Official Statistics

Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service workforce quarterly: December 2020

Published 18 February 2021

Applies to England and Wales

Main Points

50,185 full time equivalent (FTE) staff in post	This is a slight increase of 332 (0.7%) FTE staff in post since 31 December 2019 and a minimal increase of 148 (0.3%) since 30 September 2020. Of the staff in post, there were 33,741 in Public Sector Prisons (PSP), 9,533 staff in the National Probation Service (NPS), 5,399 FTE staff in HQ and Area Services, and 1,512 in the Youth Custody Service (YCS).
21,564 FTE band 3-5 prison officers in post	This is a decrease of 590 (2.7%) since 31 December 2019 and a slight decrease of 235 (1.1%) FTE prison officers compared to 30 September 2020.
4,900 FTE band 2 operational support staff in post	This corresponds to an increase of 234 (5.0%) since 31 December 2019 and a slight increase of 49 (1.0%) FTE operational support staff since 30 September 2020.
3,654 FTE band 4 probation officers in post	This figure is an increase of 161 (4.6%) since 31 December 2019 and an increase of 105 (3.0%) compared to 30 September 2020. In addition to the band 4 probation officers, there were 2,675 FTE band 3 probation services officers: an increase of 110 (4.3%) since 31 December 2019 and a decrease of 213 (7.4%) since 30 September 2020.
Leaving rate of 9.4% amongst band 3-5 prison officers	This is a decrease of 2.9 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020. The overall leaving rate across HMPPS over the past year stood at 8.4%, which is a decrease of 2.1 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020.

This publication provides details of staffing levels, staff inflows and outflows, sickness absence rates, and protected characteristics for the directly employed workforce of HMPPS. Information presented covers PSP, the NPS, the YCS, and HMPPS headquarters, which includes Area Services that provide direct operational support to prisons. Technical details and explanatory notes can be found in the accompanying Guide to HMPPS Workforce Statistics.

Statistician’s comment

COVID-19 had a considerable impact on HMPPS staff during 2020:

• The leaving rate for HMPPS staff decreased to 8.4%, compared to 10.5% for the year ending 31 March 2020, which was likely to be due to increased uncertainty in the employment market following the COVID-19 pandemic and a decrease in the number of resignations.

• COVID-19 was also likely to have had an impact on the latest non-COVID absence sickness figures, which showed a decrease to 8.2 days in 2020, from 10 days for the year to 31 March 2020. The annex published alongside this bulletin shows an increase in the numbers of HMPPS staff testing positive and absent due to COVID-19 in the last couple of months of 2020.

• In addition, figures in the Prison Officer and OSG recruitment diversity annex show a considerable decrease in the number of applications between April and September 2020 compared to previous years.

Points to note

Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service

On 1 April 2017, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) replaced the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), an agency of the Ministry of Justice. HMPPS is focussed on supporting operational delivery and the effective running of prison and probation services across the public and private sectors. HMPPS works with a number of partners to carry out the sentences given by the courts, either in custody or the community. This publication covers the reporting period up to 31 December 2020 and therefore considers in detail quarterly staffing levels and staff inflows and outflows, for both NOMS and HMPPS, since April 2014.

For ease, the statistics in this publication will be referred to as those of the HMPPS workforce (i.e. staff working in HMPPS and with a contract of employment with HMPPS, excluding those on career breaks and those on secondment or loan outside of HMPPS but including staff on secondment or loan into HMPPS). In April 2017, the Youth Custody Service (YCS) was launched and forms another distinct arm of HMPPS. In terms of how these particular staffing figures appear in the statistics, central YCS units are categorised within HQ and Area Services whilst the Youth Custody Estate element of this new YCS category is now included separately in the publication tables. This covers staffing figures relating to Cookham Wood, Feltham, Werrington, and Wetherby Youth Offending Institutions (YOIs) as well as Medway Secure Training Centre (STC), which closed on 31 March 2020. Historically these figures would have been included within the wider Public Sector Prisons (PSP) category. Historical and latest figures for the Youth Custody Estate have been separated out to allow comparisons to be made and to establish the trends over time for these YOIs and Medway STC.

