Prison Staff Survey

Closing Date: Midnight on May 29th 2026

Office of the Inspector of Prisons

The Office of the Inspector of Prisons is a statutory body, independent in how it carries out its work, set up under the Prisons Act 2007.

Our Mission is:

Supporting excellence in both delivery and outcomes in Ireland’s prisons through an independent programme of inspections and investigations

Our Values reflected in what we do and how we do it are:

Independent & Impartial – We are fair and reasonable in how we conduct our work, using evidence to arrive at our conclusions.
Human rights focused – We have a focus on Human Rights at the core of our work. This Human Rights focus applies to prisoners, visitors, staff and others who come into contact with us.
Transparent and collaborative – We publish our approach to Inspections and Investigations. The objective is to work in dialogue with the Irish Prison Service to drive both compliance and good practice, leading to better outcomes.
Capable and systematic – We are professional and structured in both our approach (e.g. gathering evidence) and the articulation of our findings, conclusions and recommendations.

Latest Publications and News

Prisons Watchdog Lauds Conditions at Loughan House Open Centre

The Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) has recently completed an unannounced general inspection of Loughan House Open Centre. The inspection took place between 11 and 22 May 2026. All but one of Ireland’s prisons have now received unannounced [...]

May 28th, 2026|

Statement by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons on the publication of three death in custody reports

Over the last three days (20, 21 and 22 May 2026), the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration has authorised the publication of three reports of the Chief Inspector of Prisons, on the deaths in custody of Mr [...]

May 22nd, 2026|