AUTHOR'S RECOMMENDATIONS

HER MAJESTY'S YOUNG OFFENDERS INSTITUTION, NEAR NETTLEBED, OXON

Reintroduce Approved Schools, Detention Centres, Attendance Centres and 'boot camp-style' Borstals for young offenders and juveniles - many Borstal inmates enjoyed the disciplined regimes - and, for the first time in some cases, order came into their lives.

Introduce fixed-by-law minimum sentences for most crimes -irrespective of the offender's antecedents and offending history to date, (it's working with gun crime)

All new-build prisons must have the modern-style non-opening windows, to prevent & disrupt passing of drugs etc from cell-to-cell, or from 'red bands' working in the grounds, to cells - essential to incorporate drugs treatment and rehabilitation wings in new-builds, these convicts must have no contact whatever with prisoners on other wings.

Ligature fixing-point-free windows and totally flush walls, ceilings and door frames - sink units to be filled and lavatories to be flushed by floor-mounted, railway toilet-style stainless steel foot pumps.

All visits halls to have US-style closed visits with view-family-through toughened glass screens, with fixed-to-floor seats on convict side and telephone handset communication from both sides.

Increase use/convert/new-build of military-style dormitories in HMP's -Double-up occupancy of en-suite cells in existing establishments, with steel bunk beds bolted to floor.

Install strong loo-privacy screen if thought desirable or necessary.

For Police and Home Office etc. statistical documentation - introduce an NCR paper, multi-page, multi-purpose, tick-box only form -alternatively utilise civilian staff in police stations to transpose or programme computers from tickbox format - thus freeing-up front line police officers for operational street duties.

Abolish the maximum age limit for Special Constabulary recruits -leave to Chief Constables' discretion as to physical fitness of individual applicants - police officers retire early and a whole bank of valuable, long-term police experience could be utilised - many police pensioners would flock to Police Forces in response to this. Consider half-normal pay scale for these very experienced personnel.

Call Youth Offending Team managers to account monthly for their achievements or failures - introduce key performance indicators (kpi's) for this purpose.

Dispense with central sentencing advisory panels who are far too liberal and out-of-touch, and replace with a senior Parliamentary Committee of legally-qualified MP's with modern investigative and forensic techniques.

 Ban all taxis for prisoner movements, such as hospital visits and inter-prison visits for maintaining family ties - too easy to hijack prisoner from escort staff by forcing unshackling at gun point.

 Prisoner-possession of a mobile telephone to be a serious HMP disciplinary offence, (many drugs deals arranged this way) Absolutely all detected drugs offences in HM Prison Service to be dealt with by specially trained Visiting Magistrates Boards only (internal adjudication awards by individual governors are ludicrously liberal, lenient, and of virtually no deterrent value whatever and prison-wing to prison-wing and convict-to-convict communication systems are amazingly super-swift, far-surpassing modern comms systems! - Viz: news of meaningful and salutary warning awards by Visiting Magistrates would have far more deterrent value).

 All custodial establishments must have 2 drugs dogs - one active, the other passive - each with its own separate handler-officer (currently at some custodial establishments, just one prison officer dog handler has access to 1 active & 1 passive dog - but of course, can only use 1 dog or the other at any one time). This would obviate non-availability of lone handler on alternate weekends off duty, under normal shift patterns (High quantity of drugs ingress occurs on visiting days - which are mostly on Saturdays and Sundays - totally unacceptable if every visitor to prisoners at these vulnerable-to-drugs-ingress times is left unscreened by drug-sniffer dogs.).

Immediately abolish Civil Service cross-hierarchal transfers into HM Prison Service - the Service currently ends up with totally inadequate, inexperienced, mild-mannered, gentle and delicate-natured, junior prison governors, who are brilliant at paper-shuffling, but lack the essential, focused, man-management skills - unique and essential for the prison environment - which can only be learned from several years working on the actual wing landings, (short, Civil Service cross-hierarchal conversion courses are a total waste of time and money)

MAIN GATES TO HMP WANDSWORTH, TRINITY ROAD, LONDON SW