Prisons, Prison Officers and Prisoners’ Families – Full Report

Published: March 2022

The research aimed to understand the translation of the rhetoric around the importance of families of prisoners and their role, their experiences, and the impact a member’s imprisonment can have on families, into policy and practice through the specific example of the SPS Family Strategy.

It does so by firstly outlining the good practice that is taking place in relation to families of prisoners across the five prisons who took part in the research. It then goes on to look at where the rhetoric does not always match the operational reality of working with families in prisons and the constraints that the system and prison culture can place on staff.

Finally, it explores some of the learning that has come from Covid 19 in relation to families of prisoners.

Authors / Editors

Dr Kirsty Deacon

Scottish Children's Reporter Administration

Research Themes

Punishment, Citizenship and Communities

Related Publications

March 2022

Prisons, Prison Officers and Prisoners’ Families – Briefing Paper

The current Scottish Prison Service (SPS) Family Strategy was published in 2017 and runs until 2022. During the four years […]