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Prisons: Cleaning Services

Volume 490: debated on Monday 23 March 2009

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost of centrally-managed prison laundry services was in 2007-08. (264668)

While operating within an overall strategic and policy framework laundries within the public Prison Service are not managed centrally, running costs having been devolved to establishment level some years ago. As a result, relatively little information about operating costs is held centrally. To collect this information from each establishment would attract disproportionate cost.

In 2007-08, Prison Industries Headquarters allocated funding to establishments for industrial laundry materials and maintenance to the value of £783,500. A further £376,000 was allocated for capital plant replacement.

In 2007-08 there were 43 industrial laundries together with a significant number of local launderettes.