Academics to give evidence on prisons

The House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee will be quizzing academics as part of its inquiry into prison governance, leadership and staffing.  

The session will draw examples from the prison system in Norway, as well as England and Wales.  

The sessions will take place on Tuesday 4 February 2025 at 10:00am and can be followed live on Parliament TV. 

Giving evidence will be: 

• Professor Alison Liebling, Director of the Prisons Research Centre, University of Cambridge 

• Professor Ben Crewe, Deputy Director of the Prisons Research Centre, University of Cambridge 

• Dr Kristian Mjåland, Associate Professor, University of Agder, Norway 

Questions the committee is likely to ask during the sessions include: 

• What is the purpose of prisons and is there a consensus on that purpose on the part of prison leaders and staff?  

• How is the prison service in Norway governed and how does it compare with the system in England and Wales? 

• What can academic research about the experiences of prisoners tell us about prison culture? How do prisoners understand the role of prison leaders? 

• What is the value of international comparisons between prison regimes? What can the Prison Service in England and Wales learn from prisons in Norway? 

• What are the key aspects of staff-prisoner relationships in England and Wales, and how do they compare with staff-prisoner relationships in other jurisdictions? 

• How do you identify a successful prison, and is it possible for prison leaders to learn from best practice elsewhere? 

• How is the debate on prisons policy shaped by political culture and the wider media environment?