Northern Ireland has its own separate prison and justice system too, distinct from both England & Wales and Scotland. If someone you love is in a Northern Ireland prison, here’s a plain-English run-through of who’s who.
Prisons. Prisons in Northern Ireland are run by the Northern Ireland Prison Service (NIPS), part of the Department of Justice.
Probation. Supervision in the community is provided by the Probation Board for Northern Ireland (PBNI), a separate organisation from the Probation Service in England & Wales.
Parole and complaints. Parole decisions are made by the Parole Commissioners for Northern Ireland. If something’s wrong, complaints about how someone is treated in custody can be raised with the Prisoner Ombudsman for Northern Ireland.
Inspections. Prisons are inspected by Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJINI), often working alongside HM Inspectorate of Prisons.
That’s a lot of names to take in – you don’t need to remember them all. We’re steadily building up fuller Northern Ireland-specific guides below, and in the meantime, most of the everyday, practical advice elsewhere on DoingTime – about visiting, staying in touch, and supporting someone through their sentence – still holds true, even where the organisations involved have different names.
Northern Ireland guides:
- Northern Ireland’s Prisons – Maghaberry, Magilligan and Hydebank Wood, plus an interactive map
- Courts and Legal Aid – how the court system and legal aid work
- Sentencing, Release and Parole
- Probation (PBNI)
- Visits and Keeping in Touch
- Complaints and the Prisoner Ombudsman
- Finding Someone in a Northern Ireland Prison
- Victims of Crime
- Employment on Release