Prison officers should be university-educated says Howard League

2 Sep 2009

The Howard League for Penal Reform has released a report recommending that prison officers are educated to degree level in order better to manage prisons and reduce reoffending rates.

At present, prison officers undergo eight weeks training before taking responsibility for safety and security within a prison. According to the charity "prison officers have to deal with a wide range of range of complicated issues each requiring different skills and knowledge; for example, 80% of prisoners have mental health problems and 55% of those received into custody are problematic drug users. "

Initial reaction to the proposal from the Prison Officers' Association has not been favourable. In an interview with the BBC, Colin Moses, chairman of the Prison Officers Association, said: "We have a professional workforce now, there are some shortfalls in training, but what we do not need is to pursue this line of a degree. Currently we have massive practical skills which are often overlooked by the Howard League."

The report can be downloaded free from the Howard League's website.