Prison Reform Trust press release

Almost 6,000 men, women and children with an IQ of less than 70 are locked up in the UK’s prisons at any one time according to new research released today, placing an authoritative figure for the first time on a vast hidden problem.

Such low IQs will affect an individual’s ability to cope with prison life and will hinder communication and understanding. Many will also be learning disabled. A further quarter of the prison population has an IQ of less than 80 and may also have a border-line learning disability or specific learning difficulties.

Despite the huge prevalence of learning disabilities and learning difficulties amongst those held in custody, there is no routine screening or assessment of people in prison to identify their needs properly. People with learning disabilities and difficulties are unlikely to benefit, and may be excluded, from programmes designed to stop re-offending. Many are victimised and bullied in prison.

This important new research by the University of Liverpool is highlighted by the Prison Reform Trust ahead of the launch in March of ‘No One Knows’, a new UK-wide programme of work to investigate and improve the treatment of people with learning disabilities and difficulties in the criminal justice system. ‘No One Knows’ is a three year Prison Reform Trust programme supported by the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. Former prisons minister, Joyce Quin, chairs its advisory group.

No One Knows is also guided by a group of people with learning disabilities. One of them said:

“Being in prison is frightening. People shout a lot. It’s noisy. You don’t know what’s happening to you. They do things to you and take over. People who work in prison need to know how to support people with learning difficulties and disabilities.”

This research provides another strand of evidence that may shed new light on the very high rates of re-offending. Prison buildings, their routines and rehabilitation programmes are not designed for this group of prisoners, who are often overlooked and need a different approach to reducing their risk of re-offending.

Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust said:

‘This research reveals for the first time that high numbers of people with learning disabilities and difficulties are held behind bars. It raises important questions about how they got caught up in the criminal justice system in the first place and whether those responsible for special education, social care and family support could have done more to prevent this. As things stand men, women and children with learning difficulties and learning disabilities in the criminal justice system are dropped in a maze with no exit, left to wander between police station, court and prison."

Jenny Talbot, manager of ‘No One Knows’ said:

"We are working with prisons across the UK to build the first comprehensive picture of the situation for incarcerated people with learning disabilities and difficulties. In March the Prison Reform Trust will publish the results of our unique UK-wide prisons survey showing the challenges faced by largely untrained prison staff responsible for the care and resettlement of prisoners with learning disabilities and difficulties. It cannot be right – either to lock up so many people with learning disabilities and difficulties or to neglect the needs of those few who need to be held securely.”

At the request of local NHS commissioners, the University of Liverpool carried out research in Liverpool men’s Prison, Styal women’s prison and at Hindley, a prison dealing with young offenders. It found that the average IQ in each establishment was well below 90, against an average IQ of 100 in society at large. The causes for this result are unclear but genetic and environmental factors, such as a poor upbringing and poor schooling, can contribute to lower IQ scores. Poor mental health, psychological problems, drug use, and head injury are other factors that can affect a person’s IQ.

Dr Pat Mottram, the report’s author, said:

“Overall our findings show that the average IQ of the prison population is 13 below the national average of 100. A sizeable minority has a very low IQ indeed. Many will struggle to make sense of their experience of imprisonment. It is important therefore that the prison regime, in particular education, health and social care and rehabilitation, takes this into consideration.”

You can read the full University of Liverpool report here

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• Interviews are available with Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust and Jenny Talbot, manager of ‘No One Knows’ and, by arrangement with PRT offices, with Phil Shakell, the commissioner of this research, Dr Pat Mottram, the report’s author, Dr Nancy Loucks, PRT research associate and those with learning disabilities and difficulties who have experienced imprisonment and now help to guide this programme of work.
  Contact numbers: PRT offices 0207 251 5070
  Juliet Lyon mobile 07762 093105
  Jenny Talbot mobile 07730 971769
  
  
• The terms learning disability and learning difficulty are often used interchangeably, which can be confusing. In this press release we have used the term ‘learning disability’ as defined by the White Paper, Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disability for the 21st Century (Department of Health, 2001), which is perhaps the most widely accepted definition of learning disability in England. Valuing People defines learning disability in the following terms:
   a) a significantly reduced ability to understand new or 
       complex information, to learn new skills (impaired intelligence), with;
   b) a reduced ability to cope independently (impaired social functioning);
   c) which started before adulthood, with a lasting effect of development
  
  The presence of a low IQ - for example, an IQ below 70 - is not, of itself, sufficient to diagnose a learning disability and, in determining need, an individual’s daily living and communication skills should also be taken into account.
  
  Learning difficulties include a number of impairments, including autistic spectrum disorder, dyslexia and attention deficit disorder.
  
• Related research:
  a) Research undertaken by Dyslexia Action (formerly the Dyslexia Institute) found that 20% of the prison population have some form of hidden disability that will ‘affect and undermine their performance in both education and work settings’ (Rack, 2005)
  b) Research published by the Youth Justice Board found that almost a quarter (23%) of young offenders had an IQ of less than 70 and a further third (36%) had an IQ of less than 80. (Harrington, Bailey et al, 2005)
  
• Prison population as at 9 February, England and Wales: 79,686; Scotland: 7206; Northern Ireland, week commencing 5 February: 1,441
  
• Re-conviction figures for England and Wales: 67.4% of all prisoners are re-convicted within two years of being released; for young men (18-21) it is 78.4% (PRT, Prison Factfile, November 2006)
  
• Research undertaken by Liverpool University was funded by the Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Trust and the Specialist Services Commissioning Team, Cumbria and Lancashire NHS Trust