1.1 Introduction
This report has been prepared under section 43 (5) and section 13 of the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004.
The report provides an account of an audit of the policies and practices regarding internal appointments in the Irish Prison Service, including appointments made on an acting-up basis.
While the Prison Service was granted a Recruitment Licence by the Commission for Public Service Appointments in 2009 there was no external recruitment under licence in the period under audit. External appointments, when required, are conducted by the Public Appointments Service on behalf of the Prison Service. The Commission noted that the IPS conducted anumber of internal appointment processes over the last few years.
The Commission is committed to undertaking audits in a spirit of improvement and with the goal of sharing knowledge and best practice rather than focusing solely on compliance.
1.2 The Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004
Appointment processes to all positions within the remit of the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 are subject to Codes of Practice published by the Commission. The Codes set out the regulatory framework for such appointment processes and centre on five recruitment principles. Through its audit function, the Commission safeguards the standards established in the Codes of Practice and ensures compliance by the Office Holder with these standards for the recruitment of staff to positions within the organisation.
1.3 Irish Prison Service
The mission of the Irish prison Service is to provide safe and secure custody, dignity of care and rehabilitation to prisoners for safer communities. Our vision is for a safer communitythrough excellence in a prison service built on respect for human dignity.
Political responsibility for the prison system in Ireland is vested in the Minister for Justice and Equality. The Irish Prison Service operates as an executive agency within the Department of Justice and Equality. It is headed by a Director General supported by 5 Directors. The Irish Prison Service deals with male offenders who are 17 years or over and female offenders who are 18 years or over. The Irish Prison Service is administered centrally with its headquarters located in Longford Town.
There are currently 3,270 Prison based staff in the Irish Prison Service spread across 19 locations. Within this number there are over 40 different grades ranging from entry level grades such as Recruit Prison Officer and Prison Administrative and Support Officer (PASO) 3 up to Governor level.
1.4 Purpose of the Audit
The purpose of this audit is to confirm compliance by the Office Holder with the recruitment principles and to ensure that procedures in place for managing appointment processes aredesigned and operated in accordance with the Code of Practice. The audit focussed on reviewing internal competitions conducted during the last twelve months.
The audit entailed an examination of the competition file for each of the processes selected, together with meetings and discussions with key personnel in the Staff and Corporate Services Directorate in the Prison Service who have responsibility for the management of recruitment and selection in the organisation.
1.5 Details of Work Undertaken and Areas Reviewed
The audit reviewed the following internal appointment processes, conducted during the period covered by the audit, for appointment to positions as:
- Chief Officer II
- Governor Grade II
- Governor Grade III
- Incident Negotiator
Appointments made to higher duties on a temporary basis to address critical short-term needs were also reviewed as part of the audit.
1.6 Acknowledgements
The Commission would like to thank the personnel in the Staff and Corporate Services Directorate of the Irish Prison Service who gave their time and cooperation to this audit process.