| |
Back to Main Page |
|
|
|
The powers of Home Office officials charged with ensuring the "fair and lawful treatment of prisoners" inside Britain's private jails are to be handed over to the private companies to boost their competitiveness.
Leaked Home Office internal correspondence seen by the Guardian discloses that the responsibility of these officials -known as controllers - for internal prison discipline is also to be transferred to the director or governor of each private prison.
Guardian
8:26:28 AM 
|
|
When the history of audacious jail breaks is written, Audie Carr and Benjamin Clarke will command a page of their own.
While other inmates dream of freedom, they are the first known convicts to abscond in search of a stricter regime.
Guardian
8:26:03 AM
|
|
Babies in prison mother-and-baby units are being taken from their mothers well before the age of one year as a matter of policy, without any research to back it up.
The Prison Service policy of separating "sooner rather than later" has come under the spotlight through a court battle by a reformed drug addict to keep her daughter with her for as long as possible.
Claire Frost, whose story is told on BBC2 tonight, launched her legal battle when the authorities decided to send her baby, Lia-Jade, away at nine months to be cared for by Ms Frost's parents. Several other women have taken similar cases to court, but their identities have been protected.
Guardian
9:34:38 AM
|
|
Prison officers set inmates from different social backgrounds against one another in an effort to maintain control of overcrowded jails, penal reform campaigners claimed today.
Inmates from different ethnic or religious backgrounds, or even supporters of rival football clubs, are placed together in cells to "divide and rule" the prison population, said Frances Crook, director of the Howard League for Penal Reform.
Guardian
9:34:02 AM
|
|
An unprecedented number of female prisoners have killed themselves over the last two months, prompting fears of a suicide "epidemic" in women's jails.
New Prison Service figures reveal that a total of six female inmates have taken their lives since 1 April. That compares to a total of 14 prisoners who killed themselves throughout the whole of last year - itself a record for women suicides in jails.
Independent
9:32:47 AM
|
|
 |
Friday, May 28, 2004 |
An inspection of Cornton Vale, Stirling, Scotland's only all-female jail, has shown the number of inmates is significantly higher than it was two years ago - despite pledges by Scottish ministers to try to cut the figure.
Herald
8:20:46 AM
|
|
Detectives are investigating claims that prison officers at a young offenders' institute organised bets on fights between black and white inmates, it emerged last night.
Officers at Feltham young offenders' institute in west London are said to have put white youths and black youths in the same cells and bet on how long it would be before they attacked each other.
Guardian
8:19:46 AM
|
|
Pauline Campbell, a former civil servant and college lecturer, was arrested outside Holloway prison yesterday while protesting about what she said was the inhuman treatment of women inmates.
She has been a vociferous critic of the prison system since the death of her 18-year-old daughter, Sarah, at Styal prison in 2003. Sarah, an only child, was the third of six women to die at the Cheshire jail in a 12-month period.
Guardian
8:19:14 AM
|
|
Britain's last remaining high security prison unit for women is to close, the Prison Service has announced.
The news comes on the day a heavily critical report by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Anne Owers, on the "She Wing" of Durham Prison was released.
She said the jail - where six female inmates have committed suicide in 18 months - was "oppressive" and an "unsuitable environment to hold women".
BBC
7:59:44 PM
|
|
Leaving prison and starting afresh should be a simple matter of deciding to put the past behind you and staying out of trouble.
But for many prisoners, particularly the young, things are not that easy, and huge numbers end up re-offending.
As many as eight out of 10 under-18s will return to crime within two years of leaving custody, as will three quarters of 15 to 21-year-olds, says crime reduction charity Nacro.
BBC
7:58:26 PM
|
|
There are calls for more support for foreign prisoners at Morton Hall jail near Lincoln.
Two thirds of the women inmates are foreign nationals, many of whom are serving time for smuggling drugs.
In a report, the Prison Reform Trust says although the jail has taken positive steps to address the needs of the inmates, it needs to do more.
BBC
7:58:03 PM
|
|
The Guardian has formed a coaching partnership with Pentonville Prison to help improve the running of the institution and help develop the range of services to inmates.
Guardian
7:52:02 PM
|
|
A public inquiry into the murder of an Asian teenage prisoner by his racist cellmate begins on Tuesday.
Zahid Mubarek, 19, was beaten to death at Feltham Young Offenders Institution in West London in March 2000.
BBC
8:37:40 AM
|
|
The Prison Service has admitted that its investigation into the death of an 18-year-old inmate and the subsequent inquest did not comply with the European convention on human rights.
The admission, which followed a two-year battle for justice by the teenager's mother, is believed to be the first such case in this country since the Human Rights Act became law in October 2000.
Colin Williamson was found hanging in his cell at Portland young offenders' institution in Dorset on June 3 2001, less than a week after being taken off the prison's suicide risk regime.
Guardian
8:36:46 AM
|
|
Alan Smith on what WB Yeats means to students in his prison literature class
8:36:10 AM
|
|
The Prison Service is to take over responsibility for prisoners inside Northern Ireland's largest courts complex from the police.
Prisoner Custody Officers supplied by the private sector firm Maybin Support Services will replace PSNI officers at the Laganside Courts complex in Belfast from Monday.
BBC
8:35:45 AM
|
|
Professor David Wilson, one of the world's leading authorities on prisons, described the programme with its outrageous plot lines as the most accurate fictional lock-up.
He even claims that the show, which has over 10million viewers, has helped with penal reform.
Sunday Mail
9:44:10 AM
|
|
More than 400 foreign nationals are being held well beyond the end of their sentences in prisons in England and Wales, penal reformers have revealed.
The prisoners are languishing in custody because their cases have been lost in the system or they face other delays in their deportation.
Guardian
9:06:35 AM
|
|
Millions of pounds have been spent by the Home Office on [base "]thinking skills[per thou] courses for offenders who are unable to understand them.
The programmes are too demanding for many offenders with reading and writing skills below that of an 11-year-old child, according to research published yesterday .
Times
9:06:07 AM
|
|
If you want to write a new chapter in your life, there is a job going at Cardiff prison that will not need the hard cell.
The Writers in Prison Network (WIPN) is looking for someone to go behind bars. The task is to develop the skills of the inmates, by putting on plays, starting a reading group or running a magazine.
BBC
9:02:06 AM
|
|
© Copyright 2004 Nick Page.
|
|
|
|
Updated: 3/6/04; 8:27:46 am.
| June 2004 |
| Sun |
Mon |
Tue |
Wed |
Thu |
Fri |
Sat |
| |
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
| 6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
| 13 |
14 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
19 |
| 20 |
21 |
22 |
23 |
24 |
25 |
26 |
| 27 |
28 |
29 |
30 |
|
|
|
| May Jul |
Rethinking Crime and Punishment
What you really need to know about criminal justice
What Can I Do?
How you can get involved in the criminal justice system
CJScotland
A log and information exchange about criminal justice issues in Scotland.
Miscellaneous Links & Background
|
