Great Minds Think Alike!
A few months ago i began telling people of my dream to create my own prison. This prison would house those who had committed summary or triable either way offences and rehabilitate them from reoffending or their crimes stepping up to indictable, at which point their riminal records would prevent them from ever being able to move on (and some would say, why should they be able to?).
I've always felt that of all prisoners in the country, not every single one can be a heartles, ruthless evil human being. I have always believed that some see crime as their only option, in fact some homeless commit offences so that they may have a place to stay and 3 meals a day. My plan was based on the idea of teaching the method of working hard and saving money to build up what you have. It takes elements of rehabilitation schemes i've seen here and there and takes them up a level.
Every prisoner has the right to somewhere to sleep, access to a toilet and shower, an hours exercise a day and 3 meals a day. While this sounds lovely, the prisons often aim to keep the beds, meals, toilets and showers to a terrible standard. My prison would give the necessary rights and they would be as awful as they are in other prisons. However, prisoners would have another option.
Instead of simply wasting their days mooching around, they would be given the oppotunity to get a job within the prison. This would not only involve jobs around the prison but also making toys for children (which is courrently dne in one of the worlds toughest prisons in America) and other small jobs. They would earn money from these jobs and could use the money to buy better meals, buy nicer pillows and even pay to go back into education or recieve training so that when they leave prison, they leave better educated. Now allow me to be clear, this money would not be physical paper, nor would it be a currency that could be used anywhere outside the prison (this prevents the money being used for offences), it would be virtual and shown on a screen when you enter the prisoners ID code. The money would have to be spent by the prisoner in person only, who tells the "money officer" wat they want to buy, who then handles te purchase and billing of the product. All prisoners would have a list of purchase and so if a prisoner is seen using an item he has never bought, it would subsquenly be removed.
While there are clearly many flaws, it is far frm my set plan and simply the outline of a dream of mine. However, i was disappointed to discover that the UK doesn't allow private prisons and so if i ever wished to build my dream, i would have to take a trip to America. Still, it will be many years until i begin my plan and so the UK has plenty of time to change it's legislation!
What pushed me to tell you all this is when read an article on the BBC about a woman in America who had gone and done my idea first! Though no where near as extreme and complicated as my idea, Catherine Rohr is going to prisons and teaching business to convicts, has created the Prison Entrepreneurship Program and, most importantly, is succeeding. Many convicts have found themselves business ideas, which they get to pitch to business executives and often have earned to new skills and training to start their own businesses!
I have decided that if the program is still around when i'm older, than i shall pitch my prison idea to Mrs Rohr and see what she thinks!
Robyn xxx
Turning crack dealers into chief executives: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7839957.stm
I've always felt that of all prisoners in the country, not every single one can be a heartles, ruthless evil human being. I have always believed that some see crime as their only option, in fact some homeless commit offences so that they may have a place to stay and 3 meals a day. My plan was based on the idea of teaching the method of working hard and saving money to build up what you have. It takes elements of rehabilitation schemes i've seen here and there and takes them up a level.
Every prisoner has the right to somewhere to sleep, access to a toilet and shower, an hours exercise a day and 3 meals a day. While this sounds lovely, the prisons often aim to keep the beds, meals, toilets and showers to a terrible standard. My prison would give the necessary rights and they would be as awful as they are in other prisons. However, prisoners would have another option.
Instead of simply wasting their days mooching around, they would be given the oppotunity to get a job within the prison. This would not only involve jobs around the prison but also making toys for children (which is courrently dne in one of the worlds toughest prisons in America) and other small jobs. They would earn money from these jobs and could use the money to buy better meals, buy nicer pillows and even pay to go back into education or recieve training so that when they leave prison, they leave better educated. Now allow me to be clear, this money would not be physical paper, nor would it be a currency that could be used anywhere outside the prison (this prevents the money being used for offences), it would be virtual and shown on a screen when you enter the prisoners ID code. The money would have to be spent by the prisoner in person only, who tells the "money officer" wat they want to buy, who then handles te purchase and billing of the product. All prisoners would have a list of purchase and so if a prisoner is seen using an item he has never bought, it would subsquenly be removed.
While there are clearly many flaws, it is far frm my set plan and simply the outline of a dream of mine. However, i was disappointed to discover that the UK doesn't allow private prisons and so if i ever wished to build my dream, i would have to take a trip to America. Still, it will be many years until i begin my plan and so the UK has plenty of time to change it's legislation!
What pushed me to tell you all this is when read an article on the BBC about a woman in America who had gone and done my idea first! Though no where near as extreme and complicated as my idea, Catherine Rohr is going to prisons and teaching business to convicts, has created the Prison Entrepreneurship Program and, most importantly, is succeeding. Many convicts have found themselves business ideas, which they get to pitch to business executives and often have earned to new skills and training to start their own businesses!
I have decided that if the program is still around when i'm older, than i shall pitch my prison idea to Mrs Rohr and see what she thinks!
Robyn xxx
Turning crack dealers into chief executives: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7839957.stm
1 comments:
You don't have to be older for people to listen to you. Keep working on solutions! So many have grown old and only think everything is a problem, rather than an opportunity for a solution. Keep up the Good work!
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