Updates from November, 2009 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Nathan Murphy 11:25 am on October 15, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

    Stuart Mitson on his ‘Solution for London’ 

    Stuart Mitson PortraitStuart Mitson is a former Prison Governor and Prison Director with more than 25 years operational experience in both the public and private sector. He currently leads a uniquely qualified and experienced team at Mitson Consulting Ltd offering consultancy on the design, construction and operation of new prisons.

    In this article Stuart describes his ‘Solution for London’-  a feasible and cost-effective way of providing additional prison places in London where they are currently needed most.  Until now, this has been an unthinkable proposition.

    According to recent estimates, there are about eleven thousand too few prison places in the London area to accommodate London’s convicted and remand prison population.

    The proposal to site two or three of five new 1,500-bed prisons (mini-titans) in Essex will only bring partial relief to the capital’s prison accommodation crisis. It is, at best, only a part solution and hardly a very satisfactory one (not least because the mini-titan programme is merely the poor relation of the discredited titan programme).  Essex is some way from London with all the problems of access for family visits, access to the courts and access to and for community and statutory organisations for rehabilitation purposes.

    A further problem is finding suitable (very large) sites, particularly in the South East, but the problem is being encountered in West Yorkshire the North West and North Wales where other locations are sought for the mini-titans.  To date, only one suitable site has been identified (Runwell, Essex).  The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) recently contracted out the search for sites.

    Other Solutions

    Not infrequently in past years there has been debate about selling off the (once) prime development sites that London’s old Victorian prisons occupy and putting the resource into the development of a series of prisons for London around the M25 corridor.

    The argument is (or was, in different economic times) that the solution is a ‘nil cost’ one because of the value of the vacated sites.  Even if/ when this were so, the proposition suffers the same drawbacks as the Essex solution – that distances and access for all essential purposes will be problematic and will only worsen over time.  If  there  is  a  case  for  the  M25  corridor solution, that case is best made on the grounds that the old London prisons are sub-standard, cannot really be operated safely and decently and should be closed down on humanitarian grounds.

    The M25 corridor solution will not solve access and rehabilitation problems.

    The suggestion that prison ships might again become a feature on the Thames (a throwback to the ‘Hulks’ of the 1700’s!) though dreadful in aspect and impractical as a civilised solution, indicates the strength of conviction that the proper (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 3:42 pm on September 14, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , young adults prisoners   

    Prison Education in Schools? 

    Can a greater awareness of the long-term consequences conviction, rather than the short term experience of prison, help enhance the deterrence value of the criminal justice system?

    Young people inherently do not understand how long their lives are or how today’s bad decisions can leave a legacy or limitations and restrictions they may have to live with for the rest of their lives.

    For a young person a year in prison does not seem like a particularly big deal especially if they have no dependants, no real financial ties and are not employed therefore, young people may benefit from understanding the long term and potentially very unglamorous effects of conviction.

    For the improvement of the deterrence effect Prisons have there may be benefit for an understanding of the Criminal Justice System to be taught as part of the school curriculum.

    This education may benefit from have some focus on the longer term effects (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 12:17 pm on August 10, 2010 Permalink | Reply
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    Deterrence value of prisons 

    “Imprisonment as such does not rehabilitate people, nor does it facilitate the ultimate goal of reintegration” 9

    For many people a spell inside prison is enough to stop them committing further crime but for others this is not the case; research has shown that over 65% of prisoners re-offend within two years of release16 suggesting that prison is only effective for one third of the people who pass through their gates.

    The deterrent value of the criminal justice system generally works well. This effectiveness can be starkly illustrated in areas throughout the world where societal breakdown and lawlessness greatly reduce the likelihood of crime leading to punishment. Sadly, in such environments, the level of crime (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 1:07 pm on July 26, 2010 Permalink | Reply
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    Perceptions of Political Risk 

    There is a common perception amongst politicians and civil servants that there cannot be a significant change within the Prisons they propose due to the risk of reactionary criticism from the press and potential loss of voter support. The other argument against creating better prisons comes down to cost; and in budgetary cycles this might be the case; but it is a Politicians duty to think about the longer term and to take in to account the cost savings that can be effected across the board with the creation of better Prisons.

    This perception is obviously damaging and politicians need to remember that just because a Prison is progressive or different it does not mean that it cannot also be designed to be acceptable or well received by the voter.

