I really try to be positive but I am finding it so difficult as a visitor at High Down and a wife trying to keep things together.

Last week when I visited I was informed by an officer that he and others felt the prisoners were just dumped inside and forgotten about, he also said that included the staff.  I fully agree.    

When I said they were employing new staff he said 'who told you that? Don't believe what is written'.

He also said what is happening is that the older experienced prison officers are looking for other employment and getting out as soon as they can. 

I do appreciate that this happens in all work situations but feel that not enough is being done for prison officers who want to do their job and be awarded for a good job undertaken. 

My concern is if they are just bringing in staff because they have to, they are not going to get dedicated and caring people who take a pride in their work.

Prisoners are still being locked up for up to 24 hours. My other half only last week was in his cell and not out for all of last Friday.

I admit not all of the prisoners want to or are willing to work but it strikes me that the ones that do want to are stopped by not having prison officers to cover workshops when they are either ill or on holiday which again is not good for either the prison officers or the prisoners as frustration kicks in and who can blame them?

On most occasions post is not being dealt with as it should, especially via the e-post system as this is meant to be a quicker way of keeping in contact.  I still wait sometimes up to 10 days for an e-post letter and then they are not always in sequence or I get the same letter twice.

When I first started to go to the prison having never been in this situation in my life the only people that made me feel human and a person was the volunteers in the visitors centre. Without a couple of the women in there taking the time to listen to me and mop my tears and explain everything, I don't know how I would have coped.

I spend my waking days just worried and concerned about how my person and others are ever going to come out of their situation with any hope of settling back down or even feeling any part of society.  They do not stand a chance and neither do their families and partners whoever they are and what ever they have done.

I now worried about when a transfer will happen as last week men were transferred out of High Down with no notice and no chance to contact their families to let them know they were being moved - this happened as they were on their way to work. 

For me, the visiting has improved.  It is much better and very well managed, credit to the prison officers for this.

Of course the people on the outside can only say they all deserve what they get, and, yes, people are in for a reason and, yes, they should be punished.  But I truly believe this Government are making huge rods for their own backs as no work is done with prisoners to manage or work on their offending behaviour.

I do not now believe in our systems - either police, barristers, solicitors or anyone else.

Name and address supplied

 


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