The mass isolation regime imposed on UK prisons during the pandemic has caused a mental health crisis in prisons and put public safety at risk, according to one of the largest studies of prisoner experiences ever carried out.
Based on a detailed survey of more than 1,400 prisoners in 10 prisons, carried out by teams of peer researchers who were themselves prisoners, the study provides an unprecedented insight into the emergency lockdown conditions introduced in UK prisons when it was feared they would become hotspots for the Covid -19 virus.
It found that 85% of prisoners reported being locked in their cells for more than 23 hours a day for often months, while their access to rehabilitation programs, family visits and regular exercise was largely cut off. It actually subjects prisoners to “one of the most extreme detention regimes in the world,” the study said.
Prisoners describe how Covid isolation has affected their mental health – video
It clearly records the “widespread trauma” inflicted on prisoners as the prolonged isolation and boredom of long prison terms turned prison life into a “groundhog’s day” and affected the mental state of the prisoners. There are disturbing accounts of self-harm, suicide, suicidal thoughts, widespread despair and spiraling anxiety.
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Depression and anxiety scores among prisoners dramatically increase in solitary confinement and are almost five times higher than in the general population, the study found. Using standardized mental health measures, more than a third of inmates scored at the level of severe anxiety disorder.
While the study said the strict conditions “probably saved lives” at the height of the pandemic, it added that in many prisons aspects of the regime were still largely in place despite the lifting of Covid restrictions on the rest of society. In February, half of the inmates reported they were still locked up for 23 hours a day.
Mark Johnson, the founder of User Voice, the charity which carried out the peer review for the study, said the fallout from the prison lockdown regime would be a “time bomb for mental health” as traumatized and unstable ex-offenders return to society , without having received rehabilitation or support.
“Does an underfunded and understaffed criminal justice system that simply locks people up and precipitates mental health crises actually cost more in the long run?” If prisons are just locks and keys and offer nothing more, how safe are prisoners and society when they are released?” asks Johnson in the study’s foreword.
The Ministry of Justice has defended its Covid regime against accusations that it was disproportionate. It said that up to June this year, a total of 200 inmates had died within 60 days of testing positive for Covid-19 or having Covid-19 listed as a contributing factor in their deaths – far fewer than the 2,700 potential victims. modeled by Public Health England.
A Prison Service spokesman said: “Our firm but necessary actions during the pandemic have saved the lives of many staff and prisoners – and we have been quick to introduce measures such as video conferencing and in-cell training, recognizing the impact. We continue to increase mental health support and improve staff training, and our prison strategy sets out a clear vision to provide all offenders with the education, skills and support they need to get back on track.”
The study challenges official claims that, while solitary confinement conditions are inevitably draconian, they also reduce violence and succeed in “bringing peace” to prisons. More than half of prisoners disagreed, saying verbal abuse and coercion had increased but had gone largely unnoticed and the risk of riots and disorder had increased.
Most inmates believe prison conditions have remained the same or worsened since the pandemic, with Covid being used as an “excuse” to cover up a crisis in staffing and resources. “The general consensus … was that lockdown restrictions are not a historical aberration … but are about to become the new normal for those in prison,” the study said.
Overseen by academics from Queen’s University Belfast and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, the study was based on surveys and focus groups in a geographically diverse range of facilities from high-security prisons to open prisons, women’s prisons and youth institutes criminals. The surveys were conducted between June 2021 and February with the assistance of prison authorities.
The findings were not universally negative, with inmates praising instances where authorities responded quickly to Covid outbreaks, for example, or the introduction of cell phones or video links in some prisons to try to compensate for the loss of family visits.
Peter Dawson, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said the survey confirmed anecdotal reports of prison conditions over the past two-and-a-half years. “Lockdown in prisons is both more extreme and much longer than in the community. Its impact on mental health has been catastrophic and rehabilitation work has stopped.’
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In the UK you can contact Samaritans on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org. You can contact the mental health charity Mind by calling 0300 123 3393 or visiting mind.org.uk
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