In prison and offline: Internet shortage exacerbates prison crisis in Britain

One solution, charities and experts say, could be to change the purpose of prisons, focusing on rehabilitation rather than punishment, while bridging the digital divide to give inmates the chance to learn and prepare for life outside again.

During the coronavirus pandemic, many schools and other educational institutions went online, but prisons did not follow suit.

Only 18 of 117 prisons in England and Wales have the necessary cabling or hardware to support broadband, according to a 2021 study, posing learning difficulties for British prisoners while digitization in prisons looks promising elsewhere.

In Finland and Australia, research suggests that digital access improves inmates' relationships inside and outside prison, gives them a greater sense of autonomy and increases their overall wellbeing, which the UK government says can significantly reduce recidivism rates.

The Shannon Trust, a charity that teaches prisoners literacy and numeracy, said the new government should prioritise broadband internet access for educational purposes.

“If we were able to deliver literacy and numeracy programs in prisons digitally, we could reach more people, save resource costs and teach prison inmates how to use digital tools,” Amy Longstaff, communications manager at the Shannon Trust, which provides teaching resources to prisoners, told Context.

The Ministry of Justice announced that measures had been taken to address the prison crisis and that the necessary new, modern prisons would be built.

“We are also determined to reduce recidivism rates, including through better education and employment opportunities,” it said in a statement to Context.

PCS in prisons

James Tweed, head of digital learning company Coracle, which provides prisoners with access to education, said the fact that many prisons were built in the Victorian era and there were budget constraints meant the digital age had passed them by.

“The government is dealing with a prison system that is in crisis,” said Tweed. “It is vital that prisoners can access digital resources and develop digital skills that will better prepare them for life after release.”

Installing broadband infrastructure in the country's prisons would cost about £100 million ($130 million), according to the Centre for Social Justice think tank.

Yet the social and economic cost of reoffending is around £18 billion, and research by prison charity The Clink shows that prisoners who take distance learning courses are less likely and less likely to reoffend than those who do not.

According to British government figures, for every 100 prisoners who complete higher education, the number of prisoners found to reoffend within a year of release is four to five fewer than for those who do not.

For David Breakspear, a 54-year-old former prisoner in Kent, access to digital education would have made a huge difference.

“To be honest, if I had had a laptop in prison, I don't think I would have left my cell,” he told Context via email. “I would be so busy studying that I wouldn't have time for anything else.”

Breakspear spent over 40 years in 15 different prisons and had to finish his studies in prison because he dropped out of school.

“The lack of access to digital technology made distance learning in prison extremely difficult,” he said.

The UK has experimented with so-called smart prisons, whose main aims are to educate, train and create jobs for released prisoners, but due to management errors the results have been poor.

For example, at Five Wells Prison in Northamptonshire, tablets were provided to inmates for teaching purposes, but staff did not give inmates regular access to the virtual campus and the tablets were not allowed to be used to look for jobs, according to a report by the prison chief published in January.

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Outside the UK, “smart prisons” have been tested and rolled out after trial runs. For example, Finland opened its first smart prison in the southern Finnish city of Hämeenlinna in 2021.

Prisoners have access to a digital bulletin board, electronic books and teaching materials. They can also use the Internet to contact prison staff and their families and to obtain legal assistance.

Last year, Pyhäselkä and Kylmäkoski prisons were also equipped with intelligent systems. There are plans to implement this in all closed prisons in the country.

Finland used the pandemic as an opportunity to develop the model because face-to-face meetings were restricted, says Pia Puolakka, a psychologist at the Smart Prison Project at the Finnish Criminal Sanctions Agency.

Today, smart prisons provide inmates with e-books and rehabilitation materials, as well as access to 300 to 400 websites offering online courses and other educational content.

“(Prisoners) can study or rehabilitate on their own. This is a great advantage. It builds a bridge to the outside society so (they) learn what civilian life is like and acquire digital skills,” Puolakka told Context.

A similar project is currently underway in the Australian state of New South Wales, where almost all prisons are equipped with technology in their cells and inmates have Android tablets so they can have family visits via video call, participate in online group programs and access distraction-free spaces for activities.

Puolakka believes that appropriate security measures and training of inmates and staff are necessary.

“The Finnish prison system has understood for 20 years that prisons should serve as a place of rehabilitation,” she said.

“(But) the technical part is not the only thing you need to be successful. There has to be relevant content regarding the needs and risks of prisoners, and there has to be a change in prison culture.”

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(Reporting by Adam Smith; Editing by Clar Ni Chonghaile.)