It is the role of the Irish Prison Service to help achieve a safer and fairer Ireland by:
- Providing safe and secure custody with dignity of care for people committed to prison.
- Reducing the risk of harm to the public and the likelihood of reoffending by providing rehabilitation for people in prison.
- Working with the Probation Service to create an integrated offender management programme.
- Assisting people in prison maintain family relations and contact with the wider community.
The Irish Prison Service is responsible for the safe and secure custody of persons held on remand, on immigration matters and people sentenced to prison.
It is responsible for ensuring that convicted persons properly serve their sentence. The Irish Prison Service is also responsible for providing the opportunities for prisoners to engage in a meaningful way in order to reduce the likelihood of their reoffending and assist them reintegrate into their communities.
The Irish Prison Service Annual Report for 2016 and their Strategic Plan 2016-2018 are available via the links below:
To learn more about their work, check the Irish Prison Service website.
Rules setting out how prisons will operate, which cover all aspects of prison life, such as visiting rights, facilities, work, discipline, grievance procedures and so on, can be found here.
Independent Prison Monitoring
Independent Prison Monitoring is an essential part of accountability for any modern prison system.
The European Prison Rules stipulate that the conditions of detention and treatment of prisoners are monitored by an independent body or bodies whose findings are made public.
A number of bodies listed below carry out this function in Ireland:
- The Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT)
The CPT can be contacted by post, telephone, fax or e-mail:
Address: Secretariat of the CPT, Human Rights Building, Council of Europe, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, FRANCE Phone: +33 3 88 41 23 36 Fax: +33 3 88 41 27 72 E-mail: cptdoc@coe.int
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The Criminal Justice (United Nations (Convention Against Torture) Act, 2000
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Prison Visiting Committees
Prison Visiting Committees are made up of individuals from across society.
They visit the prison to which they are appointed and hear any complaints made to them by a prisoner. They look at the quality of the prison accommodation and the facilities and services available to the prisoners there.
Each committee gives the Minister a report every year on their findings. These are published on the Department’s website and the reports can be accessed here.
Each appointment to a visiting committee is for a period of three years. To be appointed to a prison visiting committee you should make a representation to either the Minister for Justice or your local representative who may in turn nominate you for appointment.
Prison Committee Members
Arbour Hill Prison |
Padraig McGarrigle Rita Hayes |
Castlerea Prison |
John Keavney Martin Leonard Pauline McDonagh Thomas Garvey Martin Daly |
Cloverhill Prison |
Margaret Downey Fintan Hudson David Ruddy Laura Jenkins Mary O'Neill Nuala Ryan |
Cork Prison |
Robin Murray Anthony Donnelly Dermot O'Connell Jeremiah Sullivan Diarmuid Drennan Tomas Ryan |
Arbour Hill Prison |
Padraig McGarrigle Rita Hayes |
Dóchas Centre |
Noel Cloak Christine Ryan Anne Delaney |
Limerick Prison |
Pat Conway Val Rooney Patrick Reidy Mary Prendergast John Higgins Patricia McCarthy |
Loughan House Open Centre |
Michael Smith Andrew Cullen Thomas J. Prendergast |
Midlands Prison |
Ted Laffey Margaret O'Dwyer John Kelly Joe Leahy Derek Mulcahy |
Mountjoy Prison |
Phelim McGee Mary Fennessy Pauline Conroy Joseph Ahern Andrew Garvey |
Portlaoise Prison |
Michael Hough Anne Turley Declan Brennan Martin Moroney |
Shelton Abbey Open Centre |
Marie O'Rourke Thomas Healy Thomas Gregan Anthony Lawlor Richard P. Codd |
St. Patrick's Institution |
Pat Burke Walsh |
Training Unit Place of Detention |
Anne Confrey Patrick J. Holton Billy Ireland |
Wheatfield Place of Detention |
Joe Fitzsimons Kathleen Gill Stewart Stephens Brenda Coyne |
Committee members are not paid a fee but receive expenses of €142.50 per day per prison visited and vouched travel expenses of up to €30.