Progress in the Penal System (PIPS) 2025
1st October 2026
The 2025 PIPS Report provides an opportunity to reflect on progress and ongoing challenges across Ireland’s penal system. Assessing performance against 35 key standards, it highlights areas of advancement, identifies where improvement is urgently needed, and sets out evidence‑based recommendations for change.
Grounded in principles of human rights, equality, dignity, transparency, and accountability, the PIPS framework supports Ireland in meeting its international human rights obligations and ensuring that the rights of people in the penal system are respected and protected.
This year's PIPS report shines a spotlight on mental healthcare in Irish prisons. It looks at how people with serious mental illness are held in prison due to lack of pathways to psychiatric care, and how people in prison with mental health issues cannot access necessary care, all of which is exacerbated by current overcrowding levels.
