Discussion questions

In revising the issues raised in Chapter 11 you may wish to reflect on the following questions:

1. Is it fair to say that the current prison regime impacts more harshly on some groups of prisoners than others? If so, consider the ways in which equality of impact might be achieved?

Here you could discuss the social and personal costs of imprisonment of particular groups of prisoners. In considering ways of ameliorating the experience of these groups, you may wish to address the issue of whether policies should be gender or ethnicity tested for disparate impact. What would a gender-specific policy, for example, need to consider? How could racism be challenged more effectively? In Chapter 11 we focused on ethnic groups and women, but you could also consider this question in relation to older prisoners or disabled prisoners. You could also explore the issue of equality versus difference discussed at the beginning of Chapter 10 and the problem of equality of impact discussed in Chapter 8.

2.Are women punished differently from men and should they be?

In answering this question you would need to consider if there is any evidence of differential treatment of men and women and in doing so, consider the potentially disparate impact of apparently neutral policies. You should also consider the arguments for gender-specific policies and standards with particular consideration of the needs of prisoners with dependent children.

3. Is there any empirical evidence to suggest that the experiences of ethnic minorities in prison differ from those of non-minorities?

Here you may wish to focus on specific areas, the experience of harassment and victimization, and review the recent research on the perceptions of prisoners in different ethnic groups.

4. How has the Prison Service responded to the problem of racism in prisons?

Here you may wish to consider the formulation of race relations policies and Action Plans and their impact, the various measures to support ethnic minority prisoners and staff.

5.What are the main problems to be tackled if race equality within prisons is to be achieved?

Here you may wish to consider the problems of staff training and recruitment, resourcing of prison programmes, allocation of provision, and ways of increasing confidence in the complaints procedures, and also discuss the problem of maintaining improvements in the context of overcrowding and prison expansion.