What's life like in prison?

[JackofGentlemen]

Following on from the WC case, I've been wondering what life will look like for him? Do whole life prisoners get treated any differently to those with lesser sentences? What will his day to day life involve for the next 40 years?

I did some Googling on the subject but nothing really came up.

@MemoriesOfAnotherFuture

With the details about how female prisons differ from male ones, I wonder how long before WC starts identifying as a female, like that other murderer Ian Huntley aka Lian.

Well, yes. And Labour, the Lib Dems & the Greens would all have to then back his right to be moved to a women’s prison.

I genuinely I hope WC tries that trick.

Although I don't for one second hope he actually gets moved to a women's prison

Ian Huntley didn't get moved to a womens prison, though, and AFAIK has given up being Lian. I doubt that WC would get moved, either.

@Funnylittlefloozie

Ian Huntley didn't get moved to a womens prison, though, and AFAIK has given up being Lian. I doubt that WC would get moved, either.

I doubt it too.

Would be a good spotlight on the issue though if he tried to get moved.

Anyway. That's off piste somewhat

Would someone sentenced to life in prison be able to access education? I thought it was supposed to be part of the rehabilitation process for people who may one day be released.

@ElephantandGrasshopper I imagine it’s easier for staff to manage people who have some sense of purpose

DalmationMad are you actually a registered nurse?

Am really shocked at your post for your inability to think critically and more empathetically about the issues at hand here.

I read the books about being a GP in prisons and found it insightful and upsetting. Her thoughts on what women are in prison and the damage it does to wider society were very thought provoking.

I used to work in a healthcare setting where prisoners would come for appointments. I was always struck by their pallor and poor condition. Apparently that sallow, pale and frankly unwell look is known as 'the prison tan' and is absolutely nothing to be pleased about - that we feed incarcerated people such rubbish food, give them so little time outside and such limited chance to exercise that they're ill from it.

There's a short video on YT where Ross Kemp spends the night at Belmarsh prison, (Belmarsh is where that piece of filth is at the moment I believe) it's horrible, he also goes in to the HSU at Belmarsh now that is awful, it's a prison within a prison.

During the last 18 months most of us have had some deprivations of 'freedom of choice' to do what or see who we wanted at a time and place of our choice.

Apart from some short time isolations, we were always able to go out in the fresh air, order whatever shit we wanted from Amazon and the likes, have takeaways delivered, communicate, albeit at a distance or via zoom, with whoever we wanted and, possibly most important, lock our own property doors with the knowledge that no one can come in until we say so. And yet the situation was pretty shit compared to 2019.

I think that the deprivation of being able to choose who, what, why and when is pretty shit to get used to for people used to making those choices. Humans are adaptable and can habituate to many different situations but the last 18 months have made me realise how poorly I would tolerate prison life (and I don't have a particularly active social life).

People who spend much of their adult life in prison can become institutionalised and struggle with life outside but for someone who has had a fair amount of self autonomy in their life, I suspect even the most easy going prison will be hell.

Someone who is use to taking charge of others and likes the feeling of control that gives him will not fair well - even with no intervention from others

@dalmatianmad

I work as a Nurse in a Female Cat A prison. They have a very easy life. Sorry to say this. The lifers have extra privileges such as PlayStation and xboxes. They are allowed small pets in their cells such as Guinea pigs and Budgies. Basic prisoners and those on remand have a TV in their Cell. They all have a kettle and buy tea/coffee/sugar cheaply at the shop. Everyone has a phone in the cells (since covid). You have to purchase credit to use them. No one can ring in on them. They eat good quality food cooked by "trusted" prisoners. 3 decent meals a day, snacks from the ship which they have to buy.

They have easy jobs. Most of them work outside in the summer months. We have a farm and very beautiful gardens, they love working out there.
They get good education and leave with qualifications. There is a beauty academy. They practice on the other girls for a small fee.
They are encouraged to do lots of craft. They buy sets very cheaply from the craft shop.
They receive regular amazon parcels from family.

Health Care is really good. No waiting for a GP or dental appointment. Same day usually.
The girls aren't separated according to their crime. You have paedophiles/murderers sharing cells with shop lifters.

It's a real eye opener.Makes me sick sometimes.
There's no deterrent hence why some of the girls reoffend so much and keep coming back in.

Prison should be about rehabilitation, not treating them like animals. Most criminals do so because of poor mental health/severe mental illnesses. The lowest rates of reopening are in Scandinavian prisons where the quality of life inside is a lot higher than here.