    On top of this Politicians need to remember that the build cost is dwarfed by the use-cycle of a prison which is in-turn dwarfed by the cost of a 77% reoffending rate.

    The following diagram sums up the basics.

     

  • Nathan Murphy 8:04 am on April 9, 2010 Permalink | Reply
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    Imprisonment alone does not protect 

    The protection of the public is often cited as the primary reason for prisons to exist and it as a statement it is correct however, used in it’s current political context, it is a misleading and misconstrued aim.

    Politically speaking, secure imprisonment for a period of time is protecting the public from the prisoner, however, the protection it actually provides is merely a short-term side effect if nothing is done to reduce the chance of future offending. An offender locked up for five years protects the public for five years only, prisons should look to also protect the public for the remaining decades of the offenders life.

    There is frequent outrage against the state from the victims and the press when a prisoner released early commits further crime; but it is seemingly more acceptable if a prisoner reoffends if they have served a full sentence – clearly a mindset that strongly pushes the government towards a poor set of priorities.

    Politicians, journalists and victims need to push the case for the long term protection from criminal behavior; secure imprisonment on it’s own does not protect the pubic.




     

  • Nathan Murphy 3:44 pm on January 6, 2010 Permalink | Reply
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    Smoking in prisons 

    Recent reports of the success of a prison that has a no smoking policy does not really come as much of a surprise; it is a common sense policy; it increases the deterrent value of prison, reduces the availability of tools for other drug taking and can also have significant health benefits. A little was written about this in a previous blog post.

    Alongside reductions in domestic assault and other crimes he number of burglaries on the Isle of Man has apparently dropped by 35 per cent along side a 25 per cent reduction in assaults, those caught for auto theft has fell by around 7 per cent

    The telegraph reported; “It’s a standing joke now that when we nick someone we remind them that if they get sent down they’ll have to come off the cigarettes – their faces are a (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 3:39 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Prison Education 

    It is obviously of great importance that prisoners’ have an acceptable standard of literacy and numeracy if they are to have a chance of gaining employment when they are released from prison. The lack of confidence illiteracy and innumeracy can present can itself become an effective barrier to employment.

    This year 16,000 [prisoners] are being taught numeracy and literacy – the basic skills of more than two-thirds of prisoners are so poor they are automatically excluded from 94 per cent of jobs.10

    The teaching of basic skills should be rolled out through to all of these prisoners in need. Through the access of computer based education programs it can allow a reduction in cost and the setting of targets for prisoners will help improve take up.

    48% of prisoners are at or below the level expected of an 11 year old in reading, 82% in writing 18 (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 3:25 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Tackling the self-justification of crime 

    If a prisoner can still provide self-justification for thier crime then they will not see what they have done as wrong; something that is likly to impact on thier reoffending

    Prisoners perhaps need to learn to appreciate what they have, or can have, outside of prison, understand why their action are unacceptable to society and strip back their self justification of the crimes they commit. It is of little importance what a society sees as unacceptable when the individuals making the decisions have their own self justified value systems.

    • A simplistic example may be of someone who seriously assaulted someone justifying their actions by stating that “He made me angry”. This does not come close to justifying serious assault in the eyes of society but on a personal level it can easily justify actions and pass blame on to the victim.

    Prisoners must understand that the reason they committed crime is not justification. There is a need to understand why and accept that what they have done is wrong.

    It is likely that some prisoners just don’t ‘get’ society, especially from a ‘bigger picture’ perspective. Some don’t understand how they fit in, and the damage they can cause through their criminal actions and many others simply don’t care.

     

  • Nathan Murphy 2:45 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Drug rehabilitation 

    New prison systems should reduce the ability to gain access and pay for drugs to prevent prisoners from gaining habits while inside prison, and also to enable effective drug rehabilitation.

    Releasing a drug addict back in to the community is neither protecting society against crime2 or is it likely to improve the situation for the prisoner.

    Prisoners where there is a strong link between crime and the finance of drug use will benefit from a drug rehabilitation course and should perhaps have their release deferred until they are no longer dependant on drugs.

    Drug rehabilitation should not be made easy for drug addicts in prison.

