The English Prison Officer 1850-1970 – A Study in Conflict

• The story of the English prison service and the role of the officer in its evolution is relevant to prison systems in all advanced societies and raises many controversial issues of importance to policy-makers in prison services
  
  
• A unique insight into the English prison system that is rich in detail

Very little has been written about prison staff. They have been discussed only in relation to achieving reformative and rehabilitative goals, and are frequently criticised for opposing these goals. It is natural that interest should be concentrated on the prisoner community, but prison staff must also be examined if prisons are to be fully understood.

The English Prison Officer: 1850-1970 – A Study in Conflict sets out to demonstrate that the central figure in any prison system is the basic grade uniformed officer and that the collective views of officers have a direct and supreme impact on the working of the system. Author J. E. Thomas discusses the role of the prison officer in the English prison system, a highly centralised organisation between the years 1850 to 1970.

The definition of new organisational tasks during this time brought considerable problems of adjustment for staff, which were never properly examined or understood, and which led to major crises. This story of the English prison service and the role of the officer in its evolution is relevant to prison systems in all advanced societies and raises many controversial issues of importance to policy-makers in prison services.

[custom_html] An analysis of the role that the rank-and-file prison officer had to play in the British prison system.
[/custom_html] 

[smallDescription]An analysis of the role that the rank-and-file prison officer had to play in the British prison system.
[/smallDescription]



[tabs] [tab title="AUTHOR(S)"]J. E. ‘Teddy’ Thomas is a graduate of the Universities of Oxford, London, York and Nottingham. During his time at Nottingham, he was a Robert Peers Professor of Adult Education, Dean of Education and Senior Pro Vice-Chancellor. He was elected Fellow of the Japan for the Promotion of Science. Thomas has written fourteen books, contributed to several others and written many articles on the history of Japan, Wales, education and penal systems. He lives in Nottinghamshire.



[/tab] [/tabs][collection.author]j-e-thomas[/collection.author][icon-new-always]