Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-03-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to address the issues raised in the Independent Investigation into conditions at Yarl’s Wood in January 2016; and what additional steps she will take to address concerns around (a) staffing arrangements including capacity and training and (b) an inadequate proportion of female officers to care for women at the centre.

James Brokenshire

Serco commissioned an independent investigation by Kate Lampard into the culture and staffing at Yarl’s Wood. The report was published in January 2016. Serco has responded quickly to the recommendations in the report and has agreed or completed 32 of the 35 recommendations. These include an increase in staffing levels and introducing changes to policies to ensure that all detainees are treated in a safe and dignified manner. As of 9 March 2016, 55% of Serco’s operational staff at Yarl’s Wood are women.

The Government is addressing the issue of welfare in detention through its response to Stephen Shaw’s review set out in the Written Ministerial Statement laid before the House on 14 January. This includes a new adults at risk policy and a mental health action plan.