High-risk prisoners sit GCSE English – and many outperform peers on outside

Prisoners serving long sentences at one of the UK’s most secure jails have sat GCSE English and outperformed many of their peers on the outside.

More than three-quarters (78%) of the small cohort of prisoners who sat the exam at HMP Frankland in County Durham secured a pass at grade 4 or above – equivalent to a C – which is almost three times the success rate for resits in further education colleges in England, according to their teachers.

Their success was achieved despite their studies being restricted by their circumstances. The prisoners had just a year to complete the course, which was condensed into one three-and-a-half hour session each week and – unlike the average GCSE candidate – they were permitted zero access to the internet.

One found himself studying for his GCSE at the same time as his son, which proved a bonding experience during family phone calls.

Jo Watmore, the education manager at HMP Frankland, said: “People often ask me what’s the point of giving classes to people who are not going to be released for years, if at all, but I think their punishment is being locked up and this is about providing meaningful, purposeful activity for some of the hardest to reach people in society, to give them a chance to progress and develop themselves.

“Education is a way to help them change their mindset and change the way they view themselves and society and, after all, the majority do get out eventually and have to rejoin the community.

“Studies have shown education helps prisoners become more settled, less aggressive and even less likely to self-harm.”

Frankland holds male prisoners over the age of 21, including high-risk remand prisoners and category A inmates thought to pose the greatest threat to the public, police or national security. Many are serving life sentences and whole-life tariffs.

The GCSE classes were run by teachers from Milton Keynes College Group, one of the largest providers of prison education in England, working with 29 prisons.

Nine prisoners, all of whom are serving long sentences for a range of serious offences, sat the GCSE. They each had to apply for the course, have an interview and take a skills test before they could enrol.

“We also had to ask the Prison Service not to transfer them elsewhere in the high security estate for a year, so their work wasn’t interrupted halfway through,” said Watmore.

“Most are serving long or full-life sentences, but now they can progress to be mentors, learning assistants or even move on to a degree. It’s all about enabling a career in custody.”

Last year a report by the Commons education committee concluded that prison education was in a “poor state” and in desperate need of an overhaul after a long-term decline in the quality of education and the number of prisoners participating in learning or training.

At Frankland, after this cohort’s success, 30 prisoners have enrolled on GCSE courses in English and maths.