Over the past eight months, Prisoners Abroad has been collaborating with researchers at the University of Cambridge Institute of Criminology to investigate people’s experiences of returning to the UK following a prison sentence abroad. The research project is fully underway, and we have been thrilled with the number of survey responses received.

---

93 people so far have generously shared their experiences through the survey. Responses will be thoroughly analysed, but some general themes that have emerged include the difficulties with accessing basic services and accommodation on arrival, challenges in finding a job with a criminal record, and how the stigma of imprisonment can stay with someone long after release.

Dr Caroline Lanskey, who is leading the project, says:

"For many people what makes the condition of imprisonment survivable, is not so much the environment, although this is important, but the connections with people they are closest too and the friendships and support they receive  from others near and far. 

As more people are being sentenced to longer times in prison – sentences of up to 20 or 30 years are no longer the exception in many countries - such relationships become all-important. Contact with others, whether family, friends or organisations like Prisoners Abroad helps to make the present bearable and the future hopeful.  

These relationships remain critical after release from prison too. They form the bedrock for a new way of life in a world that may look and feel very different to the world before  prison. The contrast may be particularly acute for people returning to the UK after a prison sentence and a former life overseas.

The research we are conducting with Prisoners’ Abroad aims to capture the ups and downs of establishing a life in the UK after an overseas prison sentence including, if relevant, how straightforward or not it may be to desist from criminal activity."

A large proportion of the people surveyed have also indicated a willingness to be interviewed as part of the project. The interviews will enable the researchers to understand people’s experiences in greater depth and will be taking place online and at the Prisoners Abroad office in the coming months. As a result of people’s overwhelmingly positive response to be included, the research team has also increased the number of interviews they plan to complete from 30 to 40.

Institute of Criminology researchers Angelique and Caroline (far left and far right) with Theo and Charlotte (middle left and middle right) from Prisoners Abroad outside our office.

The research will be the largest systematic study of life in the UK after a period of imprisonment overseas and we hope that it will serve as a basis for developing further initiatives, by Prisoners Abroad and others, to support former prisoners’ return to the UK and to enable them to feel welcome. We look forward to sharing further updates soon.

If you or someone you know returned to the UK from prison overseas and had contact with Prisoners Abroad in the past 7 years, you may have received an invitation to take part in the research. Please do check spam folders or old email accounts so you don’t miss out on taking part.