The situation in our prisons is improving in England and Wales, which reflects the improving situation in the wider community. The number of prison outbreaks of Covid-19 has decreased significantly over the last few weeks, as have staff absence rates and the number of open positive Covid cases among prisoners and staff. Where it is safe to do so, prisons have recently begun to ease some of the restrictions on what activity can take place, while maintaining underlying infection controls. The vaccine rollout is also progressing well, in line with the community rollout in the UK.

Yet another exciting virtual Technology in Corrections conference has passed. Have you missed the conference? It is still possible to watch recordings of 35 presentations with more than 70 speakers from around the world.

The webinar will focus on the purpose and actual and practical use of Framework Decision 909 on the imposition of custodial sentences and their enforcement in relation to prisoner transfers and probation. Issues with its proper use and how it interacts with the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) will also be examined. The Academy of Law (ERA) is organising this webinar in cooperation with EuroPris, the Judicial School of the General Council of the Judiciary (Barcelona) and the Confederation of European Probation (CEP) and it will take place on 7-9 July, in English and Spanish languages.

What kind of education should be given to detainees? What kind of training should be provided to professionals in Corrections? New training that offers to promote resilience and rehabilitation? Further and continued education using virtual reality and e-learning? During the 2-days event on 24-25 November, political and scientific representatives will be discussing ‘Education fosters Transformation’ and proposing a pathway from today to the future. The event will a hybrid, taking place online and at the Beaulieu Congress Centre in Lausanne. To actively participate in the forum, it is possible to submit proposals for a workshop/stand/poster in German or French language. The submission deadline is on 31 May.

This year's EPTA Annual Conference will be hosted by the Polish Academy of Justice on 20-22 September. For this year's event, the Academy of Justice is inviting EPTA members to submit a paper that would be published in a peer-reviewed book edition. At the conference, the book will be presented. To submit a paper on penitentiary staff training-related subjects, click on the link below.

The Council of Europe launched SPACE I report on the prison population for 2020. The report highlighted that the imprisonment rate in European prisons of Council of Europe area has been slightly falling. Another interesting finding, for the first time, information was collected on the number of children living with their mothers in penal institutions, a total of 1,608 children in 37 administrations provided this data.

For children, the experience of having a parent in conflict with the law can develop great uncertainty. This uncertainty can be intense during the pre-trial detention procedures because of their being moved around and with more restricted communication. Likewise, the COVID-19 and prison lockdowns have compounded these anxieties. This webinar is organised by Children of Prisoners (COPE) on 3 June.

John Scott from the Criminal Justice network interviews Phil Maguire, Chief Executive of the Prison Radio Association in the UK. Phil is a former BBC broadcaster and tells an excellent story about how the pandemic has affected life in prisons and the role of radio in reaching out to prisoners.