Written question asked by James Clappison (Conservative) on Tuesday, 23 January 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 31 January 2001. It was answered by Lord Boateng (Labour) on Wednesday, 31 January 2001 on behalf of the Home Office.

Home Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into deaths and incidents of self-harm in women's prisons.

Answer: Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into deaths and incidents of self-harm in women's prisons. [147470] Mr. Boateng: There is a wide range of research studies covering many aspects of self-harm and suicidal behaviour in women's prisons. The Prison Service is planning a new research and evaluation strategy for self-inflicted deaths and self-harm in custody and will take into account the learning from these and other studies. Previous projects include research into the institutional factors of self-harm at Bullwood Hall prison; the management and recording of suicidal behaviour at Styal prison; and the management of self-harm, characteristics of those who self-harm, and evaluation of intervention effectiveness at Holloway prison. Current projects include a study of women life sentence prisoners and suicidal behaviour at Highpoint prison. All generic studies of self-inflicted deaths include women prisoners. All research is evaluated so that it informs and contributes to the development of suicide and self-harm prevention policies and practices.

Secondary information