Two people who have served sentences in prison give their view on how prisons should change. Both have senior roles in national organisations aiming to support and empower those who are or have been in prison. They cover positive views on how people in prison can discover and develop their own potential, including leadership. Brendan says strongly that prison councils can be powerful instruments for change. They go further and say they would like to see more people with lived experience of the prison system working in it.
They put forward ideas about how prisons could be better – for example, smaller units, more contact with the outside community, better use of digital technology. Paula takes a hard look at what ‘rehabilitation’ actually means, looking for much more transformative and restorative approaches. They both also challenge the effectiveness of prison compared to community sentences, which they see as much better for helping people to move forward positively with their lives.
