Prison

Prison

Tuesday 14 October 2014

A Failure to Communicate...

Call it a happy – or unhappy – coincidence, but when I posted my previous thoughts and reflections on prison governors, I wasn’t aware that their professional body, the Prison Governors Association (PGA), was about to hold its 27th annual conference in Buxton. The event kicked off yesterday, however, it is clear from the comments emerging on social media that the situation in our prisons is very grim, confirming much of my own analysis.

Prison governors: "prisons in crisis"
This open criticism of the present state of affairs will not go down well in the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) or with the increasingly embattled Secretary of State for Justice, Chris Grayling, for whom each new day seems to bring tidings of fresh disasters within the prison system. However, I think we can all be confident that ‘Comical Ali’ Chris will remain in his blissful state of denial about the crisis, even if one nick or another is finally engulfed in the flames of violent riot, with the risk of loss of life and limb.

I think that it is well worth reviewing a few of the highlights of the PGA conference so far. According to the PGA’s official Twitter summary of the opening speech made by PGA President Eoin McLennan-Murray, “Governors are worn down and tired - days not long enough to achieve what we want.” He went on to highlight the negative impact that this is having on staff morale.

Mr McLennan-Murray criticised some governors for being “satisfied with average inspection outcomes” following HM Inspectorate of Prisons reports. He went on to tell PGA members that the Prison Service is “chronically short of staff” – something that everyone in the prison system, as well as every reader of this blog, will be only too aware. 

NOMS: fit for purpose?
He observed that the service had “let too many staff leave” – a pointed comment no doubt directed at the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) – and that this has now led to the bizarre situation that “staff from [the] North [are] working in [the] South at a cost of £500 per week”.

He then went on highlight the “risks to decency”, pointing to “higher assaults… a large increase in serious incidents [and a] significant rise in self inflicted deaths.” Even more ominously, Mr McLennan-Murray warned that “prisons are moving to a state of instability” and posed the very relevant question: “How can a system in this state effectively reduce reoffending?” It’s a very good question and one which such concern us all.

According to the PGA President, “Prisons are struggling to deliver safe and effective regimes. This risks legitimacy, increases levels of ‘pain’”. He added that the PGA has been “criticised for referring to the current position in prisons as a ‘perfect storm’ when it is clear prisons are in crisis.”

Captain: "a failure to communicate"
If I may quote from the 1967 cult prison movie – Cool Hand Luke – it seems that “what we’ve got here is failure to communicate”, ironically words spoken by the Captain (warden) of the prison in which young con Luke (Paul Newman) finds himself serving his sentence. It seems that the President of the PGA should be addressing these famous words to Mr Grayling and to Mike Spurr, his faithful sidekick at the top of NOMS. 

This is not the first time Mr McLennan-Murray has directed pointed words at ideologically-motivated policies handed down by ‘Crisis’ Chris, particularly the highly controversial revision of the Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) system that was introduced on 1 November 2013 in Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 30/2013. This imposed a ban on prisoners receiving parcels, including books and clean clothing, from their families and friends, as well as forcing many more cons onto the highly punitive Basic regime – effective solitary confinement with no privileges, including no rented TV set or personal belongings.

At that time, Mr McLennan-Murray raised the important issue of running prisons with a degree of consent: “In order to run a safe, decent prison it is vital to have the co-operation of the majority of prisoners," he observed, adding that “this relationship is underpinned by staff having legitimacy in the eyes of prisoners and this is dependent on trust and transparency in decision making. Some of the recent changes to the IEP system have undermined this trust and threaten the legitimacy of decisions made by staff.”

'Crisis' Chris: not listening - as usual
He also warned that “if this is allowed to continue unchecked then a tipping point may be reached whereby prisons are more likely to become unstable than stable. We are already seeing the early signs of this with rising levels of assaults, reportable incidents and a disturbing rise in self inflicted deaths.” Similar concerns have recently been raised by both HM Inspectorate of Prisons and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. 

I’d say that this stark analysis of the serious crisis in our prisons couldn’t really make the situation any clearer, if only Mr Grayling and his minions would be prepared to listen to the voice of reason – and experience. Unfortunately, it seems that he really isn’t willing to take on board what his own senior prison managers are telling him. At least he won’t be able to claim that no-one told him when the proverbial eventually hits the fan, because just about everybody did.

