UK: prison changes needed for older inmates, report suggests

Changes are likely to be required to the prison estate to accommodate the growing number of inmates with social care needs, a new report has suggested.

Older prisoners, and those with disabilities, now make up a larger section of the prison population.

The rise is partly down to an increase in those being jailed for historical sex offences.

The Scottish Prison Service said in future those with social care needs may be treated as a “distinct population”.

Former Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has said the SPS should consider establishing a separate facility for older people.

The new report by the prison service looked at the social care needs of prisoners in jails across Scotland. The aim is to use it as a research base to shape how these inmates are accommodated and supported in years to come. Between 2010 and 2016, the number of men aged over 50 in Scotland’s prison population rose by more than 60%, from 603 to 988.

The number of men in prison aged over 65 also increased in that period, from 88 to 148 - a rise of 68%. A rise was also seen in the number of women over 50 - from 26 to 33.

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