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<p> </p><p> </p><p><em>We have not made any policy changes specifically about the
availability of books in prisons.</em></p><p> </p><p>We have always recognised the
importance of reading and literature in the rehabilitative process, and the positive
effects these have on prisoners' welfare. <em>Every prison has a library, to which
every prisoner has access. Prisoners may hold up to 12 books in their cell at any
one time, and additional books can be stored locally at the prison. </em>The National
Offender Management Service also works closely with the Shannon Trust to support schemes
such as 'Toe by Toe', which includes peer mentoring to improve reading levels.</p><p>
</p><p>There have always been controls on the sending of parcels into prisons, and
allowing parcels to be sent in unrestricted would be operationally unmanageable and
would lead to a significant risk of drugs and other illicit items being smuggled into
prisons.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
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