Prison Governors

This book provides the first systematic study of prison governors - a hidden and powerful, but much neglected, group of criminal justice practitioners. Its focus is on how they carry out their task, how that has changed over time and how their role has evolved.The author, himself a former prison governor, describes how prison governance has changed since governors were first appointed in the in the fourteenth century. The book examines a number of internal and external factors that have been influential in changing their contemporary working environment - in particular the development of New Public Management, the changing status of prisoners and the development of the concept of prisoner's rights, the increasing scrutiny of the press and politicians, 'competitive' elements introduced by privatization of the penal institutions, and the introduction of risk management approaches.Based on extensive research, including interviews with 42 prison governors, this book also describes the demographic characteristics of the sample of governors interviewed, including their social origins, educational and occupational backgrounds, their motivation for joining the prison service, their career paths, and their values and beliefs. The author goes on to explore how governors provide the necessary management, leadership, regulation and balance to achieve secure, humane and positive institutions.He concludes with a number of important suggestions for changes that should be made to policy and practice in the light of the findings, and explores the implications for how our prisons should be governed in the future.