Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 9 April 2025
210. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice the percentage of sex offenders released from prison who had availed of therapeutic services aimed at reducing the likelihood of re-offending, for each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18039/25]
View answerI am advised by the Irish Prison Service (IPS) the Building Better Lives (BBL) programme had been delivered as the treatment programme for sexual offending since 2009 in Irish Prisons.
A review of the programme was conducted between February 2023 and July 2024 by Canadian expert, Professor Liam Marshall, following the emergence of updated research evidence, practice-based evidence, discussions with field experts, new Council of Europe recommendations, and the National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence.
The Irish Prison Service have since developed and implemented a new model of intervention for people who are convicted of a sexual offence called ‘New Chapters’. Anyone who has been convicted of a sexual offence and committed to custody from 1st November 2024 has been managed under this new model.
Since 1 November 2024, a total of 14 participants have completed a group programme under New Chapters. Thirty people are currently engaged in group programmes under New Chapters.
Due to the significant number of people in custody pre-1 November 2024 who require treatment, a number of those people have been offered and have engaged in treatment under New Chapters. Table 1 includes the number of participants who are engaged in, or have completed therapeutic services aimed at reducing the likelihood of re-offending since 1 November 2024 in tabular format.
It is important to note that the figures in Table 2 represent only those who have fully completed the BBL programme (both EBL and PBL).
Other assessment and intervention pillars are provided by the Irish Prison Service and Probation Service for people convicted of sexual violence. As many people convicted of sexual violence did not meet criteria for BBL because of particularly complex presentations, there are various other pillars of intervention and management available, depending on the person’s strengths, needs and risks. A significant number of those who are released who do not participate in BBL are managed in this way. Interventions include:
• Individual offence focused work by Irish Prison Service Psychology / Probation Service;
• Individual or group work focused on mental health, emotional regulation or other offence related need by Irish Prison Service Psychology Service;
• Probation Service engagement including risk assessment and management where the individual has a Post-Release Supervision Order. This includes a handover to community based Probation Officers prior to release;
• Psychology ‘Pathways to Change’ group (focuses on an introduction to risk factors);
• Engagement with prison in-reach Psychiatry for stabilisation and maintenance of mental health where a mental health diagnosis is made;
• Education and Work training;
• Integrated Sentence Management;
• Engagement with the Irish Association for the Social Integration of Offenders (IASIO);
• Engagement with Resettlement Services;
• Sex Offender Risk Assessment and Management (SORAM);
• Safer Lives Community Sexual Violence Group Work Treatment Programme (and allied community interventions).
The introduction of New Chapters provides for a broader range of options for treatment, which is more responsive to the needs of individuals, and this has led to increased participation rates. This will improve the risk reduction measures available in custody.
I am advised by the Irish Prison Service that information on the percentage of sex offenders released from prison who had availed of the full range of therapeutic services is not readily available and would require a manual examination of records.
Table 1: The number of participants who are engaged in, or have completed therapeutic services aimed at reducing the likelihood of re-offending since November 1st 2024 in tabular format:
|
Year |
No. of Participants currently engaged in a programme under New Chapters |
No. of Participants who have completed a programme under New Chapters |
||
|
Committed pre-1st Nov 2024 |
Committed post 1st Nov 2024 |
Committed pre-1st Nov 2024) |
Committed post 1st Nov 2024 |
|
|
Since Nov 1st 2024 – Q1 2025 |
26 |
4 |
14 |
0 |
|
Total |
30 |
14 |
The number of participants who completed the Building Better Lives programme in the 5 years before 1st November 2024 can be found in Table 2 below.
Table 2: The number of participants who completed the Building Better Lives in the last 5 years in tabular format:
|
Year |
No. of Participants |
|
Pre-Nov 1st 2024 |
6 |
|
2023 |
11 |
|
2022 * |
7 |
|
2021 * |
9 |
|
2020 * |
9 |
*Covid 19 restrictions and the consequent reduction of group therapies and one to one therapy should be considered in 2020-2022 data where some participants may have only had the opportunity to partially engage in this treatment intervention process.