Further information on the introduction of the YCS has been set out in the accompanying Guide to Workforce Statistics. Only staff in PSP, YCS, HMPPS HQ and Area Services, as well as the National Probation Service (NPS), are directly employed by HMPPS and therefore staffing in private sector establishments, community rehabilitation companies and other contractors are excluded.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Figures relating to effect of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on HMPPS staff are published alongside this edition of the bulletin as a separate annex. They are experimental statistics and include information about covid related testing, sickness and deaths of HMPPS staff. It should be noted sickness absence due to COVID is not included in the core publication AWDL estimates, this is because this data is currently under review and once complete will be included in future publication AWDL reporting.

Annex on Prison Officer recruitment diversity

As noted previously, the annex with experimental statistics on Prison Officer and OSG recruitment has been moved to a six-monthly production cycle, and has been produced this quarter. A review of this annex is currently in progress with the intention of publishing a revised annex in the future.

Annex on Probation Officer Vacancies and Trainees

As of the June 2019 publication, an experimental statistics annex has been added to this bulletin which presents figures on Probation Officers in post, their required staffing level, in addition to the number of trainee and qualified Probation Officers.

Reporting of figure differences

Full time equivalent figures are rounded to the nearest whole number, while percentages and working days lost are rounded to one decimal place. Due to this rounding, reported differences may appear not to match the apparent difference between the reported figures. For example, if a previous percentage was reported as 46.7% (rounded from 46.74%) and the new percentage 46.9% (rounded from 46.86%), then the difference reported would be 0.1 percentage points (rounded from 0.12).

Organisational Changes

• From 20 August 2018, HMPPS exercised its right to step in and take over the running of HMP Birmingham for an initial period of six months, while the existing G4S management remained in place. This was further extended in February 2019, until HMP Birmingham transferred back into HMPPS on 1 July 2019. HMP Birmingham is therefore included in the figures within this publication as of the July to September 2019 quarter.

• In November 2019, over 1,200 NPS FTE staff were moved into the Community and Interventions directorate (part of HMPPS HQ and Area Services). These changes are included in this bulletin as of the September to December 2019 quarter.

• During December 2019, 274 FTE NPS staff were transferred from the privately-run CRC in Wales to HMPPS, as the new establishment NPS Wales UM Transition. Their figures are included in this bulletin as of the September to December 2019 quarter.

• Medway Secure Training Centre closed on 31 March 2020.

• There were some changes to regional structure of NPS as from 1st April 2020.

Future Plans

For future publications we are considering ways in which we can improve the bulletin, and some of the issues we may look into are as follows:

• The frequency of the bulletin - for example, whether it is better suited as a bi-annual publication.
• How to make the tables and presentation of the figures more user-friendly.
• Whether to and how to expand the range of information provided.
• We are now actively reviewing the Experimental Recruitment Diversity annex to determine whether it is fit for purpose, and if not, how it might be changed, or even whether to cease its production.

If you have any particular comments or views on the above, or any other aspects you would like to be considered about this bulletin, please contact us at the address given at the end of the publication.

1. Total HMPPS staff in post

---

50,185 full time equivalent (FTE) staff in post (as at 31 December 2020)

This is a slight increase of 332 (0.7%) FTE staff in post since 31 December 2019 and a minimal increase of 148 (0.3%) since 30 September 2020. Of the staff in post, there were 33,741 in Public Sector Prisons (PSP), 9,533 staff in the National Probation Service (NPS), 5,399 FTE staff in HQ and Area Services, and 1,512 in the Youth Custody Service (YCS).

---

As at 31 December 2020, there were 50,185 staff in post in HMPPS on a full time equivalent (FTE) basis (Figure 1). This includes 33,741 FTE staff in PSP (making up 67.2% of all HMPPS staff), 9,533 in the NPS (19.0% of all HMPPS staff), 5,399 in HMPPS HQ and Area Services (10.8% of all HMPPS staff), and 1,512 in the YCS (3.0% of all HMPPS staff).

