The review was first announced in 2016 after a series of deaths in custody and was subsequently passed in December 2018 to the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA), which said in September 2019 that it expected to report back in March 2020, but was then delayed indefinitely.

By comparison, a similar review of support measures for stressed prison officers was announced by Justice Minister Naomi Long last June and completed by December. She has already committed to implementing its recommendations.

A spokesperson for the RQIA told Irish Legal News: “We have recently published the terms of reference for our review of the provision of services for vulnerable persons detained in Northern Ireland prisons, and we anticipate reporting our findings in summer 2021.”

The terms of reference agreed by Department of Health and Department of Justice officials are:

1. To assess the effectiveness of strategies/policies, services and operational procedures in place to deliver care and treatment to people with mental ill-health at risk of self-harm or suicide in Northern Ireland prisons.
2. To assess the effectiveness of arrangements the needs assessment and planning and commissioning of services delivered to this group within Northern Ireland prisons.
3. To assess the effectiveness of arrangements for assuring the quality of services delivered to this group within Northern Ireland prisons.
4. To seek the views and experiences of service users in relation to the effectiveness of services provided.
5. To report on our the findings and make practical recommendations to improve outcomes for vulnerable prisoners in Northern Ireland.

The review will run alongside the separate review of the operation of care and supervision units (CSUs), which is being led by Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJI). Both are expected to report in the summer.