Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 May 2008
102 Deputy Simon Coveney asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform when the review of the programme for prisoners who have committed sexual offences will be completed; if he will publish same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21159/08]
Amharc ar fhreagra188 Deputy Simon Coveney asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his views on the therapy options available for sex offenders in prisons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21158/08]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 102 and 188 together.
Every effort is made to assist sex offenders in custody who are willing to participate at any level in rehabilitation and relapse prevention. There are three main forms of direct therapeutic intervention for sex offenders currently operating within the Irish prison system. These are as follows:
An intensive sex offender programme which has been in operation since 1994 and is delivered currently in Arbour Hill Prison,
Individual counselling from the Irish Prison Service's Psychology Service and from the Probation Service, and
One to one interventions by visiting psychiatrists who provide support to prisoners.
The intensive programme is a group programme managed and delivered by the Irish Prison Service's Psychology Service in partnership with the Probation Service. It caters for eight offenders at a time, taking eleven months to complete. The programme is voluntary. Although delivered in Arbour Hill Prison, it is available to sex offenders in other prisons. The practice has been to invite all eligible sex offenders to apply for a place on the programme when a new group programme is being set up.
The programme is a structured, offence focused programme, employing a cognitive behavioural approach with a relapse prevention component. The programme places considerable emphasis on the therapeutic process within the group and on supporting each participant in gaining the knowledge, skills, attitudes and self confidence necessary to live life differently and more constructively in the future. The programme seeks to address the behaviour that leads to offending.
In general the criteria for suitability for participation in the Sex Offender Programme are:
Participants are convicted and sentenced;
Participants accept responsibility for their offending;
Participants are physically and emotionally capable of working on offending and personal issues in a group setting (age / physical health / mental & emotional health);
Participants have basic literacy skills;
Participants have a level of learning ability to understand the processes of the programme;
Preferably, participants are within 24 months of release;
Preferably participants have engaged in individual work on their offending with either the Psychology or Probation Services prior to participating in the Sex Offender Programme.
A total of 128 sex offenders have completed the sex offender programme to date. A further eight men are currently undertaking the programme. There is no waiting list in operation in respect of participation on the programme.
Some individuals engage with the therapeutic services initially to seek assistance in adjusting to imprisonment or to address their mental health needs. Following such interventions, offenders are often more open to looking at their sexual offending and a concentrated period of motivational work is conducted to help them address their offending behaviour and related issues. In response to such counselling, many offenders who initially might deny responsibility for their crime or deny any need for treatment, are motivated towards some process of change. For some offenders this results in them undertaking the more intensive sex offender programme, for others it results in sustained individual therapy around their offending or engagement in some other programme available in the prison system.
Probation Officers working in a prison context provide individual counselling to sex offenders as part of their generic role in relation to offence focused work and as part of the Parole Board Process. This counselling can vary from one session addressing a particular problem to intensive ongoing counselling.
A number of offenders undergo one-to-one counselling in relation to their sexual offending with the Irish Prison Service's Psychology Service. The Probation Service also engages with prisoners on a one-to-one basis.
The Sex Offender Programme is currently under review and the recommendations from this will be incorporated in the new Sex Offender Management Policy currently being drafted. The purpose of the policy statement is to outline the steps that the Irish Prison Service will take to reduce, to the greatest extent possible, the risk of offenders re-offending after their release. Options under consideration include more flexible delivery of programmes based on individual offender's risks, needs and capacity. The likely outcome is a package of sex offender interventions comprising group and individual programmes for a significantly larger group of offenders.
Two community based intervention programmes are currently operated by the Probation Service in conjunction with the Granada Institute under the name of Lighthouse. These group based programmes operate in Dublin and target those who have been convicted of sexual offences against children. Each programme operates over an eleven month period. These programmes are also currently being reviewed.
