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<p>The Bail Information Service (BIS) project has Bail Information Officers (BIOs)
operating in 31 public sector remand prisons across England and Wales, providing bail
information reports for defendants who are being considered for release on bail following
an initial remand into custody. This can be provided to magistrate and Crown Courts
at the second or subsequent hearing.</p><p>Bail Information Services are not yet provided
in court at first hearings; however, we anticipate that over the coming months the
project will generate sufficient data to help us to understand the efficacy of any
design and development of a potentially permanent dedicated and proactive Bail Information
Service that can operate in both prisons and courts across England and Wales.</p><p>Owing
to the circumstances created by the pandemic, it was not possible to carry out the
pilot as originally planned. A limited bail information service was attempted in a
few magistrates’ courts in the North West of England – mainly Liverpool Magistrates’
Court and Manchester Magistrates’ Court, with some partial cover in a few smaller
courts in Lancashire. Owing to the delivery environment at that time, however, it
was not possible to collect the data needed for the pilot.</p><p>In March 2021, Her
Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service introduced a bail information scheme in prisons
across England and Wales. Every public sector remand prison, apart from high-security
establishments, now has a bail information officer. This project was originally intended
to run for 12 months, but as the difficulties relating to the pandemic continued throughout
2021-22, the scheme has been extended to April 2023. This will enable data to be gathered
and evaluated, to inform decisions about the design and development of a potentially
permanent scheme in prisons in England and Wales (the scheme could also include magistrates’
courts).</p><p>We do not currently hold data on the number of people accessing the
Bail Information Service. However, the data we are collecting through the current
initiative is to provide us with the evidence we need in order to develop a longer-term
scheme.</p><p>The Bail Information Service project has been extended until April 2023.
A key aim of the project is to gather sufficient data and evidence to inform decisions
around the development of a future dedicated and pro-active Bail Information Service
in England and Wales. As the project develops, we are exploring how voluntary sector
involvement can support the operational delivery of the Bail Information Service,
and any findings will be analysed as part of the overall evaluation post April 2023.</p>
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