Bullying in Prisons
| Published date | 01 September 2000 |
| Date | 01 September 2000 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/026455050004700312 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
214
diversity
was
skilfully
run
by
Cordell
Pillay;
she
encouraged
everyone
to
express
their
own
diverse
identities
and
needs.
When
we
considered
how
our
own
lives
are
fraught
with
difficulties
and
emotional
upset,
despite
being
in
relatively
privileged
positions,
and
then
thought
of
how
much
more
difficult
and
painful
are
the
lives
of
many
of
the
female
clients
of
the
Service,
it
is
amazing
to
think
how
quickly
we
resort
to
breaching
them.
We
describe
their
lives
as
’chaotic’
rather
than
appreciating
the
many
demands
that
are
made
on
them.
It
was
a
sobering
exercise.
It
was
good
to
feel
solidarity
with
one’s
colleagues.
The
strong
message
that
I
took
from
the
day
was,
to
quote
another
Welsh
chief
officer,
&dquo;If
it’s
got
to
be,
it’s
got
to
be&dquo;.
The
conference
was
well
run
and
well
attended.
(June
2000)
Alyson
Rees
Probation
Officer
South Wales
Bullying
in
Prisons
This
Prison
Reform
Trust
report
summarises
the
current
situation
with
regard
to
bullying
in
prison
and
considers
the
effectiveness
of
anti-bullying
strategies.
It
discusses
definitions,
measures
and
consequences
of
bullying
behaviour,
citing
a
range
of
relevant
research,
which
shows,
for
example,
that
bullying
is
linked
with
an
increased
likelihood
of
suicide
attempts.
Other
points:
.
Bullying
inhibits
prisoners
from
leaving
their
cells
and
engaging
in
constructive
activities.
.
In
July
1999,
a
total
of
39
prison
officers
were
under
suspension
for
&dquo;alleged
assaults
against
prisoners,
harassing
other
staff,
racist
comments
or
actions
that
led
to
the
assault
of
a
prisoner
by
other
prisoners&dquo;.
.
The
lack
of
emphasis
by
the
Prison
Service
on
’effective
practice’
is
strongly
criticised.
Approaches
vary
widely
across
prisons
and
they
are
not
sharing
knowledge.
.
There
should
be
more
appreciation
of
the
different
motivations
for
and
approaches
to
bullying
by
different
groups
such
as
women
and
men,
young
people
and
adults.
Individual
prisons
should
be
given
more
assistance
in
developing
strategies
appropriate
to
their
populations.
.
Positive
anti-bullying
strategies
are
being
undermined
by
a
lack
of
resources
and
prison
overcrowding.
·
Prisons
must
avoid
simply
amplifying
anti-social
behaviour
by
’bullying
the
bullies’
rather
than
addressing
the
causes
of
their
behaviour.
.
Some
prisons
are
failing
to
carry
out
regular
bullying
surveys,
as
required
by
the
Prison
Service.
.
Good
practice
in
some
prisons
includes
assertiveness
training
and
peer
support
initiatives
for
victims.
Beating
the
Bullies?
The
Prison
Service’s
Anti-Bullying
Strategy,
2000,
by
Joe
Levenson.
Available
from
the
Prison
Reform
Trust,
15
Northburgh
Street,
London
ECIV
OJR,
£3.50.
Risk-Based
Parole
Decisions?
Since
the
advent
of
the
discretionary
conditional
release
system,
the
proportion
of
prisoners
granted
parole
at
any
time
during
their
sentence
has
fallen
from
70%
to
less
than
50%.
This
is
contrary
to
the
intentions
of
the
Carlisle
Committee,
upon
whose
recommendations
many
of
the
reforms
of
the
1
were
based.
The
Committee
expected
that
by
moving
the
eligibility
threshold
from
a
third
to
the half
way
point
of
sentence,
the
demands
of
retribution
and
deterrence
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