25 signatures reached
To: Ministry Of Justice, all HMP prisons
A voice for prisoners & families
• Release unconvicted prisoners on remand
• Unrestricted phone calls
• Video links for families with small children
• Email a prisoner reply
• Free writing materials
Why is this important?
The government ordered lockdown on the 24th March 2020 to stem the outbreak of Covid-19. Since then, the impact on prisoners and their families has become a cause for concern.
Government guidance on social distancing, self isolating and other hygiene procedures is being applied to prisons [1]. But there is opportunity for a virus to enter into a prison and for it to also re-enter into the public. This could result in prisoners and prison staff becoming ill, which means the care of duty may be compromised. Once Covid-19 enters a prison it may spread due to the dense conditions inside the prisons [2] - it is more challenging to apply social distancing measures in confined spaces, like prisons.
Covid-19 may be more difficult to control in prison environments. It’s important that prisoners receive support with government guidance, such as, on the symptoms of the virus, so they know when they need to contact medical staff. Many prisoners, like the wider population, have health conditions putting them in to the vulnerable category. Medical staff are stretched at the best of times and mental health of both staff and prisoners may suffer.
Since the recent lock down all prison visits have been suspended. While completely necessary, this means the only way prisoners can have contact with the ones they love are on the phone or through letters. Provisions have not been put in place to keep family connections, for example, extra phones but as yet, nothing has happened.
There are many campaigns about releasing unconvicted prisoners on remand to help reduce the dense populations in prisons. I agree with these campaigners as my loved one is one of them. These men and women are, as the law states, “Innocent until proven guilty”.
The media is filled with concern, closing schools, cancelling sporting events etc. but little has been said about the most vulnerable sectors of our population, the people in our prisons. These men and women are forgotten about. When will someone see the importance for prisoners to be able to keep up with family bonds.
Prisoners aren’t just a number on a spread sheet or a figure of statistic, they are human beings just like you and I .