17 comments:

  1. Maria Miller to replace Chris Grayling as Justice Secretary

    English Bastards

    Dr Suusi Watson 05/04/2014 10:04 UK
    -In the wake of the Parliamentary expenses scandal, the Prime Minister David Cameron has decided to promote Maria Miller to be the next Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice. Cameron said that he was so impressed with her transparent honesty and sense of fair play when dealing with the scandalous allegations of fraudulently claiming parliamentary expenses on her parents house. That he felt that she would be the ideal person to become the new Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice in the upcoming reshuffle. She will also be revising the role of the parliamentary standards commissioner. He went on the Lord Chancellor needs to be someone who shows some real steel. Maria's previous appointments have shown that she has this quality. As Minister for the disabled she closed Remploy and at the same time refused to meet anyone who was actually disabled. "I do not blame her in the slightest", He said. "Why would anyone want to concern themselves with that bunch of freeloading flids." "I have no doubt that in Justice she will be able to put all her skills into the dismantling of the legal system. She cannot do a worse job than that wimp Chr Grayling. Who seems to have gone native on me."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The letter about Chris is a parody "joke" btw before anyone gets too excited! I found It on a site called "Bastards"

      Delete
    2. *"The Bastard"

      Delete
    3. Thanks for sharing... I think we all got excited for about 10 seconds! Sadly, the Lord High Executioner of Rehabilitation is still firmly in post.

      Delete
  2. Over the last few months there has been a massive recruitment drive for new Prison Officers & whilst experienced officers would be better at least it's hopefully a step in the right direction.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment. While that is true, my understanding is that lots of the posts are yet to be filled and staff are still being brought in from other establishments - a point made earlier today at the PGA conference.

      Sometimes very inexperienced screws can actually be a worse liability than straight-forward staff shortages. I've seen real problems caused by clueless OSGs.

      Delete
    2. Unfortunately experienced staff only get that way by starting as inexperienced staff!

      Delete
    3. Thanks for your comment. That's absolutely true, of course. However, the key issue is that they learn best practice from more experienced colleagues. Unless that balance is right, new staff straight from training can be vulnerable, as well as liabilities for the establishment.

      Delete
  3. Ah mr grayling is going . But the damage is done cons need solidarity and to kick off for fucks sake. They run yhe jail not the screws. As screws are out numbered theynneed to kik off and get some basic rites. Vas ps am angry at this prick grayling

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sadly not! He's still in post... it was a piece of satire (see the new comments above)! Sorry that everyone got excited!

      Delete
  4. It is no good recruiting staff quickly to fill the void that the powers that be have created. One of the main problems along with there being a staff shortage is the poor training and selection process. I was shocked to find out how little training these people actually have before walking the landings, after all they are dealing with human beings whose problems that have led them to break the law can be very complex which can be compounded by incarceration and also brought on by it. Employing staffs who think it is their job to meter out added punishments of their choosing has been acceptable for far too long, it goes unreported and when it is it is ignored. I also think that po’s should have psychological assessments during the selection process and these assessment should be ongoing throughout their careers as many will have to deal with some very disturbing incidents which may affect their mental health and ability to do their job. Real training and better selection would help cut down on the number of rogue staff although I imagine the fact there are so many rogue staff will be strenuously denied.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your contribution to the discussion. I agree that simply recruiting anyone off the street as POs is never a great idea. All large organisations are essentially 'organic' in that they are in a state of constant replacement of staff as employees leave or retire. However, the health of any institution depends on having sufficient 'institutional memory' and experience to ensure continuity of management and practice.

      When a large number of new and inexperienced staff suddenly appear on the wing landings, it can be a recipe for disaster and conflict. This is a regular criticism made of the new private sector prisons because they have many inexperienced people who are out of their depth. This leads to bullying of staff, as well as serious risks to the security of the establishment and the safety of prisoners and staff alike.

      I would definitely agree with the need to assess candidates much more thoroughly, including psychological tests. It has always been said that no-one with sadistic tendencies should ever be employed in a prison - for obvious reasons. Lord Acton was right: "Power tends to corrupt".

