Prison works?

I know someone who does research about prisons, and is allowed to visit every prison in the UK to do that.

Her words are "a lot of the people shouldnt be in there".
They need help yes, but prison often isnt the answer.

I didn't watch the documentary but I did hear the discussion and phone in on the radio yesterday morning

In the late 1970's, I worked on a project where we set up packages as an alternative for custody for so called recidivists. The prison population was much smaller, staff to prisoner ratio much higher and drug use in prisons nothing like it is now. It was the case then, as it remains, that prison where individuals are locked up 23 hours a day isn't effective. We imprison more people than other European countries, our recidivist rate is high.

We need to stop this austerity approach to justice, social care, education, health etc and invest in our people. Sorry to irritate some folks but we need to take more notice of 'experts' those who work in those areas, look at the research. None of those things support the continuing slash and burn approach to essential public services.

Individual examples prove nothing in general - it's the recidivism rates that are much better evidence

jess prison was the "short sharp shock" for a nephew on my husband's side of the family who got into trouble with cocaine. He cleaned up in prison, did a business degree and is a reformed character. So it works for some people - just like anything else.