Explanatory note

These Rules amend the Prison Rules 1999 (S.I. 1999/728) and the Young Offender Institution Rules 2000 (S.I. 2000/3371).

The amendments remove offences in Prison Rule 51 and Young Offender Institution Rule 55 concerning “racially aggravated” or “racist” behaviour. In their place, the amendments substitute new offences concerning behaviour demonstrating or motivated by hostility towards persons sharing, any of the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010, including race.

The amendments also insert three new sexual offences against discipline into Prison Rule 51 and Young Offender Institution Rule 55.

The amendments remove definitions of terms no longer in Prison Rule 51 and Young Offender Institution Rule 55 from Prison Rule 51A and Young Offender Institution Rule 57. In their place, the amendments substitute definitions of various terms relating to the new offences, and provisions on how references to particular terms relating to the new offences are to be interpreted.

The amendments insert a new punishment of payback punishment into Prison Rule 55 and Young Offender Institution Rule 60, and insert a definition of that term into Prison Rule 2 and Young Offender Institution Rule 2. They also insert conditions on who can impose the punishment and on whom it can be imposed into Prison Rules 55 and 55A, and Young Offender Institution Rules 60 and 60A, and they insert a corresponding new offence against discipline where an offender fails to comply with any requirement to complete payback punishment into Prison Rule 51 and Young Offender Institution Rule 55.

The amendments amend Prison Rule 55AB and Young Offender Institution Rule 60AB, in order to give the governor or adjudicator discretion over whether to impose a requirement to pay for damage to property, and what proportion of the cost to set the requirement at, where an offender has committed a relevant offence.

The amendments substitute new provisions on suspended punishments for Prison Rule 60 and Young Offender Institution Rule 63. These new provisions enable punishments to be suspended subject to a condition of complying with or completing a specified rehabilitative activity during a specified period, in addition to the existing possibility of suspending a punishment subject to a condition of not committing another offence against discipline during a specified period.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no significant impact on the private, voluntary or public sectors is foreseen.