Compared to 31 December 2019, the overall FTE slightly increased by 332 (0.7%): FTE in PSP remained effectively the same, FTE in the NPS increased by 318 (3.5%), FTE in HQ and Area Services increased by 330 (6.5%), and FTE in the YCS decreased by 163 (9.7%). These changes are affected by the organisational changes described on page 2, such as the closure of Medway Secure Training Centre in March 2020

As at 31 December 2020, there were 27,443 FTE (54.7% of HMPPS staff) operational prison service staff (including YCS staff). This is a slight decrease of 319 FTE staff (1.1%) compared to 31 December 2019. Non-operational roles across PSP, YCS, and HMPPS HQ accounted for 11,988 FTE posts (23.9% of HMPPS staff), which is a slight increase of 164 FTE (1.4%) since 31 December 2019. In the NPS grades there were 10,753 FTE staff^{[footnote 1]} (21.4% of all HMPPS staff): an increase of 487 (4.7%) since 31 December 2019.

Figure 1: Number of HMPPS staff in post on a FTE basis, 31 March 2015 to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 1)

1.1. Length of Service

Length of service information has been calculated for HMPPS staff from the most recent hire date. Where staff have transferred in from another government department or have transferred in through HMPPS taking over a function, length of service is calculated from entry to HMPPS.

Across HMPPS overall, 29.9% of FTE staff in post had less than 3 years’ service, which was a decrease from 33.0% at 31 December 2019 and a slight decrease from 31.5% at 30 September 2020. Meanwhile, 36.8% of HMPPS FTE staff in post overall had 10 years or more of experience, representing a slight decrease from 38.6% at 31 December 2019 and no substantial change since 30 September 2020.

It should be noted, however, that the NPS was created on 1 June 2014 and the service of NPS staff in Probation Trusts prior to the creation of the NPS is not included. Therefore, the figures relating to the length of service of NPS staff, which are included in the HMPPS overall figures, do not necessarily represent their full experience but rather the length of service from entry to HMPPS.

Excluding the NPS, 30.6% of FTE staff in post across HMPPS had less than 3 years’ service as at 31 December 2020. This is a decrease of 3.7 percentage points compared to 31 December 2019. The non-NPS staff with 10 years’ experience or more made up 44.9% of the workforce, which is a 1.9 percentage points decrease compared to 31 December 2019.

2. Band 3-5 prison officers and band 2 operational support staff

---

21,564 FTE band 3-5 prison officers in post (as at 31 December 2020)

This is a decrease of 590 (2.7%) since 31 December 2019 and a slight decrease of 235 (1.1%) FTE prison officers compared to 30 September 2020.

4,900 FTE band 2 operational support staff in post (as at 31 December 2020)

This corresponds to an increase of 234 (5.0%) since 31 December 2019 and a slight increase of 49 (1.0%) FTE operational support staff since 30 September 2020.

---

The key operational grades in public sector prisons are the band 3 to 5 prison officers. They consist of band 3 prison officers, band 4 officer specialists, band 4 supervising officers, and band 5 custodial managers.

As at 31 December 2020, there were 21,564 FTE band 3 to 5 officers, which is a decrease of 590 (2.7%) compared to 31 December 2019 and and a slight decrease of 235 (1.1%) FTE prison officers since the previous quarter (Figure 2).

The number of band 2 operational support grade (OSG) FTE staff increased by 234 (5.0%) against the previous year and slightly increased by 49 (1.0%) compared to the previous quarter, to stand at 4,900 for 31 December 2020.

Figure 2: Number of band 3-5 prison officers in post on a FTE basis, 31 March 2015 to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 3)

The proportion of band 3-5 prison officers with less than 3 years’ service at 31 December 2020 fell to 34.6% compared to 41.3% as at 31 December 2019. The proportion of officers in post with 10 years or more of experience decreased by 2.3 percentage points from 44.2% at 31 December 2019 to 41.9% at 31 December 2020. This corresponds to 9,032 FTE staff with 10 years or more of experience at 31 December 2020, which is a fall of 764 FTE, or 7.8% since 31 December 2019.

