Last year I started hearing about the new Chief Executive of the SPS, Colin McConnell, and how he wanted to revolutionalise prison sentences. Because I don’t get to go to many evening lectures (I have a son to pick up and put to bed) I never heard him speak, but I did read the notes of his Sacro lecture in November 2012. I also wasn’t there when the SPS revealed their new vision ‘Helping to Build a Safer Scotland – Unlocking Potential – Transforming Lives’ at their annual conference last Tuesday. However, reading about it here and here, I am so excited! It can’t happen often that the recommendations you make in your thesis are pretty much exactly mirrored by the only organisation that can put them into practice less than a year later.
I said in my thesis that the long-term prisoners I spoke to did not feel that they were reformed by their time in prison (with some exceptions). They felt that the prison relied too much on cognitive behavioural courses and did not tailor the support enough to the individual. They also felt they were let down when it came to their release – they needed greater help finding suitable accommodation, claiming benefits and, eventually, finding work.
The finding work part is not the responsibility of the SPS, but the situation there might also improve if the consultation on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (which closed on Wednesday) goes in the right direction. In relation to what happens during the sentence, though, the SPS’s plans for change are exactly what I would have recommended, had I been their chief advisor (if only!). They will use an asset-based approach that is focused on the individual, and work with partners to make the transition from prison to community easier.
This new direction the SPS is taking might explain why they were so gracious in accepting my findings, including the ones that weren’t so positive. As they were already thinking of changing direction, my criticism of the limited rehabilitation during the sentence will only have confirmed their own compass readings. I think we, in Scotland, are living in interesting times. Of course, reforms have been proposed before, and even now some politicians are already voicing concerns, but isn’t it strange (but excellent!) that the organisation charged with punishing people is the one leading the way towards positive change?
In any case, some positive developments are already happening. Last summer, Jim Kerr, the (then) governor of HMP Greenock told me that it was rolling out a one-to-one model in which each prisoner will have an allocated prison officer who accompanies them throughout their sentence. Rather than the prison intake process, assessments and support being carried out by different members of staff, all these tasks will be completed by the same officer, allowing this officer to be better aware of the prisoner’s circumstances and creating the time, space and consistency for more meaningful relationships to develop. This approach is complemented by the creation of two Throughcare Support Officers, who will work with prisoners to tackle reintegration issues during their time in prison and for up to twelve weeks after their release. In time, this throughcare support will hopefully also be undertaken by personal officers, so that the relationship developed during the prisoners’ time inside can facilitate their motivation to seek support and overcome problems upon release.
If the SPS manages to maintain momentum (rather than being held back by dissenting politicians) and to build on these promising beginnings, their bold vision for the future can make a real difference in many people’s lives.