Reoffending*

@wizzywig

I've heard the BBC programme Time was a good show for what it's like in prison. I work in a related field. The people say yes it's hell, but you don't have to think about anything. Everything is provided for you: bed, food, water, gym, work, TV.

I was about to write the same

Thank you for all the replies. I've learned a lot about prisons, and prisoner mentality.

I'm also comforted by the fact that WC is likely to have a hellish time for the rest of his life.

I don't think he thought that he would ever be given a whole life tariff for a second.

Not sure about ‘life of Riley’ but this article is interesting to a point:
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/metro.co.uk/2021/09/22/yorkshire-ripper-lived-the-life-of-riley-in-final-years-before-death-15297808/amp/

Funnylittlefloozie

There is no such thing as a female Cat A prison, and never has been. High risk female prisoners are kept in the same closed jails as other female prisoners

‘HM Prison Bronzefield is currently one of only two prisons to house Category A prisoners in the female estate (female and juvenile category-A prisoners are called "restricted status" prisoners).’

I guess they’re mixed in with other categories?

@FleasInMyKnees

Viques, dalmationmad should not disclose any personal, social or medical history about any of the women she looks after. Nursing is a privileged position and nurses must adhere to strict confidentiality rules.

Numbers and statistics aren’t personal information.

DalmatianMad shouldn't, if she is really a nurse, ever act in such a way that makes the public question their trust in her profession.

Her post showed a startling and worrying lack of understanding of the variables and vulnerabilities at play amongst the female prison population and a strange misunderstanding of what function prison is meant to serve. I hope she isn't a nurse tbh.

Another one very uncomfortable at the cheering on for rape and violence towards prisoners. The vast majority of them are from very disadvantaged backgrounds with a whole myriad of social/medical problems to boot. Prison is probably cushy if your only alternative is living on the streets, otherwise it is utterly crap. MH takes a serious dip even after a short prison spell.

SunShinesBrightly, women aren't categorised like men are. Men are categorised as A, B, C or D. Women are either Closed or Open, with a very few being Restricted Status. Even Restricted women, though, live in the same prisons as other women doing shorter sentences for lesser crimes.

Interesting factoid: Rose West was temporarily housed in a male prison after her arrest because the female prisons didn't offer sufficient security at that point, and she was so notorious.

I have been wondering the same thing, but in a more general way.

I found out last week that an ex of mine, a police officer, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for misconduct in public office.

I've been wondering what life must be like for him, whether he will have to serve his full sentence as he is police, what kind of prison he'll be in. Will he still get his pension, as he was discharged with dishonour.

I found it so shocking. I haven't seen him for 30 years, but still I can't help imagining how he must feel having basically thrown his whole life away. He had been having an affair with a woman he met whilst he was investigating a crime against her. The affair had been going on for 11 years though, so it seems like a very harsh punishment to me, especially since he was sacked for it. I keep thinking how stupid he was to risk everything in that way and end up in prison. It's absolutely none of my business I know, but I keep thinking about what a fool he's been.

This thread is fascinating. I have spoken to a friend who's a prison officer who said that there will likely be money onWCs head, and a list of prisoners who want to do the honours.

I can’t quite get my head around how he thought he would get away with it (unless he thought that that the police were so hopeless they couldn’t catch a cold, or so corrupt that they’d cover for him), and if he was caught and sentenced, he must have known what his life would be like in prison.

Yes, I know that criminals often don’t think about consequences, and believe that they are smarter than the police... but this is a supposedly ‘sane’ man.

There's a really interesting podcast called Banged Up all about life inside UK prisons. Fascinating

Work in a prison ( B Cat ) for 10 years . Single or double cells . Metal bunk beds , metal toilet in room with a modesty guard which is basically a metal board at sitting waist height on the side of bunk beds . All meals on plastic plate with plastic knife / fork. Collected at a servery on the wing , eaten in cell. Yes they have a tv in cell.
General average day . 8.40am unlock from cell if going to education or prison work. 11.45 back to cell. Lunch + medication ( often drug related ) 1.30 unlock and education or work again, or visit . 4.30 back to cell . Evening meal . In my prison each wing does not get daily association ( time out of cell ) during that time they can get a shower , play pool , speak with others , visit gym if allowed .They could be for around 90 minutes. They back in cell . Repeat.