Co-producing the development of Later Life Groups in prison

Contributors: 

Ahmed, prisoner 

Jolie Goodman, Programmes Manager for Empowerment & Later Life, Mental Health Foundation.

Jamie Bennet Governor HMP Grendon and Spring Hill

Jolie: The Mental Health Foundation has a decade of expertise in peer support and self-management initiatives, including running self-management groups at Parc Prison Wales.  I have managed the Standing Together project, facilitating peer groups in the later life housing sector. 

I’m co-producing the development of later life groups with staff and prisoners at Grendon and Spring Hill Prisons. I want to use the blog to reflect on the process and through conversations with a prisoner, Ahmed and Jamie Bennett the Governor of both prisons. Grendon is a closed therapeutic prison and Spring Hill, is an open prison. 

Prisons are major providers of social care for men in the country. The later life groups will be a combination of self-management and peer approaches., using the expertise of prison staff and prisoners to co-produce this work, through meetings, focus groups and a loneliness survey. 

Ahmed: During my experience in my role as Diversity and Equalities orderly I have spoken to many prisoners over the age of 50 about the stresses of being in prison and the impact this would have later in their life when they are released back into the community.

Bringing people together and enabling them to know that they are not alone is a form of empowerment and connection that I have experienced through group-work in prison. The recent focus group that took place in HMP Springhill showed the need of such an initiative. Residents are eager to be involved and are looking forward to the next step in the introduction of the loneliness survey.

Jamie: Prisons are having to respond to the needs of a changing population, including the rapid growth in the number of older prisoners. As a result, prisons are considering how they adapt. For example, how does the physical environment have to alter? What activities should be provided? What help do people need for life after prison? Which organisations does the prison need to connect with?

Although working with professional experts is part of the answer to these questions, much of this can come from the men themselves. They have hopes and aspirations for the future. They have time and energy to invest. They have skills and talents to contribute. 

Developing the capacity for self-help and empowerment is a way of improving the quality of service we provide and enabling the men to use their individual and collective abilities to support each other. 

Jolie: The findings  of the co-produced loneliness surveys will support and shape the funding bids for the later life groups.