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PRISONS AND PROBATION OMBUDSMAN
Why do women complain less than men? Illustration: UP STUDIO The Prisons & Probation Ombudsman (PPO) are trying to understand why women in prison file less complaints than men. Assistant Ombudsman Mike tells us more about what they are doing to try and encourage women to come forward.
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lthough women make up 4% of the prison population, only 1% of the complaints that come to the PPO are from women. In prison, men tend to be more vocal when it comes to making complaints, but we are keen to ensure women also feel confident to ask us to investigate a complaint on their behalf. We will take your complaint seriously and investigate it fully if it is within our remit. We can’t promise to uphold your complaint, or
give you the outcome you want, but we will always explain the reasons for our decisions. The PPO are an independent investigative service and do not take sides. We work closely with prison staff and managers to try and resolve complaints at the earliest opportunity and to ensure mistakes are not repeated. As a senior investigating manager, when I investigate individual complaints I look for patterns across complaints to see what
‘The only people who can say why women in prison don’t complain are the women who are in prison. For this reason, my team and I will be visiting as many women’s prisons as we can.’
