Humanities Students Step into the Shoes of Former Criminals
On Tuesday 1st November, A Level Psychology and Sociology students from Cronton Sixth Form College experienced a fascinating insight into a life in prison, at the ‘Life Behind Bars’ conference in Manchester.
The trip was organised to challenge students’ own prejudice and perception of criminals, their rights to education and employment.
They spent the day with a forensic psychologist and a group of offenders, who between them have served sentences ranging between four and twenty-four years. The humanities students spent the afternoon interacting with and interviewing various offenders from a range of different social backgrounds. The former prisoners discussed their experiences of prison life, the crime they committed and the psychological effects of labelling.
Imogen Skinner, formerly of University Academy Warrington, said “I found the trip very eye-opening as I got to interact with people who have experienced the prison system first-hand, in particular how bullying and segregation occurs regularly in prisons. The whole surprise of who the murderer really was has taught me not to judge a person; everyone has a story and their actions don’t always come from a bad place.”
Jordan Dearden, a former pupil at Wade Deacon High School, said “I felt that the trip opened my eyes to the reality of the criminal justice system, and how seemingly normal people can be convicted of terrible crimes despite how innocent others may believe they are. Every story touched me, especially hearing it from an ex-criminal’s own perspective. I firmly believe that each person we spoke with is a genuinely good person today.”
Laura Trew, a former student at Penketh High School, commented “It was really interesting to learn how prisons had such little support for offenders once they leave prison. It was hard to learn how mental health patients have had to go through tough experiences which were out of their control. Overall, I really enjoyed the experience.”
Alicia Henigan, formerly of Bellerive FCJ Catholic College, added “It was a good insight into what prisons are like and gave me ideas and concepts on how the government can develop and improve rehabilitation in prisons across the UK. It also taught me not to judge a person by the way they look or their past experiences. We need to start educating our prisoners and society to give offenders a second chance and make employment more accessible for them upon release to reduce reoffending.“