      Funnily enough, I have heard a lot of criticism of 'rogue staff' from serving screws, as well as ex-staff members. If you read Ronnie Thompson's book about prisons 'Screwed' he is highly critical of lazy, sadistic, dishonest or bent screws. There is a general view that such people are security risks and expose everyone in a nick - cons and screws alike - to unnecessary problems.

      Delete
    2. As someone who's just gone through the selections process I have to take exception at the belief that people are employed "off the streets".

      Yes, the online maths & English tests are simple, definitely below O'Level standards (I can't speak to GCSE's as I'm too old!) but the role playing scenarios that candidates undertake on an assessment day are psychological in nature and are designed to show if a candidate has the right tempement, social skills, intelligence and common sense to become a good officer.

      Around 50% of the people attending failed one or another aspect of the scenarios and therefore failed to receive further training.

      I'm not going to discuss the length of the further training or other aspects for the simple reason that it comes down to the individual.

      I've got a degree and have worked in the private sector (banking & real estate) for over 20 years with various professional qualifications, and yet I honestly can't say if I'll be a better officer than a 23 year old ex-servicemen or a 30 year old mother of two; all I can say is that I'll be the best I can be, I'll try to use my life experiences to be a fair & just 'screw' and seek to improve my ability to do so by whichever means are available to me.

      Before you judge or criticise, consider what are legitimate alternatives and how they'd work in practice.

      Finally, I think that the ability to consider things from someone else's point of view (walk a mile in their shoes) is invaluable in life; how many prisoners do that when dealing with officers?

      Delete
    3. Thanks for your contribution to the discussion. I'm really pleased to have your input here, because we need to share different perspectives.

      Clearly, your professional and educational background are very different from most 'rank and file' wing officers, although more uniformed staff do have degrees, especially if they have ambitions to reach managerial grades.

      In fact, I think you've really hit the nail on the head. Being an effective screw is all about using life experience to manage people. Prisoners are more difficult to manage than workers outside, mainly because they often have very complex problems - psychological issues, addictions, history of abuse as kids, inability to trust or make healthy relationship - the list goes on. That's where having substantial life experience can be a massive advantage.

      In my experience, often the most effective wing screws are ex-armed services because they are very experienced in motivating cons and handling tense situations with a bit of humour. They also earn respect and trust, rather than just expecting it because of the uniform.

      During my time in prison I got to know a lot of screws, as well as governors. Because of my role as a peer mentor I had a lot of privileged access (as you can probably tell from my blog) and we did discuss all kinds of things that wouldn't be usual - for example, prison policies. I was even included in official NOMS consultations on issues like ROTL, equality, safer custody etc, so I have a broader view of the work POs do than maybe I would have had otherwise.

      Funnily enough, I've spoken to several screws who've admitted that had their lives gone in another direction, they could have ended up on the wrong side of the door. In fact, one of my personal officers - a very good bloke - had to deal with his own son being sent down for 13 years for armed robbery. Heart-breaking for him and a lot of cons really felt for him, so it does work both ways!

      Delete
    4. Interesting comments from HMPS new employee but come on, psychological tests designed to weed out unsuitable people as officers? I simply do not believe it given the sheer number of emotionally unstable deluded bullies posing as prison officers I came across in the prison service. These dangerous people didn't get weeded out by what this new HMPS employee claims are the necessary training to do just that. At Bronzefield we had officers running the seg who used to sexually abuse the women down there as well as officers on landings on the night shift on a regular bais; at ESP we had a bunch of lifers running drugs in and out of the place with the collusion of staff, at Downview drunk governors, crooked OS's, officers and SO's bringing in drugs and mobile phone to sell to inmates not to mention wholesale sexual abuse by governors and officers of prisoners and this doesn't even start to look at the sheer number of officers who became officers so that they were able to exercise power and abuse that power over other people to make themselves feel better about their own shit.

      Delete
  5. If Dutch and Belgian Prisons are renting out cells to other countries, maybe the redundant qualified prison staff can come and work over here.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment. To be honest, I doubt whether prison staff from these countries would be willing to work in the conditions on offer here in the UK - of for the lousy salaries. I think they'd be better off finding jobs in Scandinavia - they really know how to run proper prisons!

      Delete