Mission Statement

The Prison Social Work Service aims at providing and facilitating social work services for inmates, and their families, to support them during their stay in prison and to prepare them for release from custody and to assist them in their reintegration in the community.

The Service

Social work in prisons is part of the provision of a comprehensive plan provided through the criminal justice system. Intervention commences upon the arrival of the offender in prison and may be extended to the stage when the inmate is released into the community. Such a service is offered on a voluntary basis, i.e the service is agreed upon and accepted by the prison inmate or the respective family member/s.

Aims and Objectives

The objectives of social work in prisons are:

- To carry out an assessment leading, where appropriate, to the development of individual action plans and the direct or indirect provision of programmes to meet these plans so as to address the personal and social need.

- To provide appropriate professional support and assistance to help prisoners resettle and reintegrate into society following release through the involvement and support of their families, friends and other resources in their community;

- To help inmates tackle their offending behaviour,

- To assist the families of inmates where family life suffers as a consequence of offending behaviour;

- To offer advice, and where necessary, help to cope with imprisonment and help to deal with personal problems (e.g. family or relationship difficulties, health issues, drug or alcohol-related problems);

- To facilitate contacts with family, friends and relevant statutory and voluntary agencies in their local communities, where appropriate.

- To offer inmates access to a range and level of social work services similar to those in the community;

- To contribute by advising on, and in some cases providing, a range of individual and groupwork programmes to address offending behaviour.