The proportion of band 2 OSG FTE staff with less than 3 years’ service slightly increased from 36.1% at 31 December 2019 to 38.0% at 31 December 2020, and the proportion of those with 10 years or more of experience decreased from 45.6% at 31 December 2019 to 41.6% at 31 December 2020.

Figure 3 shows a quarterly trend of band 3 to 5 appointments and leavers since 2014/15. Over the year to 31 December 2020, 2,350 band 3 to 5 officers were appointed (consisting of direct new recruits and existing staff who converted to a band 3 officer grade), a decrease of 314 (11.8%) compared to 2,664 in the previous year. Looking at the quarterly figures, the headcount of new band 3 to 5 officer appointments increased by 105 (27.9%) from 377 between July and September 2020 to 482 between October and December 2020 (Table 17).

The headcount of band 3 to 5 prison officers who left HMPPS in the year ending 31 December 2020 was 2,164, which is a decrease of 722 (25.0%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019. Examining reasons for leaving, 61.7% of prison officers who left in the year ending 31 December 2020 resigned from their roles (down from 63.7% in the year ending 31 December 2019). Of the other prison officers who left HMPPS, 14.2% were dismissed and 10.2% retired in the year ending 31 December 2020: down from 15.2% and down from 7.9%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Figure 3: Newly appointed band 3 to 5 prison officers and band 3 to 5 prison officer leavers, April 2014 to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 17)

The number of band 2 OSG staff who joined HMPPS in the year ending 31 December 2020 was 904: an increase of 177 (24.3%) compared to the previous year ending 31 December 2019. There was an increase of 105 (13.1%) since the year ending 30 September 2020. The headcount number of band 2 OSG staff who left HMPPS was 580, which is a decrease of 41 (6.6%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019 and an increase of 16 (2.8%) compared to the year ending 30 September 2020.

Joiners and leavers are not the only movements into and out of the band 3 to 5 officer grouping. There are also typically differences in the proportion of new joiners and older officers who work part time as well as movements between grades. For these reasons, the change in FTE does not directly reflect the difference between the number of joiners and leavers. Changes such as staff switching from full time to part time have the effect of reducing the FTE of officers available as they progress through their career.

3. Probation practitioners and senior probation officers

---

3,654 FTE band 4 probation officers in post (as at 31 December 2020)

This figure is an increase of 161 (4.6%) since 31 December 2019 and an increase of 105 (3.0%) FTE probation officers compared to 30 September 2020. In addition to the band 4 probation officers, there were 2,675 FTE band 3 probation services officers: an increase of 110 (4.3%) since 31 December 2019 and a decrease of 213 (7.4%) since 30 September 2020.

---

Key grades in the NPS include band 3 probation services officers, band 4 probation officers (collectively known as probation practitioners), as well as band 5 senior probation officers. Staff who are training to be a probation officer work as a probation services officer during their training, so a proportion of the probation services officers in post will be working towards the professional probation officer qualification.

As of the June 2019 publication, an experimental statistics annex has been added to this bulletin which presents figures on Probation Officers in post, their required staffing level, in addition to the number of trainee and qualified Probation Officers.

As at 31 December 2020 there were 2,675 FTE band 3 probation services officers in post, an increase of 110 (4.3%) over the past year and a decrease of 213 (7.4%) over the quarter; 3,654 FTE band 4 probation officers, representing an increase of 161 (4.6%) over the past year and an increase of 105 (3.0%) compared to the previous quarter; and 839 FTE band 5 senior probation officers, showing an increase of 25 (3.1%) over the previous year and an increase of 20 (2.4%) since the last quarter (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Number of probation officers, probation services officers and senior probation officers in post on a FTE basis, 31 March 2015 to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 3)

In the past year, 625 probation services officers were appointed, some of whom will be training to become qualified probation officers. This is an increase of 230 (58.2%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019 and no substantial change compared to the number appointed in the year ending 30 September 2020. In the past year, 210 probation services officers left the service. This is a decrease of 25 (10.6%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019 and no substantial change compared to the number who left in the year ending 30 September 2020.

