Privatizing Prisons

This text provides an updated overview of the development of private sector involvement in penal practice in the UK, North America, Europe and Australia. It describes the first 18 months in the life of Wolds Remand Prison, the first private prison in Britain. This empirical study includes: a look at the daily life of remand prisoners; an assessment of the duties and morale of staff; a comparison of the workings of Wolds with a similar remit and population; a discussion of some of the practical and theoretical issues to have emerged from contracting out; an examination of the ethical issues surrounding the whole privatization debate; and a consideration of the implications for the future of the prison system and penal policy.

Author Biography

Professor Adrian James is Emeritus Professor of Applied Social Sciences at the University of Sheffield.  Alison Liebling is a criminologist at the University of Cambridge and the director of the Institute of Criminology’s Prisons Research Centre. Her main interests lie in the changing form and effects of imprisonment, the role of values in criminal justice, and the role of safety, trust, and fairness in shaping the prison experience. Her program of research has measured the moral quality of prison life, the effectiveness of suicide prevention strategies in prison, and values, practices, and outcomes in public and private sector corrections. Her most recent research is on prison privatization and staff–prisoner relationships and prisoner social organization in high security prisons.