Our COVID-19 Calls in Prison | Nacro *
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Our COVID-19 Calls in Prison

People in prison are at high risk from COVID-19 because of the prevalence of underlying chronic health conditions and the living environment, which can make social distancing and other preventive measures more difficult. These are our COVID-19 Calls for Government.

We know that prisons are high-risk settings for the transmission of contagious diseases. Prison workers have not been included in guidance from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and People.

Added to the stress of extended isolation for many prisoners, staff absence due to illness or the need to self-isolate is significantly straining already stretched resources. And that strain often continues after release, as support workers try to find housing for the hundreds of people who leave prison every month, in the middle of lockdown, without a home to go to.

Nacro calls on government to:

  1. Ensure that all staff working within prisons are now treated as a priority for COVID-19 vaccination.
  2. Reinstate the early release scheme with a wider remit to reduce the number of people in prison and help slow the spread of the virus.
  3. Reinstate the funding to ensure everyone leaving prison has somewhere to stay.
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Video: Prison During COVID-19 (Part 1)

Listen to the real-life experiences shared with us from people in prison during the pandemic in our COVID-19 Calls for Government.

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Video: Prison and Resettlement During COVID-19 (Part 2)

First shown in our Justice Post COVID event with speakers David Lammy, Sophie Linden and Nacro’s Lavinia Aleri. This video shares the harrowing experiences of people in prison during COVID-19, and the ups and downs of working with prison leavers during this time.

There are currently nearly more than 11 million people with a criminal record. three quarters of people are released from prison into unemployment. The criminal record regime is a second sentence for those that have already served time.
David Lammy
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Video: Week at Work | Diary of a Resettlement Worker

Our resettlement worker outlines a recent case where a prison leaver had to sleep rough for days during rainy weather in lockdown.

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Video: Thanks to Nacro frontline staff during COVID-19

A compilation of some of our staff and service users giving thanks to the amazing frontline Nacro staff who are still striving to give some of the most vulnerable in society the help they need.

Times are difficult during this COVID-19 crisis but we are proud to be continuing to provide the best support we can through housing, health, justice and education.