4. Joiners and Leavers

---

Leaving rate of 9.4% amongst band 3-5 prison officers (for the year ending 31 December 2020)

This is a decrease of 2.9 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020. The overall leaving rate across HMPPS over the past year stood at 8.4%, which is a decrease of 2.1 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020.

---

Over the past year, 5,088 staff joined HMPPS, which is a decrease of 295 (5.5%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019. 5,088 staff joined HMPPS, which is a decrease of 295 (5.5%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019. These joiners consisted of 3,594 across PSP, 110 in the YCS, 954 in the NPS, and 430 in HMPPS HQ and Area Services. Compared to the year ending 31 December 2019 these numbers of joiners represent a decrease of 8.9% for PSP, a decrease of 34.9% for YCS, a slight decrease of 1.6% for NPS, and an increase of 43.3% for HMPPS HQ and Area Services.

There were 4,528 leavers in the year ending 31 December 2020, a decrease of 1,128 (19.9%) compared to the year ending 31 December 2019. This includes 3,399 leavers from PSP (a decrease of 19.7%), 132 from YCS (a decrease of 38.3%), 648 from the NPS (a decrease of 28.0%), and 349 from HMPPS HQ and Area Services (an increase of 13.7%).

4.1. Leaving Rates^{[footnote 2]}

The overall HMPPS leaving rate for the year to 31 December 2020 was 8.4%, compared to 10.5% for the year to 31 March 2020 (Figure 5).The increased uncertainty in the employment market following the COVID-19 pandemic has most likely been one of the primary factors for the drop in the number of resignations during most of the year, thus impacting on the overall reduced leaving and resignation rates seen for 2020. Specifically for band 3 to 5 prison officers, the leaving rate of 9.4% in the year ending 31 December 2020 represented a decrease of 2.9 percentage points (Figure 5). Specifically for band 3 to 5 prison officers, the leaving rate of 9.4% in the year ending 31 December 2020 represented a decrease of 2.9 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020. The leaving rate for band 2 OSG staff was 11.4% in the year ending 31 December 2020, which is a slight decrease of 1.1 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020.

The leaving rate for staff at the NPS overall in the year ending 31 December 2020 was 6.4%, which is a slight decrease of 1.6 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020. In the operational grades within the NPS, the leaving rate was highest amongst probation services officers at 7.3%: a slight decrease of 1.3 percentage points from the year ending 31 March 2020. Leaving rates for probation officers and senior probation officers stood at 5.2% (a slight decrease of 1.0 percentage point) and 3.1% (a decrease of 2.2 percentage points), respectively, compared to the year to 31 March 2020.

Figure 5: Annual leaving rates of permanent staff in key operational grades (excluding VEDSR), from the 12 months to 31 March 2015 to the 12 months to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 11)

4.2. Resignation Rates^{[footnote 3]}

The overall HMPPS resignation rate for the year to 31 December 2020 was 4.9%, compared to 6.6% for the year to 31 March 2020 (Figure 6). Specifically for band 3-5 officers, the resignation rate was 5.9% in the year ending 31 December 2020, which is a decrease of 2.1 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020. The resignation rate for OSG staff was 6.9% for the year ending 31 December 2020, which is a slight decrease of 1.5 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020.

For NPS overall, the resignation rate was 3.5% for the year ending 31 December 2020. This represents a slight decrease of 1.5 percentage points compared to the year ending 31 March 2020. Amongst the operational grades within the NPS, probation services officers had the highest resignation rate at 4.7%, a slight decrease of 1.1 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020. Resignation rates for probation officers stood at 3.0% (a slight decrease of 1.2 percentage points since the year ending 31 March 2020).

Figure 6: Annual resignation rates of permanent staff in key operational grades, from the 12 months to 31 March 2015 to the 12 months to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 12)

5. Sickness absence

---

HMPPS staff lost an average of 8.2 working days to sickness absence in the year ending 31 December 2020

This represents a decrease of 1.8 average working days lost (AWDL) compared to the year ending 31 March 2020. However, it should be noted that days lost to COVID-19 related sickness are not included in these figures, and that COVID-19 would likely have had an impact on other sickness reasons.

