Gendering Jail Craft: Are we Preparing Officers for the Realities of Women’s Prisons?

• In Event: PWG - Staff perspectives on detained persons

Abstract

There has been a broad shift towards the professionalisation of the prison officer, acknowledging the complexities and challenges of the role. Alongside this, the emergence of ‘gendered-justice’ has seen provisions for the specialist training of staff working with criminalised women, including Women’s Estate Specific Training, designed for prison officers new to the Women’s Estate in England and Wales. Whilst it has been acknowledged that working in the women’s estate is experienced as a distinctive role, there are few explorations of the significance of training and the development of officers following ‘gender-informed’ input. Using data generated from focus groups and reflective interviews, this paper explores the perceptions, experiences, and operationalisation of training of 10 graduate officers over their first 12 months in a women’s prison.

Author

• Sarah Waite, Leeds Beckett University