Independent Reviews of Progress
The Independent Review of progress process has been introduced so the Chief Inspector of Prisons can follow up on key recommendations.
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Independent Reviews of Progress (IRPs) will be introduced in April by a revised protocol between Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) and the Ministry of Justice (MOJ).
In 2018, the Justice Select Committee recommended that HMIP should provide Ministers with an independent assessment of progress made in implementing recommendations. As a result, HMIP have developed and tested a new IRP methodology.
IRPs will only happen in prisons. Sites for IRPs will be identified by the Chief Inspector. IRPs will take place 8-12 months after the source inspection and there will be 15-20 IRP visits in each 12-month programme. HMIP will make judgements on progress relating to each individual recommendation they follow up. The final report will be sent to the Secretary of State for Justice and published on HMIP’s website within 25 working days of the end of the IRP visit.
The protocol, which launches the IRP process, also describes the respective roles and responsibilities of HMIP and MOJ and how the relationship between them will be conducted.