News Release, 29 June 2006
Moira Fraser, Head of Policy at the Mental Health Foundation today said:
“Sadly, the findings from the inquiry into the murder of Zahid Mubarek by Robert Stewart come as no surprise. His death was entirely preventable.
"The Mental Health Foundation endorses the inquiry’s findings on mental health care in prisons. A significant number of young men who are sent to prison have a mental health problem or personality disorder. But overcrowding and a shortage of staff skilled in dealing with mental health problems means that prisoners aren’t getting the professional care they need, and NHS services are often reluctant to provide in-patient beds for those who need them. Mental health care facilities and expertise must be made available to prisoners if we want to minimise the chances of this kind of incident happening again.”
Figures taken from the Office of National Statistics, 1997:
- Among those who had a clinical interview, the prevalence of any personality disorder was 84% for male remand and 88% for male sentenced young offenders.
- Antisocial personality disorder had the highest prevalence of any category of personality disorder.
- Among the sub-sample who had a clinical interview, 76% of male remand and 81% of male sentenced young offenders were assessed as having antisocial personality disorder.
- Paranoid personality disorder was the second most prevalent personality disorder, being found in 26% of male remand young offenders and 22% of their sentenced counterparts.
- The prevalence rates for any functional psychosis in the past year based on the clinical interview data were 10% for male sentenced and 8% for male remand young offenders.
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Notes to editors
For further information and interview requests contact please contact the press office on 020 7803 1105 / 1128 or email the press office
The Mental Health Foundation is the leading UK charity working to improve services for both people with mental health problems and people with learning disabilities. It is the only charity to fund and work with both service users and providers and plays an important role in funding research and new approaches to prevention, treatment and care. The Foundation’s work includes allocating grants for research and community projects; contributing to the public debate; educating policy makers and healthcare professionals and striving to reduce the stigma attached to mental illness.
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