Visit to His Majesty’s Prison Stafford by a delegation from Stafford Burgesses.

17th November 2022.

Participants: John Edwards, Ant Piddock, Carol Lake, Michael Farmer, Michael Haywood. Paul Milgate, who had been asked because they requested photographs, was regrettably unable to take his camera into the prison, which defeated his primary reason for attendance. Terry Griffin and David Hanlon were expected, but were unable to attend.

There was some confusion, since we had not been asked to provide identification, but it was eventually resolved. Mobile phones and lighters were put in a locker.

We were taken to the Governor’s office and had a valuable discussion with him and Stephen, the officer who was to guide us round the prison. This helped put the status and policies of the prison into context and was far from what some of us had expected. One interesting fact was that under 1% of Stafford prisoners re-offend after release. The majority are various types of sex offenders.

We saw the “museum” area, containing quite a lot of the Victorian cells and artifacts, including memorabilia of some of the more notorious inmates. We heard about the ghosts that inhabit the prison, including seeing a door that one walks through, except that it is now a wall !! Laughing children have even been heard on phones when there aren’t any.

We then embarked on a tour of the prison buildings which are mostly updated Victorian supplemented by modern installations. The Stafford knot, in various forms, was evident throughout the prison. The officer who guided us around the site was a mine of information and had a considerable interest in both the past of the prison and other aspects of local history. We saw the accommodation blocks, including the only crescent shaped block in the country, together with standard and specialist cells. All seemed clean and tidy if somewhat claustrophobic, but that’s what being locked up means. There was a lot of open areas, canteen facilities with a commendable choice of menus.

There were several intriguing aspects that we were not expecting notably seeing goats in the garden area, a huge, exquisite mural painted by an inmate and the bit of railway track used to teach aspect of that trade. In the past, many prisoners were buried in the grounds which was originally grass. However, much of that area has been covered or built on, so the graves were identified by triangular markers on nearby walls. Male markers pointing upwards and female markers pointing down. There were quite a lot of graves which were at various depths and currently present problems when developing the site.

A wide range of training facilities are offered, which means that on release prisoners have recognised qualifications. They permit people to return more easily to society. The gardening areas, including some large greenhouses, provide further fruitful work. It was noted that many items like souvenir key rings or pens are often assembled in prisons and a range of carpentry work is undertaken.

We were surprised by the ages of some prisoners, with quite a lot of elderly people paying the penalties for offenses committed many years ago. Indeed, we were told that one person had reached the age of 104. This has created a need for a palliative care unit, which we visited. The services here were excellent with highly qualified medical and support staff. It was noted that without this, there would be further pressure on local health services and hospices.

We returned to the large inner courtyard area and took advantage of the café, which is used for the benefit of visitors and staff. The well-presented hot drinks and cakes made on the premises showed further that the prisoners involved would be valuable assets to the hospitality sector.

I had a glimpse of a preview book of poetry compiled by prisoners, at workshops run by a gentleman volunteer. They were not only very readable, but conveyed much about the experiences, psychology and aspirations of the authors.

A final visit to the Governor’s office permitted us to compliment him and the staff on the complex operation of dealing with some 750 prisoners, matching their requirements and capabilities for return to society, with little risk of re-offending. The thing that struck us was the total lack of understanding by the vast majority of Stafford residents about what happens behind the walls that they pass daily. Indeed, it is a parallel community with all the problems of the outside, but with the major requirements of security.

They are in a 200-year-old environment, but are having to cope with modern situations, like multiple faiths, languages and nationalities, as well as ‘trans-females’ that have to be integrated into a “male” prison. We were all impressed, but thought that working in an environment with so many locked doors, (and no mobile phones), is not for everyone. However, many of the staff have very long service and vast experience of the prison service.

Hopefully, we will be able to develop further our relationship with this institution, which like the burgesses, has history going back some 800 years. Indeed, King John’s Charter gave “My Burgesses of Stafford” authority for various judicial functions, which may have necessitated a Jail (Gaol) in the town.

The only disappointment was the limited take up from burgesses on this visit, but maybe another can be arranged in due course. Thanks to Carol for taking the initiative on this event that has been under discussion for several years.

John Edwards, Guild Master.