Four challenges facing rehabilitation, according to Charlie Taylor

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons joined StandOut to discuss the four key challenges facing rehabilitation in our prisons.

We were recently joined by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, for a conversation about the crisis in our prisons, the window of opportunity for change we find ourselves in, and the significant contributions of small charities like StandOut.

The Chief Inspector outlined what he considers to be the four key challenges for our prisons system.

Challenge No. 1 – The prison population crisis

Prisons in England and Wales are almost full. At the time of writing, there are 85,933 [1] people in prison in England and Wales – down from a recent record high of 88,521. In September, there were just 1,098 available spaces across the entire prison estate [2]. With the number of people so close to exceeding the number of available beds, the government had no alternative but to release people early under its SDS40 scheme.

It's at inner-city Victorian jails, like HMPs Wandsworth, Wormwood Scrubs, and Pentonville (our three partner prisons), that the population crisis is most severe. It’s these older prisons that tend to have the worst conditions, and the least amount of space. Back in September, when just 1.2% of prison places in England and Wales were free, HMP Pentonville had only nine beds to spare.

While on paper our prisons have enough space for 89,619 people, hidden within this figure is the fact that how a ‘space’ is defined has changed over the years. Most people in Victorian prisons are on ‘double bunk’ – where two people share a cell designed for one. HMP Pentonville, for example, was built to house 520 people – it now holds 1,205 [3]. This overcrowding situation is similar at StandOut’s other partner prisons too.

While the government is working to increase capacity in the system – through building programmes and temporary accommodation – the reality is that projected prison population growth outpaces projected growth in prison places. The early release scheme bought the government some time, but the independent sentencing review will be crucial to ensuring we don’t run out of space.

Challenge No. 2 – Lack of purposeful activity

The public might imagine that people in prison are engaged in work, training or education – filling the gaps in their experience, so that when they are released into the community, they’re ready to get into work or education, and go on to have a successful life.

But this is far from the reality. Of the 32 closed prisons His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons inspected in 2023-24, only two scored ‘good’ or ‘reasonably good’ in the purposeful activity test [4]. Inspection after inspection reveals people locked on the wings with nothing to do, and workshops completely empty.

At their most recent inspection of HMP Wandsworth, inspectors found that people were spending up to 22 hours per day locked behind their cell doors – sometimes going for days without the opportunity to exercise outside [5]. This is something we see only too often at our partner prisons; there is so much potential for our work and the work of organisations like ours.

Staffing issues – too few staff but also too inexperienced – are often blamed for the lack of access to education, skills and work. Although, the Inspectorate makes it clear in its reports that some prisons do better with fewer staff than others – suggesting the issue is one of leadership, rather than officer numbers.

Challenge No. 3 – The supply of drugs in prisons

With such limited regimes and so little time out of cell, it’s unsurprising that people in prison turn to illicit drugs out of boredom and frustration. The recent inspection of HMP Wandsworth – where purposeful activity overall was deemed ‘poor’ – found that 44% of prisoners were testing positive for drugs in random tests [6].

Drugs are shockingly easy to come by inside. In 2023-24, 32% of people living in men’s prisons told inspectors that it was easy to access illicit drugs, and 9% said that they had developed a problem with them since arriving in prison.

The scale of the issue is illustrated by the example the Chief Inspector shared of HMP Garth. Here, people had been found using the elements from their kettles to burn holes in the Perspex windows of their cells and let in drones carrying drugs [7].

It is a vicious cycle. The lack of purposeful activity leads to drug-taking, which leads to higher levels of violence, bullying, debt, and self-harm, which – as the Chief Inspector states below – further limits access to purposeful activity.

“The idea that there could be a rehabilitative regime in those circumstances is surely fairly fanciful.”

Challenge No. 4 – Lack of support at the point of release

Finally, the fourth challenge. The transition from prison to the community is complex, and yet the support available to people preparing to leave prison – and after they have left – is limited. It is also offered far too late in the day, often in a rush at the end of someone’s sentence. For prison to be truly rehabilitative, preparation for release should begin as soon as someone enters custody – finding out about their strengths and aspirations, challenges and needs, so that they are sufficiently motivated and equipped to rebuild their lives. Charlie Taylor’s comments resonate with what we know is missing, and what our programme addresses.

There are a number of things that people need, key amongst them somewhere stable to live, support with substance abuse issues, and something to do with their time on release. But, more often than not, people leaving prison are left wanting. At HMP Wandsworth, for example, only 11% of those leaving the prison were released into settled and sustainable accommodation in the 12 months before its most recent inspection [8]. This stark reality is witnessed daily by StandOut coaches, who regularly arrange emergency accommodation to prevent people from rough sleeping as they attempt to access something more stable.

Without that secure accommodation, help with drug problems (often developed inside), or a clear route into employment, education or training, the risk of reoffending is high.

While Charlie Taylor painted a bleak picture of rehabilitation in prisons, there was also a sense of hope in the room at the new government’s early approach as the green shoots of a more just, justice system.

As StandOut – and others in the sector – prepare to respond to the Sentencing Review, and two justice committee inquiries into governance, leadership and staffing; and rehabilitation and resettlement, we remain hopeful that meaningful change is around the corner.

We’d like to thank Charlie Taylor, Lord Ken Macdonald, and Lord Frederick Ponsonby for speaking at this event, and to Matrix Chambers for hosting.

[1] Population bulletin: weekly 18 November 2024

[2] 1.2% of prison places in England and Wales free, BBC, 6 September 2024

[3] 1.2% of prison places in England and Wales free, BBC, 6 September 2024

[4] HMIP annual report 2023-24, p4

[5] Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Wandsworth by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (22 April-2 May 2024), p4

[6] Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Wandsworth by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (22 April-2 May 2024), p3

[7] Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Garth by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (29 July-8 August 2024), p3

[8] Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Wandsworth by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (22 April-2 May 2024), p60