The Prison Service has launched its first-ever national TV and radio recruitment campaign in major new drive to hire more prison and probation officers
The advertising shows the reality of life as prison and probation officers, in what the government described as a “bold new approach” that stops “sugar coating” roles, tackles misconceptions and demonstrates the extraordinary work carried out by officers on the frontline.
Research commissioned by the Ministry of Justice carried out earlier this year showed that 47% of the public don’t know much, if anything, about what the prison service does.
Recruitment campaigns
Many who do join the service ultimately leave due to having misunderstood what the role involves.
According to senior prison officers, younger members of staff were most likely to quit; almost half of officers (47%) who left in 2022 had been in the role for under three years, and a quarter left after less than a year.
The campaign, developed by creative agency House 337, carries the tagline: “An extraordinary job. Done by someone like you”.
The ministry said that recruiting the right people has been a challenge and there is an internal level of cynicism over the ‘sugar-coating’ and aspirational language of recruitment into prison and probation jobs. For example, the idea that staff can “change lives” has jarred with some existing staff who find it to be inauthentic and the idea of making a difference in small, everyday ways was highlighted as more of a motivating factor.
Prisons minister Damian Hinds said: “From helping to improve the literacy skills of prisoners to supporting the rehabilitation of some of the hardest-to-reach members of society, our prison and probation staff do extraordinary work every single day. Much of this takes place behind prison walls and therefore goes unnoticed.
“This ambitious campaign aims – for the first time – to accurately portray the realities of working on the prison landings and shine a light on the people who do these challenging, but invaluable roles.”
The campaign – which has launched in areas of England and Wales where the recruitment challenge is greatest – features voices from serving prison officers and aims to challenge some of the misconceptions associated with working on the prison wings, and in the probation service.
The Ministry of Justice aims to hire 5,000 prison officers across public and private prisons by the mid-2020s so the system has the capacity and people it needs to rehabilitate prisoners.
It follows reports that prison officers are leaving for easier jobs at the Border Force, and accusations of prison understaffing that led to Daniel Khalife’s escape earlier this month from HMP Wandsworth. There have also been reports that judges are passing suspended sentences because of prison overcrowding.
Last week, the probation service was found to be facing “chronic staffing shortages at every grade” in a report by HM Inspectorate of Probation.
Prison officers’ salaries start at around £30,000, and benefits include 25 days’ holiday, a civil service pension, season ticket loans, retail discounts, employee assistance programme and cycle to work scheme.
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