    Prisoners should come in to prison and go ‘cold turkey’, rather than being let down gently using a variety of ‘come down’ drugs like methadone. The fact is that if coming off drugs is not difficult or unpleasant, starting again be easier to make the decision to start again. During this process prisoners should, as they normally are, be (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 2:40 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: female prisoners, , ,   

    Female prisoners 

    The vast majority of female prisoners are commited for non-violent offences and need support rather than punishment

    Statistics show that nearly two thirds of female prisoners have a drug problem, over half have suffered domestic abuse, one in three have been victims of sexual abuse, sixty six percent are mothers and of those thirty percent have their children taken in to care and one in five are foreign nationals18. On top of this; one in four women in prison have spent time in local authority care as a child and sixty percent are imprisoned outside of their home region18. (See cluster concept that could allow female prisoners, around 20% of prisoner totals, to be kept closer to their home town)

    These statistics build up a picture where some of the women in our prisons are amongst the most tragic and vulnerable members of society.

    Drug abuse is the primary reason women enter prison and is the primary health problem of women in prison 33 and it is clear that many of these women require help not punishment. Removing access to their children and punishing through incarceration is unlikely to help when they need proper rehabilitation. This rehabilitation and support should span through from drug rehabilitation to (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 2:32 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Getting the balance right 

    Prison needs to be a balance between being punitive undesirable places and supportive and rehabilitative institutions which give people the opportunity to leave and live a normal life. Without this balance either the deterrence value of prisons is diminished and victims do not feel that justices has been done or prison will not reduce recidivism.

    Different prisoners will need different amounts of one, the other, or both in order to reduce the chance of reoffending.

    It is also clear that different prisoners have different problems and different requirements. It stands to reason that for those who are in prison for less serious crimes, and have shorter sentences, the punitive and deterrence factor of prison should play a bigger part, and those who are incarcerated for serious crimes for longer periods of time require a more reasonable standard of living and longer term support towards preventing re-offending.

    A long-term based Liberty Managed system could inherently makes it difficult for prisoners to earn a half comfortable life in the short term; enhancing the punitive deterrent effect of prisons and hopefully helping to reduce the likelihood of re-offending.

     

  • Nathan Murphy 2:23 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , ,   

    Visiting a Prison 

    Visiting, especially for children, can be greatly improved to enhance the positive effects family can have on an prisoner

    Visiting plays an important role in keeping contact with family members and reducing the likelihood of institutionalising prisoners. Currently prisoners are usually allowed visits at least once a fortnight.31

    In the UK prisoners are currently allowed a minimum of one hour visiting time. This guideline of a minimum is sometimes not met, and rarely exceeded. Prisons and Prison Systems should be designed to withstand more than one hour of visiting time, the conversion of minimums in to ‘standards’ for these beneficial aspects of prison life is poor form. Within a Liberty Managed system, and bearing in mind the scale of proposed individual prisons one would hope that visits can become more often, and longer than the minimums, if anything out of respect for the time and effort visitors spend going to and from the prison.

    The following issues with visiting were found (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 1:44 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    How far should Prison Surveillance go? 

    Total CCTV surveillance can provide security for staff and prisoners

    The monitoring of prisoners is a contentious issue; the level of monitoring is thought to influence prisoners stress levels but on the other hand the monitoring of prisoners is a clear way to improve security, reduce crime within prison, and keep check on vulnerable prisoners. It goes without saying that a safer prison is also a less stressful prison, for prisoners as well as staff.

    People are faced with CCTV intrusion whether they are shopping, walking down the street, driving on the roads or, in many cases, at work. This intrusion upon innocent people is, rightly or wrongly, generally accepted and the level of intrusive surveillance continues to grow at an (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 1:35 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Money, Drugs & Contraband 

    There is generally a significant contraband problem within UK Prisons and each year hundreds of weapons, blades and knives24 and thousands of other illicit items, drugs and mobile phones are confiscated from prisoners. 23

    “It’s a continual problem taking stuff off prisoners. It’s like painting the Forth Bridge – a never-ending job.”
    Derek Turner, Scottish secretary of the Prison Officers’ Association

    Contraband and a Liberty Managed System

    All items but those earned through the would be deemed contraband and the physical design of the prison should make it difficult to manufacture weapons and conceal contraband items. In this environment everything prisoner-facing should be designed with simplicity and make use of extensive Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) with special attention to potential misuse though (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 12:26 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Prison effectiveness 

    To build a Prison or Prison System it is important to state to what end the system works. The overall effectiveness of a prison system should be the rate of reoffending. Also to be taken in to consideration is the appeasement of the other stakeholders of the prison system which, in varying degrees, includes every citizen.

