HMP BEDFORD

FROM ESTATE HAND TO HOSPITAL PRISON OFFICER TO GOVERNOR - 1960 TO 1997 MY TIME ON THIS SIDE OF THE BARS.

I missed the south of England. Even though I was brought up and educated in Manchester, my inclination to live and work in the south was strong.So I applied for a posting to Bedford Prison and was told it was mine but the move itself was to be at my own expense. Having trundled down the M6 with all I possessed and deposit same in my new home I took up the job as Hospital Principal Officer which included responsibility for the pharmacy as the dispenser, a new role for which my time at Gaynes Hall was of some assistance. But when you consider the actual training given back then for this role compared with today when to handle an aspirin tablet demands a degree; well, it defies belief.

Bedford Prison was a busy local serving the courts. We took remand prisoners straight from the street and many were drug addicted and/or mentally ill, As an example of the sort of case we dealt with I'll tell you about one particular prisoner; we'll call him Jimmy. A large black man accused of assaulting two young girls. The assault was not at all serious but had potential to be so. Consequently there was an issue of public safety. He was clearly very disturbed; disturbed enough to have to be located in our protected room (colloquially - 'padded cell') for his own safety and be very carefully managed. There was really only one disposal and this was to a Special Hospital but the 1959 Mental Health Act stated that a doctor from this hospital had to agree and this agreement was not forthcoming on the grounds Jimmy was not treatable. We were stuck with Jimmy and the judge was becoming frustrated in having little in the way of sentencing options other than Sectioning him under the Mental Health Act. The judge called me to his chambers to demand an explanation. I decided to contact the Home Office to raise this particular issue and got myself into strife with authority on high. Fortunately, my Governor at the time was sympathetic and I was told to 'not do it again,' 'it' being embarrassing senior servants with questions and demands they could not handle!

Eventually, we managed to get Jimmy into an alternative Special Hospital so ended a difficult case. Sadly Jimmy's case was not that unusual.

Many of the remand prisoners we received were drug addicts, usually young men. I could never understand a severe drug addict enduring drug withdrawal or 'cold turkey' and then ever going back to their habit. Acute withdrawal was not a procedure one would not inflict on the devil. The suffering was immense even with such as methadone to ease the process. Eventually the drug addict would be clear of drugs only to be released to then return to prison on other charges as badly addicted as before and have to go through the living hell of withdrawal all over again.

We did have our own psychiatrist on staff, Dr Newton, known affectionately as 'Bugsy Newton' after his reputation as an amateur entomologist. He was quite a colourful character and had completed a career as a Prison Medical Officer and was a much respected member of our Bedford team. Dr.Smith was our Medical Officer. He was into Osmology, or the science of smell research It was determined that men and women are attracted to each other via selective chemical messengers called pheromones.He told me about one of his experiments conducted in a nunnery which consisted of spreading pheromones around and measuring the menstruation activities of the nuns. It's whatever 'runs your motor.' So Bedford Prison Hospital had its' fair share of interesting personalities.

Bedford Prison dates back to 1801 and, like Oxford Prison, is situated in the town centre. I certainly enjoyed my time there; almost four years. I planned a long term stay, perhaps up to my retirement. We were in the middle of buying a new house in a great location. My wife was working with the builder to choose tiles when, out of the blue I was called for a promotion interview.

Unfortunately, Bedford ‘nick’ is going through a rough time as I write this - November, 2016. NOMS or the National Offender Management System are, like most our public services, suffering from financial restraints and the results of the current disturbances are said to be caused by reduced staffing level and resources. I shall have something more to say about the need for effective rehabilitation and this always comes at a cost; a cost that is paid back down the road many times over. But then I know it is not that easy as we all need to cut our cloth etc. etc.