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Self-inflicted Deaths in NOMS' Custody Amongst 18–24 Year Olds
Staff Experience, Knowledge and Views
This Report presents the findings of research into self-inflicted deaths (SID) in custody amongst 18–24 year olds in National Offender Management Service (NOMS) custody in England and Wales. This research was commissioned by the Harris Review into Self-Inflicted Deaths In Custody Amongst 18–24 Year Olds, and was undertaken by RAND Europe and the Prisons Research Centre, Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge.
This research focused on staff experience, knowledge and views, which have been gathered through interviews and observations at five prisons in England and Wales. The document will be of interest to government, civil society and academic audiences interested in improving prisoner wellbeing and safety generally and SID reduction and risk management specifically.
The Report consists of seven sections that address the research questions set out by the Harris Review. Sections 1 and 2 provide an overview of the background, context and methods of the study. Sections 3–6 present the findings of the study relating to four key themes — how staff conceive of risk of SID, how SID risk is managed, staff training and institutional and individual responses to SID. The report closes with a review of promising practice and areas for improvement based on staff suggestions.
Please note: This report is not available on the RAND website but can be downloaded from the Independent Advisory Panel (IAP) on Deaths in Custody website.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Background and Context
Chapter Two
Methodology
Chapter Three
Conceptualising Risk of Self-Inflicted Death and Identifying Risk Factors
Chapter Four
Managing Risk of Self-Inflicted Death
Chapter Five
Staff Training
Chapter Six
Responding to Self-Inflicted Death
Chapter Seven
Towards a Model of Better Practice?
Appendix One
Towards a Theoretical Model of the Prisoners' Pathway to Suicide
Appendix Two
Interview Schedule
Appendix Three
Notice to Staff
Research conducted by
The research described in this report was prepared for The Independent Review into Self-inflicted Deaths of 18-24 year olds in Custody (The Harris Review) and conducted by RAND Europe.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation research report series. RAND reports present research findings and objective analysis that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND reports undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.
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