    A design should be entirely centered on rehabilitation, but be an environment that voters can accept, a system victims are appeased by through being perhaps less comfortable and less media-rich environments, where prison staff are better off by creating career progression, up-skilled jobs and the ‘uninterested’ stake-holder by creating a prison system that ultimately protects them from crime in the short and the long term.

    Measurement of success

    The over riding measurement of the success of prisons should be the rate of reoffending. No other factor comes close to giving a true impression of how successful not just prisons, but the entire criminal justice system is. This measurement is not all (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 12:06 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
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    Crime in prison 

    When designing a prison we should try to design-out the ability to commit crime inside a prison without consequence.

    If people are able to commit crime without consequence in a highly controlled environment it conveys a poor message to those incarcerated regarding society’s ability to stop them, and others, of committing crime. It may be one of the factors in the development of habitually criminal people. There is a risk of restoring an prisoner’s confidence in avoiding justice or developing feelings of being above the law.

    The ability for prisoners to commit crime should be (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 12:04 pm on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , , ,   

    The basics of human rights, prisoner safety & prison security 

    Only liberty itself should taken from prisoners; this therefore does not extend to their humanity or dignity – and these are well established standards for the treatment of prisoners. It is also well established that it is the responsibility of the incarcerator to ensure that prisoners are safe.
    If an prisoner is fearful of others in a highly controlled and restricted environment it can provide create strong reasons for the self justification of (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 11:20 am on December 4, 2009 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: liberty deprivation, , , ,   

    Liberty deprivation and punishment 

    Liberty deprivation is a punishment and provides, with many other side effects, a temporary protection of society.  For longer term protection of society we are dependant on the effectiveness of happens within prisons and within prisoners.

    Allowing liberty deprivation to be understood as a punishment allows the acknowledgement of the value of punishing offenders. This may be that it helps to restore feelings of liberty to a victim, their family or society as a whole. Punishing those who have done wrong instils a sense of justice that reinforces people’s faith in our societal system.

    Nevertheless, it is generally accepted that liberty deprivation remains the sole punishment and the cornerstone of imprisonment – this (More …)

     

  • Nathan Murphy 5:08 pm on November 15, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

    Visitor page 

    Hi All, Please leave any general feedback/thoughts about the website or it’s subject matter here.

     

    • Jo Katerinas 11:55 pm on January 8, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Hi Nathan Im studying Interior Design and currently designing a prison cell, this site as helped me enormously, its filled in a lot of the gaps ie all the stuff I didnt know, email me if you like thanks!

    • Paul Kaye 12:11 pm on June 30, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Dear Mr. Murphy,

      In researching a project for our company, Vistamatic Ltd I have come across your website and have found it fascinating. I would very much like the opportunity to speak with you at some stage.

      Vistamatic are the Worlds Leading Manufacturer of glazed secure vision panels and we have recently developed a range of new high security vision panels that perform to BRE LPS 1175 levels SR2 & SR3.

      You may find it of interest to visit our website at http://www.vistamatic.com.

      I look forward to hearing from you.

      Kind Regards.

      Paul Kaye
      Projects Manager

    • Rossitza Hadjieva 7:51 am on July 7, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Hi Nathan,

      I was looking for professionals in prison design to work on a project and I came upon this website. I will be very glad if you contact me at rhadjieva@batesimoti.com for further details.

    • sean mc clafferty 11:01 am on September 2, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      good morning I am putting together design,build and manage team for a new prison.Of any interest to you??Kind regards,
      Sean McClafferty.
      Tel No 00353862590937.

    • Jonathan Wilson 12:08 pm on October 13, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      I think this idea is a good idea. Proximity card access has been used in corporate environments for decades. As long as the cards cant be tampered with, contain some kind of mechanism so prisoners cant give their card to someone else and can stand up to the rigors of prison life, this could work.
      Would also make it easy to track where a prisoner is (based on what doors they last went though). If there is a need for a lockdown, push a button to force all cell doors open, prisoners return to their cells (and swipe their doors closed, doors then lock automatically)

      Most logical answer would be a proximity sensor worn like a watch but using the same tamper-proof attachment as a home-detention tracking system so it cant be removed or given to another prisoner.

      Means guards dont need to spend time watching doors (and opening them when prisoners need to move through) and can be there to act when something goes wrong (or when prisoners break the rules or etc)

      • Nathan Murphy 1:35 pm on October 13, 2010 Permalink | Reply

        Yes I agree, it would need to be a very robust product but this is possible to create. Proximity might be a big bulkier, but at least for a first off the RFID system would be pretty easy to impliment.

