Crime and Punishment / 1947-present

Crime and Punishment: Modern Prison Problems

Modern prisons face overcrowding, violence and high reoffending, so people keep asking whether they work.

What To Remember

Modern prisons struggled with overcrowding from the 1980s and, according to the workbook, every year from 1994.
The prison population roughly doubled between 1993 and 2015, increasing pressure on staff, buildings and education.
Violence, deaths, drugs, poor education and reoffending all weakened the reforming purpose of prison.

Inside prison

Overcrowding means more prisoners competing for the same cells, staff, education and healthcare.

Budget cuts and recruitment problems made staffing shortages worse in recent years.

With fewer staff, it is harder to prevent assaults, stop drugs entering prisons and supervise prisoners safely.

Reform problems

Education is supposed to help prisoners gain skills and avoid crime after release.

In 2014, the workbook states that Ofsted judged over half of prisons inadequate for education.

This matters because prisoners who leave without skills, housing or support may return to the same conditions that helped cause their crime.

Does prison work?

Prison can punish offenders and protect the public by removing dangerous people from society.

However, it is expensive, separates families and does not always deal with poverty, addiction, mental health or unemployment.

A strong GCSE answer weighs protection and punishment against the evidence of overcrowding and reoffending.

Why do people still question whether prisons work?