The Prison Reform Trust (PRT) was founded in 1981 in

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, England, by a small group of prison reform campaigners who were unhappy with the direction in which the Howard League for Penal Reform was heading, concentrating more on community punishments than on traditional prison reform issues. Founding members included Sir Monty Finniston and Veronica Linklater. PRT offers advice and information to thousands of people every year:

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

ers, their families,

and

probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offence (law), offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incar ...

staff, the

legal profession Legal profession is a profession in which legal professionals study, develop and apply law. Usually, there is a requirement for someone choosing a career in law to first pass a bar examination after obtaining a law degree or some other form of l ...

, students, academics and interested members of the public. PRT organise an annual lecture (delivered by Charles Clarke MP, Home Secretary, in 2005), and a range of conferences and seminars which attract high-profile speakers and large audiences. The Prison Reform Trust carries out research on all aspects of prison. Recent studies include: prisoners' views on prison education, the mental health needs of women prisoners, older prisoners, prisoner councils, foreign national prisoners, prisoner votes, and a report into how sentencers make the decision to imprison offenders. Stephen Shaw was Director of PRT from 1981 to 1999, when he became the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman for England and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. He was succeeded as Director by Juliet Lyon. Sir Monty Finniston was succeeded as Chair by the former Cabinet Minister, Edmund Dell, broadcaster and journalist, Jon Snow. Lord

Douglas Hurd Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, (born 8 March 1930) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1979 to 1995. A career diplomat and ...

, the former

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

and Foreign Secretary, succeeded Jon Snow as PRT's fourth chair in November 1997. Robert Fellowes, a

crossbench A crossbencher is a minor party or independent politician, independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. ...

peer, who has served as Private Secretary to

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

, and holds a senior position at Barclays plc succeeded Douglas Hurd in September 2001.

References

External links

Prison Reform TrustHoward League for Penal Reform
{{Authority control Organizations established in 1981 Prison charities based in the United Kingdom Charities based in London Prison reform 1981 establishments in the United Kingdom Reform in the United Kingdom

See also

References

External links