        Again your right, the big benefit is not so much control – but the ability to aid a massive shift in prison officer time – in turn enabling prison officers to be more able to help prisoners progress. By changing the technology we are able to change the job-role and employ people better qualified to help reduce the reoffending rates.

    • Jonathan Wilson 4:29 pm on October 13, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Another advantage of this system is that it can be implemented to encourage prisoners to follow rules voluntarily.

      Example, at nighttime after prisoners have done food and other things, they return to their cells and swipe the card. Door locks and wont unlock until the next day. Any prisoner who doesn’t return to their cell or doesn’t voluntarily swipe the card (i.e. it gets locked by the master lock system after the guards ensure all prisoners are back in their cells) would loose “reward points”.

      Prisoners who are in their cell during the day for whatever reason (e.g. wanting to take a rest after doing work or exercising) can go into the cell and lock the door so other prisoners cant disturb them.
      When the prisoner is out of the cell, they can swipe the lock and keep other prisoners from stealing stuff.

      Of course, the guards will have master keys that can open any door at any time no matter what.

    • Nathan Murphy 11:02 am on October 14, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Yes also agreed – with this sort of technology it is very easy to monitor and track use patterns.

      I have written a little bit about how lock-based systems could be of use to enable greater system changes – specifically looking at reward systems for compliance which might be of interest:
      http://prisondesign.org/2009/12/04/liberty-management-system-concept/

    • Matt Parker 3:31 pm on October 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      Hi Nathan,

      I’m a Civil Engineering student undertaing a theoretical detailed design of a holding center, your site’s been pretty helpful thanks! Would you have any idea where to aquire floor plans or information on existing prisions or current prision designs?
      Thanks, Matt

      • Nathan Murphy 5:57 pm on October 18, 2010 Permalink | Reply

        Hi Matt,

        Glad the site has been of use. Finding floor plans of current prisons might be tricky due to security issues. Best thing I can suggest if you have no other way to get floor plans is to possibly use Google Satellite view, to some extent you will probably be able to figure out some of the basic areas.

        Warm regards,

        Nathan

    • Patrycja Madecka 4:59 pm on February 11, 2011 Permalink | Reply

      Dear Mr. Murphy
      I am a final year Interior Design (BA) Hons student from Edinburgh College of Art. I found your website very interesting and helpful. I am writing my thesis on How and why does interior design of a prison cell needs to change? For my final project I am re-designing a prison cell and I have a very different approach to the subject from yours. I would like to contact you and maybe discuss our concepts. Please e-mail me on the address submitted with this comment.

      Kind regards

      Patrycja.

    • Sharon Lewis 7:25 am on May 18, 2011 Permalink | Reply

      Hi Nathan,

      We would love to share with you an article that we just posted on our own blog! (10 Stats You Should Know About Our Prison System) is linked below and could be a fun way to share this announcement with your readers.

      (http://www.criminaljusticeusa.com/blog/2011/10-stats-you-should-know-about-our-prison-system/)

      It has been a sincere pleasure to read your great content.

      Sincerely,
      Sharon Lewis

    • Andrea Cunningham 5:43 am on August 18, 2011 Permalink | Reply

      I am looking for a design guide for LOW TECH prison planning. What are the different systems for managing prisons without cameras and electronic locks? What are the physical concepts behind control of risk for guards and staff in the movement of prisoners into and out of their cells, yards, showers, training programs, work areas, kitchens, sports fields, visitor contact area? How do guard towers and stand-off distance work best? What are alternatives if there is not enough room for stand-off?

      I’m working on prison design in places where there is no infrastructure to speak of, often no power, certainly no computers or cameras.

      Any idea where I might find some literature?

      • Nathan Murphy 9:04 am on August 18, 2011 Permalink | Reply

        Perhaps make contact with people who may have created guidance for prison design in these environments e.g. http://www.africanprisons.org/

        The constraints you have there sound really difficult and probably require a really innovative solution. Is a guard tower required at all? Security might be helped by a modulated design where prisoners live in small communities (cook/clean for themselves) rather than a large prison with significantly integrated association time. I do not have any references I can point you to directly, but you might find support through relevant organisations listed here; http://www.prisonreform.org/ or perhaps http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/ may be able to give pointers to appropriate organisations.

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