A captive audience

The Arts in Prisons event was amazing this afternoon. I’ve never seen a lecture theatre so full – I guess you could say it was a cell-out. (I know what you’re thinking, oh dear, anything but terrible puns...). Seriously though, I have never been so captivated by a talk as I was when previous inmate, Gary, told us about his love and passion for music.

The Irene Taylor trust runs several schemes to help those in prison to learn about music and help put their lives back on track.

Once the question and answer session began, there were a few questions that made me shift uncomfortably in my seat, and you could really feel the tension in the air. I remember some of them were, “Do you think that all prisoners deserve to have this opportunity?" and "Should they even have this chance in the first place?” Gary and Sara’s replies were that they aren’t judgmental so, regardless of what they’re serving time for, the prisoners deserve the chance to better themselves. As Gary says, “the punishment is loss of liberty. The prison sentence isn’t a punishment, it’s rehabilitation, to learn things and become a better person.” He then goes on to say, “It’s a bloody good thing to have in prisons,” which eased the tension slightly, though I was glad they left the questions there!

It was a very insightful hour in which I learnt a lot, especially about other people's opinions and attitudes towards criminals.

Lauren Raybould

Not so twisted

Iexpected the twisted art of serial killer John Wayne Gacy or the beauty of a back piece done with a sharpened bed spring. I was pleasantly surprised when a member of the Arts Alliance simply said that prisoners are humans too.

I was further surprised at how vocational the programs were for the Arts Alliance. I did not know that prisoners must fulfil specific educational requirements to take part in the program, nor that they must demonstrate that they are developing within their work.

By the end of the one hour session my scepticism was turned to optimism as I realised that the Art Alliance was a serious organisation for prisoners who seriously want to rehabilitate through hours of work (more than 20 a week) and who show consistent dedication.

John Marr

Mending social connections

It's Cultural eXchanges week at University. I headed to a talk on the use of arts in prisons. It was hosted by Arts Alliance, for whom art doesn't just mean painting, but drama, dance, music and writing as forms of art too. They believe that if crime is a broken social connection, and art is a largely social thing, the arts can help to rebuild that connection.

Many people believe that prisons are too luxurious for convicted criminals, to which Arts Alliance respond it's "not just a holiday camp". They explained that in every prison, education is contracted from outside the prison to teach the offenders. They then explained that classes in the arts probably take up less than 5% of the courses on offer, which they think is not enough at all.

Why are they so persistent about the need for classes in the arts? Because it has been proven that not only does it save public money on other forms of rehabilitation, but it also reduces the likelihood of a prisoner re-offending. Arts Alliance helps by training people to continue giving support to prisoners after their release.

There are also groups such as the Shannon Trust which work within prisons, encouraging more-able prisoners to mentor the less-able prisoners, in reading and writing etc. This can help prisoners who need to reach level 1 in Mathematics and Literacy before taking Arts classes. This is largely so that they can pick out those who will most likely excel on the course. (This may seem unfair but it was also made clear that exceptions are made for prisoners without level 1 in mathematics and literacy if they show show a great deal of enthusiasm and passion for art.) Arts Alliance insist that these classes not only teach a form of art, but also how to express ideas, responding to feedback, and working in a team, all vital skills.

My vote? The arts should be taught in prisons, because surely, if an offender has an interest in one of the arts, it would be easier to rehabilitate them and reduce the risk of re-offending.

Sarah Kate Beckett