Will Market Harborough become the UK's Prison Capital?

 

The policy of creating 20,000 new prison places has been subject to precious little public debate at national level, with seemingly broad political agreement that they're necessary. There’s more scrutiny at local level thanks to the need to obtain planning permission for any new or expanded prison establishments

Last week the Ministry of Justice (MoJ)  published a revised prospectus about their proposed 1715 place  Category B prison next to HMP Gartree in Leicestershire.  It aims to address concerns raised in the 350 comments received by Harborough District Council following the MoJ’s application for outline planning permission. Of these 346 objected to the plans, three were neutral and only one supportive.

For many, “the fundamental problem is that the proposed development would be absurdly out of scale with the small rural communities surrounding the site” with increased pressure on country roads, more noise, light and air pollution, and a negative impact on wildlife.  One argued that “the term "nimby" does not apply here - we ALREADY have a prison in our back yard!” but concerns about the impact on house prices, the reputation of the area as the prison capital of the UK and an increased demand on local services- particularly the NHS and the sewerage system seem widespread.  

One or two are worried about security - “the risks of riots and escapes inevitably increases the larger and more impersonal the establishments”; about visitors hanging around the town centre and even relatives of inmates moving into the area to be close by “which has led to increases in local crime placing an even greater burden on an already stretched police force”. Homelessness among released prisoners was also raised.

There are some more principled objections. One argues that prisons are a human right violation, a disgusting stain on our 'civilised' society and that we need abolition. Another that in order to address crime “there needs to be a massive re-distribution of wealth and resources, as poverty is a massive driver of "crime" under capitalism.

More practically, several residents questioned how 737 new staff will be found for the new prison. Gartree’s existing 700 place prison struggles to recruit and retain people to work there.  One said the plan “does not do anything for the government’s policy of levelling up as it brings more jobs to an area of already high employment as opposed to giving the opportunity to put those jobs where they are actually needed.”

Another resident pointed out that “those who support the current prison in the town, Chaplains and volunteers are in extremely short supply. People from the churches in town who support the prisoners by buying Christmas presents for their children, could in no way help another very large group of prisoners”. 

Several felt the government should be working much harder to reduce prison populations, and that money would be better spent on the more effective rehabilitation of offenders and not just locking more prisoners up; that “this is an outrageous use of funds which need to be invested in public health”; and that "further investment in meaningful jobs, social housing, education provision for adults and children, child care support, local libraries, transport infrastructure, improved community treatment and voluntary rehabilitation services would all serve the community much better than a prison".

The government’s new prospectus makes much of the social value and community benefits that will accrue from the prison and contains commitments to some small scale neighbourhood improvements – a new play space for Gartree Village on MoJ owned land and better broadband among them.

It understandably steers clear of the bigger policy questions on imprisonment, saying only that “Protecting the community and getting criminals off the streets whilst delivering real rehabilitation opportunities and reducing reoffending is at the core of the Government’s prison building programme”. 

Whether its mitigations on environmental impacts, measures to manage pressures on local services and promises to improve communication with local residents persuade the council to allow the development remains to be seen.