---

These sickness figures do not contain any COVID-19 related absence data. Please see the annex with experimental statistics on COVID-19 and HMPPS staff, which has included information on sickness since June 2020 publication.

In the year ending 31 December 2020, HMPPS staff lost an average of 8.2 working days to sickness absence. This is a decrease from 10.0 average working days lost for the year ending 31 March 2020.

YCS staff had the highest sickness absence rate at 11.4 AWDL, followed by PSP (8.5 AWDL), NPS (8.3 AWDL), and HQ and Area Services (5.0 AWDL) (Figure 7). Compared to the year ending 31 March 2020, these represent a decrease of 3.2 days for YCS, a decrease of 1.5 days for PSP, a decrease of 2.9 days for NPS, and a decrease of 0.2 days for HQ and Area Services staff.

The rate for HMPPS overall has varied between 8.2 and 11.2 AWDL in the years since 2014/15.

Figure 7: Average working days lost to sickness absence, 12 months to 31 March 2015 to 12 months to 31 December 2020 (Source: Table 18)

The most common category of sickness absence in terms of days lost was mental and behavioural disorders, corresponding to 40.6% of absences in the past year. This category was most prevalent for probation officers, where 55.3% of working days lost were attributed to mental and behavioural disorders.

The category that accounted for the second largest proportion of working days lost was musculoskeletal system (21.7%). Together the top two categories accounted for 62.3% of all working days lost.

Further Information

Accompanying files

As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release:

• A technical guide providing details of the HMPPS workforce structure as well as how the data are collected and processed. Information on the revisions policy and disclosure relevant to HMPPS staffing data is also included.

• A set of summary tables for the latest quarter and year as well as over time.

• A supplementary annex presenting experimental statistics on Probation Officers in post, their required staffing level, and the number of trainee and qualified Probation Officers.

• A set of experimental statistics on the gender, ethnicity and disability status of recruitment campaign applicants for selected HMPPS Grades.

• A supplementary annex on the effect of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on HMPPS staff. They are experimental statistics and include information about covid related testing, sickness and deaths of HMPPS staff.

Official statistics

The statistics in this bulletin are classified as official statistics. The Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 defines ‘official statistics’ as all those statistical outputs produced by the UK Statistics Authority’s executive office (the Office for National Statistics), by central Government departments and agencies, by the devolved administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, and by other Crown bodies (over 200 bodies in total). The statistics in this bulletin comply with all aspects of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The Code encourages and supports producers of statistics to maintain their independence and to ensure adequate resourcing for statistical production. It helps producers and users of statistics by setting out the necessary principles and practices to produce statistics that are trustworthy, high quality and of public value.

Experimental Statistics

The statistics in the Probation Officer annex, the Recruitment annex and the annex on the effect of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on HMPPS staff are experimental statistics. Experimental statistics are a subset of newly developed or innovative official statistics undergoing evaluation. They are developed under the guidance of the Head of Profession for Statistics (HoP) and published to involve users and stakeholders in the assessment of their suitability and quality at an early stage. Therefore, we would like to receive feedback as to how useful they are, whether a different analysis would be preferable, or any other comments about them. If you wish to send any views you may have about these experimental statistics, please use the contact details below.

Contact

Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:
Tel: 020 3334 3536
Email: newsdesk@justice.gov.uk

Other enquiries about these statistics should be directed to:

Wincen Lowe
Data and Evidence as a Service
Ministry of Justice
10 South Colonnade
London
E14 4PH

Email: statistics.enquiries@justice.gov.uk

Next update: 20 May 2021
URL: www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-offender-management-service-workforce-statistics

© Crown copyright
Produced by the Ministry of Justice

Alternative formats are available on request from statistics.enquiries@justice.gov.uk

1. This includes staff in NPS grades working in other parts of HMPPS. ↩

2. Percentage of staff with a permanent contract of employment who left HMPPS, including individuals who have retired early, but excluding staff who left due to voluntary early departure schemes and redundancy (VEDSR). ↩

3. Percentage of staff with a permanent contract of employment who resigned from HMPPS. ↩