Northern Ireland Prisoner Ombudsman

The office of the Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, was first established in Northern Ireland in 2005.[1]

The office's governing statutes are the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2004,[2] the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Devolution of Policing and Justice Functions) Order 2010[3] and the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2016[4]

The ombudsman's function are to:

  • investigate complaints submitted to it by individual prisoners whose complaints were not resolved by the Prison Service Internal Complaints Process[5]
  • complete death in custody investigations, as well as answering family concerns; identifying any learning points for the prison service.[6]
  • investigate complaints submitted to it by individual prisoners whose complaints or concerns were not resolved by the Visit Manager[7]

References

  1. ^ Seneviratne, Mary (17 January 2013). "Ombudsmen and prisoner complaints in the UK". Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law. 34 (3): 339–356. doi:10.1080/09649069.2012.750483. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  2. ^ "Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2004: Section 6", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 13 May 2004, 2004 c. 4 (s. 6), retrieved 3 July 2024
  3. ^ "The Statutory Instruments Regulations 1947: Section 6: Article 6", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 31 March 2010, SI 2010/1 (s. 6) (art. 6), retrieved 3 July 2024
  4. ^ Northern Ireland Assembly. Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 as amended (see also enacted form), from legislation.gov.uk.
  5. ^ Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (1 August 2022). "Terms of Reference for the Investigation of Complaints" (PDF). Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  6. ^ Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. "TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR INVESTIGATION OF DEATHS IN PRISON CUSTODY". Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  7. ^ Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (30 April 2011). "TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR INVESTIGATION OF COMPLAINTS" (PDF). Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. Retrieved 3 July 2024.