page titles
In DPS, you must follow the DPS guidelines for formatting page titles (MoJ staff only).
Person Escort Record (PER)
Write out Person Escort Record (PER) at the first usage and use PER thereafter.
PERs are a document which must be completed for all people in custody prior to any escorted movement outside prison (for example to or from court or a transfer to another prison).
person on probation, people on probation
Read guidance on how to talk about people in the justice system (MoJ staff only).
The page title is the text displayed in the browser tab. It is not the page heading or H1. Titles should describe the purpose and content of the page.
The title can be the same as the H1 unless the H1 includes personal information such as names. Do not include personal information in the title because it may be included in analytics data and cause data protection issues.
You can either write the title content or work with a developer to see if it can be taken from the H1 but without any personal information.
Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP)
Use PEEP. This is more well known than the full version.
Personal Identification Number (PIN)
Use PIN. This is more well known than the full version.
Prisoners use their secure PIN to call people on their approved contacts list from their in-cell PIN phones.
It is often written as pin or Pin in prisons, but PIN is the correct format.
preferred name
Always use ‘preferred name’, not ‘working name’ as it’s called in NOMIS.
PNC number
An identity number assigned to a person in the Police National Computer (PNC). Use ‘PNC number’. This is more well known than the full version.
pre-sentence report (PSR)
Write out pre-sentence report (PSR) on first mention and use PSR or ‘the report’ thereafter.
PSRs are reports that a court uses to help decide on a defendant’s sentence. They consider a defendant’s offending behaviour, the risk they pose and to whom. A PSR will provide an independent recommendation of the sentencing options available to the court.
prison, establishment
‘Prison’ and ‘establishment’ are both acceptable terms. Which one you should use depends on the context and audience.
‘Prison’ refers only to adult prisons. It’s more likely to be understood by the public than ‘establishment’. Users with English as a second language may also find it easier to understand.
Individual prison names can be used for clarity, for example ‘HMP Wayland’.
‘Establishment’ is used to collectively describe a mixture of prisons, young offender institutions (YOIs), dual-designated prisons and YOIs, and Secure Training Centres (STCs). ‘Prison’ is inappropriate when describing settings accommodating children and young adults.
‘Establishment’ is widely used in NOMIS and DPS, with no reported issues.
‘Location’ may refer to places within the prison, for example, the gym.
‘Site’ is sometimes used instead of prison or establishment, or to refer to where someone on probation is located. It might be used to describe places with several prisons or buildings.
prison number
Always use ‘prison number’ when referring to the unique number given to someone when they arrive at prison. This term is widely used and understood by staff in prisons. It may need explaining in content or services for the public.
Do not use ‘prison no’, ‘prisoner number’, ‘NOMIS number’, ‘NOMS number’ or ‘offender number’.
Staff in prisons may still use ‘NOMIS number’ or ‘alpha number’ when referring to someone’s prison number.
prisoner, person in prison
Read guidance on how to talk about people in the justice system (MoJ staff only).
prisoner record
Always use ‘prisoner record’ when referring to the data stored about a person in prison. A prisoner record is linked to a prison number and can contain information from multiple bookings.
Do not use ‘prison record’, ‘NOMIS record’, ‘NOMS record’ or ‘offender record’.
More research is needed to ensure that this is the best way to describe information the organisation has about someone in prison.
Probation Delivery Unit (PDU)
Use upper case and the initialism on first mention. Research is needed to establish if users will understand PDU without it being spelt out.
probation practitioner
This is better than ‘community offender manager (COM)’ and ‘prison offender manager (POM)’, although someone may have this job title. Refers to a probation officer, probation services officer or senior probation officer.