Prisons, Politics and Practices in England and Wales 1945{u2013}2020 The Operational Management Issues

This book presents both a survey of and commentary upon the penal process of England and Wales between 1945 and 2020 from the primary perspective of prisons and their operational management. Part I focusses on the extent to which governmental polities, changing concepts in penology and significant events affected the performance and management of prisons during four key periods: 1945-1991; 1991-1997; 1997-2007 and 2007-2020. Part II presents a vision for more effective operation of prisons within the wider penal process in the 2020s and beyond. It draws upon the author's academic insights and his experience as a former prison governor. This book speaks to those in the social sciences, law and politics and to professionals in government and in the penal system who are interested in reform. David J. Cornwell is former Prison Governor and Consultant Criminologist focusing predominantly on issues in penal philosophy, criminal punishment, restorative justice and mediation. He is the author of seven previous books in the fields of criminology, penology and philosophy. He completed both his Master{u2019}s and Doctoral degrees at York University, UK. Foreword Preface Acknowledgements Books by the Same Author Contents About the Author Abbreviations and Acronyms List of Figures List of Tables Part I Prisons and Penology: A Survey of Post-war England and Wales 1945–2020 1 Introduction and Overview of This Book Preliminary Observations The Outline of This Book Part Two References 2 Change and Uncertainty in Penal Strategies 1945–1991 Strategic Post-war Penal Policies—The Rehabilitative Ideal ‘Humane Containment’ Emergence of the ‘Justice Model’ of Corrections Strategic Paralysis in the Late 1980s Strangeways, April 1990 and the Aftermath Conclusions from Chapter 2 References 3 Prisons, Managerialism and Privatisation 1991–1997 The Early 1990s: Prisons at the Crossroads Managerialism and Privatisation: Twin Pillars of a New Penal Strategy Resurgence of the ‘Law and Order’ Mantra Post-1992 The Judicial Response Further Problems with Prison Privatisation Turmoil and Confusion Post-Whitemoor Towards the End of an Era Conclusion to Chapter 3 References 4 Re-branding the ‘Toc’ Image: New Labour 1997–2007 As It Was in May 1997 Chasing the Crime Control Dragon New Millennium: New Approaches or Old Ones Revived? CJA 2003—A Colossus of Ideological Obfuscation Criminal Dangerousness and Its Punishment in CJA 2003 The Aftermath of CJA 2003 References 5 Penality and the Ministry of Justice Era 2007–2020 An Uncertain Beginning Creation of the Ministry of Justice 2007 Carter Redivivus and the State of the Prisons 2007–2008 Into the Doldrums: 2008–2010 2010–2020: A Decade of ‘Busy Going Nowhere’ Looking Ahead: Conclusions from Part One References Part II A Vision for the Prisons of the Future 6 Strategic Management of Prisons: Structure and Style Introduction to Part Two HMPPS: Chimerical Vision or Marriage of Inconvenience? Structural Uncertainty in Prisons Management Restoring Strategic Reputation and Style Within HMPPS Conclusions from This Chapter References 7 Towards ‘Doing Justice Better’ Learning from the Lessons of the Past Scoping the Potential for Custodial Reduction What Does ‘Doing Justice Better’ Mean? Reparative and Restorative Justice: The Neglected Link in Contemporary Corrections References 8 Making Prisons Fit for Purpose Defining the Purpose of Prisons Making Prisons More Purposeful Centralisation and Devolution in Prison Governance Re-conceiving a Reformative Ethic References 9 Beyond the Prison Walls Prisons in a Community Context Bridging the Custody: Community Divide Prisons and Their Neighbourhood Communities Is There a Role for Reparative Justice in a Unified Correctional Process? References 10 Summation and Conclusions The Starting Point Prisons: Their Use and Abuse The Politics of Criminal Justice Practices and Malpractices in the Penal Process The Need for Systematic Future Research into the Penal Process References Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Suggested Topics for Seminar Discussion and/or Student Written Assessments Author’s Postscript Bibliography Index