On average, women make up around 3.8% of the prison population, with a large number of committals concerning non-violent offences. Additionally, the majority are detained on short-term sentences. However, the impact of even short-term imprisonment on these women and their families is profound. The economic and social costs to society at large arising from the imprisonment of women are also significant.
In 2021, there were 487 women committed to prison, compared to 155 in 1999. The rate of female prison committals has risen more rapidly than for males since 2011. In addition, there continues to be significant numbers of women imprisoned for failing to pay court-ordered fines, despite the Fines (Payment and Recovery Act) 2014 which came into operation in January 2016. In 2021, 8% of female committals to prison were for non-payment of court-ordered fines – double the comparable figure for men (4%).
Major concerns remain in relation to overcrowding in both of the country’s female prisons – the Dóchas Centre and a female wing in Limerick Prison. The detention of women for immigration-related reasons is also a concern for IPRT. IPRT remains committed to working towards major policy change in relation to imprisonment of women in Ireland, with a central focus on the provision of alternatives to detention and open prison provision for women.
17th March 2017
Discussion paper by Dr. Thomas Guiney and Jenny Earle that provides solutions, and examples of positive initiatives being delivered by police forces to tackle low level, non-violent crime committed by women, in the UK.
14th February 2017
ADVISORY: IPRT has raised Ireland's unequal treatment of women within the criminal justice system with U.N. CEDAW.
13th February 2017
IPRT made a submission in advance of the examination of Ireland’s combined sixth and seventh periodic reports under CEDAW in January 2017.
20th January 2017
'Women in Prison' is the first thematic report published by the Norwegian Parliamentary Ombudsman under its UN mandate as the national preventive mechanism against torture and ill-treatment.
28th September 2016
A report published by the Prison Reform Trust and Women in Prison states that upon release six out of ten women do not have homes to go to.
8th April 2016
A new research report by the Restorative Justice Council makes a series of recommendations for both practitioners and policy-makers on how to improve access to, and the experience of, restorative justice for females who have offended.
21st March 2016
On Wed 16th March, CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) published its 'List of Issues' for the Irish Government prior to the submission of the combined sixth and seventh periodic reports of Ireland.
26th February 2016
Prisons are failing to meet the distinct needs of young adult women (aged 18-24) and they should be treated differently to older women in custody, according to new research published by the Transition to Adulthood Alliance (T2A).
14th July 2015
The All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) with support from The Howard League for Penal Reform has produced a report on the inquiry into preventing unnecessary criminalisation of women.
23rd June 2015
Following the setting aside of earlier plans to create a large prison to house female offenders, Scotland has now announced plans to develop a community-based approach to custody for female offenders, as well as increased use of alternatives to custody.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.