The range of learning opportunities offered in prisons

The educational and training opportunities offered in prisons is wide and varied. It includes formal classroom based provision, such as:

Key skills like literacy, numeracy and language and information technology. These are sometimes packaged for accreditation under the Skills for Life initiative, which includes:

  • English and Mathematics at different levels
  • Lifeskills / Lifestyles that cover different aspects of your life, such as finding a job, helping your child or staying fit and healthy
  • Work based learning related to industries such as retail distribution, manufacturing, or a more general programme such as the essential skills needed for work
  • English as a second languages

There are also opportunities for gaining accreditation of learning through formal vocational qualifications (NVQs). These are often presented as work related learning managed by the prison’s employment and skills department. This can include skills developed by prisoners working in the prison’s industrial workshops or those doing work such as catering or gardening in the prison’s own departments. In some cases prisoners released on temporary licence (ROTL) can gain work experience and associated vocational qualifications by working outside the prison for companies in the local community. This is especially the case for prisoners in category D open prisons coming towards the end of their sentence.

Although the main thrust of the government’s policy for reducing re-offending is strongly connected with programmes that promote employability and future employment, wider learning objectives (such as developing good personal relationships) are not ignored but may be less prominent. They are important because the prison population includes a disproportionately high number of learners with behavioural, emotional difficulties and mental health problems compared with mainstream education and training.

Obviously further, informal learning opportunities exist in the prison library or learning resource centre and through the PE department, which looks after prisoners physical health and education.
However, provision for developing still wider skills can be made through other sources of funding available to the prison and delivered by other departments, such as Chaplaincy. This might include fairly general activities such as:

  • A formal several session course on Relationships, based upon material developed by the Mothers' Union
  • A single seminar on the emotional and practical aspects of going out, which can be followed up with individual work, where appropriate, through the Community Chaplaincy
  • Creative musical activities, which offer the opportunity for prisoners to learn to play a musical instrument or to develop existing musical skills and/or to write their own music.

Several prison chaplaincies deliver programmes that are more obviously spiritually focussed, including:

  • Short courses on grief and bereavement and dealing with their emotional and spiritual aspects of these, and offering support;
  • Courses on meditation, often using materials developed by the Phoenix Trust.
  • There are also more faith-specific activities, such as the Christian Alpha Course or Qur'an studies, which offer both the opportunity for in-depth learning about one's faith and spiritual development, but also provide good opportunities for emotional learning and confidence building.

In addition, prison departments can call on the support of outside agencies such as:

The Anne Peaker Centre, which is the national organisation that promotes and supports the use of the arts in criminal justice.

Safe Ground, which educates prisoners and young people at risk in the community using drama to help these groups resist the forces of social exclusion and institutionalisation.

The Geese Theatre Company, which is an internationally renowned team of theatre practitioners delivering performances, group work and workshop programmes within the criminal justice system.

The Prisoners Education Trust, which aims to extend the range of education and training available to prisoners and promote the importance of education and training in the successful resettlement of offenders once released.

Women in Prison, which was founded in 1983 as a support and campaign group providing welfare and education services for women prisoners across England.

The Education Department at Low Newton, for example offers full-time vocational training in VQ Call Centre Operator and NVQ Hairdressing plus a wide variety of part-time courses. These include; Basic Skills in Literacy and Numeracy, Life Skills including Child Parent Studies and Cookery, Art, Craft, Fashion and Beauty. ICT is offered to prisoners who may range from complete beginners to Level 3, and includes business presentation and mail merge. All courses are dual accredited with either basic or key skills. There are a limited number of full-time places, where timetables can be drawn up to suit individual needs and opportunities to gain literacy and numeracy qualifications are available on a fortnightly basis. Prisoners are encouraged to take advantage the Education Department facilities and “take up” levels are very high. The Library is situated separately from the Education Department and provides a wide range of reading material and is supported by a visiting librarian.

The Head of Learning & Skills at HMP Birmingham, for example, has worked with external partners set up a prison radio project. The partners include the Prison Radio Association, the BBC, the Learning and Skills Council and South Birmingham College and HMP Hewell Grange in Worcestershire. The initiative aims to provide a valuable communication source throughout the prisons offering information, advice and support for prisoners. It is anticipated that it will be a useful outlet for staff to broadcast programmes on key issues including resettlement, disability, diversity and suicide prevention. It also seeks to equip prisoners with the skills and confidence necessary to find work upon release. Basic skills such as numeracy, literacy and IT skills can be gained, and are essential for successful reintegration into society upon release. Participants can also train for an accredited radio production qualification in partnership with South Birmingham College. It offers a unique and innovative way to engage prisoners in education, particularly those hard to reach offenders disenfranchised by the educational system. As well as providing educational opportunities it also provides an excellent communication tool within the prison regime. The BBC has donated redundant analogue radio equipment and produced an interactive CD-ROM designed specifically to teach radio skills to prisoners.

The education department at HMP Leeds has spearheaded adult programmes working with small groups of learners on a variety of projects, which encourage literacy. These projects include creating a poetry folder for learners to contribute to and copy poems to improve their spelling and handwriting and making greetings cards for their families to encourage basic reading and writing skills. One of them, the ‘Once Upon a Time' project, allows prisoners to read, edit and record children's stories is regularly over subscribed despite the initial reticence of prisoners in trying something new. Many prisoners first come to the library barely able to read, but with appropriate support are able to make a recording for their children. Many continue to develop their literacy skills and enjoy reading and engaging with books for the first time in their lives. These projects often help prisoners feel that, for the first time their lives, their families are impressed by their achievements and interested in their development. This support is often key to a learner continuing in education whilst they are in prison.

In the key performance target focussed world of the Prison Service, the ability to achieve basic or key skills is high on the checklist for educational programmes. On the other hand Sue Saxton head of learning and skills at HMPYOI Bullwood Hall believes that arts courses provide an avenue to deliver a multitude of achievements in this arena and has, on occasion been labelled a champion of the arts. However, Bullwood Hall has a long tradition of working with arts providers, from dance, to drama, to music, to enrich the curriculum. When interviewed by Prison Service News, Sue said:

“I think it is very important to have arts in prison and I think it’s important because art works: it acts as a gateway for people who haven’t necessarily been successful in learning before to come into education or some sort of learning activity.”

In over her 10 years working in prisons she has seen arts classes absorb, inspire and give hope to prisoners, time and time again. They discover skills and talents they never knew they had, which in turn creates a foundation for building self-esteem and self-worth. She explained:

“Once you’ve got them in the business of learning and seeing they can succeed, then we’ve opened a door and given ourselves an opportunity to engage with them.”

Although many prisoners cringe at the idea of going to a traditional maths or English class in an art class they will look at books about artists, which helps them to improve their reading. They will have discussions about artists’ different styles and techniques, thus inadvertently developing their communication skills; and they will study the size, shape and proportion of images, which can lead to improved numeracy skills. Although the arts provide an opportunity to start addressing basic skills but Sue believes that progress in the wider key skills, like working together, problem solving, and decision making is even more important. Many of the women taking part start doing things they did not know they could and discover talents they did not know they had. It is very important, when working with people who frequently have low self-esteem, to give them a taste of success.

Despite the range of resources potentially available there is considerable variation in practice in both the quality and quantity of education and training and personal and social development offered in prisons, including, where appropriate, compliance with the requirements of the government’s Every Child Matters initiative.