Thread by @WillHayCardiff

I took a look at what the realities have been in Welsh prisons during the pandemic and the findings are horrible.

Reading accounts from prisoners (I tried to get interviews but was refused) and speaking to volunteers who inspect the prisons paints a grim picture.

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The first thing to say is that Welsh prisons have in the main done a decent job in keeping Covid out of prisons.

There could have been a catastrophic loss of life and there wasn't.

However this loss of life was prevented by some pretty brutal restrictions on inmates with the vast majority of the courses, skills classes and rehabilitation inmates normally get totally shut down.

Plus most inmates spend about 23 hours a day in a cell. Eating, pissing and sleeping in a cell no bigger than some people's bathrooms (with another person).

Other services that came to a creaking halt with the arrival of Covid were services like resettlement which are all about preparing inmates for a successful release such as making sure they have somewhere to live and a bank account when they go out.

Careers for example is also stopped in many places.

This is really important in the prison because it is a fact that if men go out and get a job they are much less likely to reoffend and come back into the prison.

On top of this there is the choice between a call with your family and a shower.

At Cardiff Prison men have 45 minutes out of the cell in the morning and 45 minutes in the afternoon.

In that time they are expected to to shower exercise and make a phone call. but there are only about three phones on the wing and each slot has about three dozen men out.

You can imagine the queue for the phone and the issues that arise when people are getting frustrated that their time out of the cell is coming to an end and they haven't made their call.

You can't over emphasize the importance of keeping family contact. The statistics are absolutely clear that the men who keep in contact with their family are much more likely to be successful when they are released from prison.

As we have all learned from Covid, severely limiting the amount that people can interact with others, get fresh air, exercise and see their families can have a catastrophic impact on even the most well adjusted people's mental health.

Some prisoners have to complete certain courses as part of their conditions for release. But these courses are not running so they are stuck inside.

Every time I do a piece on prisons I am bombarded with messages saying "who cares, it is what they deserve".

But ultimately, whatever their crimes, these people are the responsibility of the state.

The cost of not rehabilitating or them leaving prison with addiction and mental issues stretches beyond the human cost to them but also to society.

A revolving door justice system is sure to create more victims and not fewer.

You can read the full article here:

walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-new…