservative) on Tuesday, 13 January 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 19 January 2009. It was answered by Lord Hanson of Flint (Labour) on Monday, 19 January 2009 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Bronzefield Prison

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) escapes, (b) attempted escapes and (c) assaults on staff there have been at HM Prison Bronzefield in each year since it opened.
Answer

There have been no escapes or attempted escapes at Bronzefield since it opened.The table shows incidents of prisoner on staff assaults in Bronzefield in each of the last years since 2004.The information is set out in the table and is subject to important qualifications. The NOMS Incident Reporting System processes high volumes of data which are constantly being updated. The numbers provide an indication of overall numbers but should not be interpreted as absolute.Assault information is recorded at establishment level in four categories: Prisoner on Prisoner, Prisoner on Officer, Prisoner on Other and Other (which may include non-prisoner perpetrators e.g. visitors). The recorded incidents of assaults on prison officers are not completely exclusive to officers; establishment recording sometimes includes assaults on other prison staff in this category. Rises or falls in reported numbers from one year to the next are not a good indicator of an underlying trend for a particular prison.The numbers supplied refer to the number of individual assault incidents. The numbers refer to all incidents recorded as assaults; these may also include threatening behaviour, projection of bodily fluids and other non-contact events and allegations.Ministers, NOMS and the Prison Officers' Association are collectively committed to ensuring that violence in prisons is not tolerated in any form. Since 2004, a national strategy has directed every public sector prison to have in place a local violence reduction strategy and since mid 2007 this has been applied to the public and contracted out estate. A whole prison approach is encouraged, engaging all staff, all disciplines and prisoners in challenging unacceptable behaviour, problem-solving and personal safety.

Bronzefield prison
Classification 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Prisoner on officer 17 85 77 41 80
Prisoner on other 3 2 4 2 8
Other 2 3 1 1 3
Note:
Bronzefield opened in 2004 which is why the numbers for this year are lower than subsequent years.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
486 c1121-2W; 248403
Session
2008-09
Subjects
HMP/YOI Bronzefield
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk