To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) prison service staff and (b) prisoners have had a test for covid-19.
Answered on
19 May 2020
NHS England and Improvement is solely responsible for testing for COVID-19 both in the community and in secure settings. As such, we do not hold data on staff and prisoner testing.
On 24 April, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced the rollout of COVID-19 testing for all essential workers and symptomatic members of their household, including prison staff, those working in Approved Premises (APs) and probation staff (including private sector service providers) in England. We have referred over 3,000 HMPPS staff for testing to date.
In Wales, testing for prison, AP and probation staff and symptomatic members of their household is being delivered through local resilience forum arrangements and through local health boards.
For prisoners, tests will be conducted on symptomatic individuals on site. The testing capacity and availability can vary between establishments, depending on local circumstances at the time.