whats the general opinion of people, on Prison Officers in the UK????

Question

Dont use this as an excuse to slate me, im interested because an American gentleman reckons we all sleep on duty and can't read or write, i feel this is unfair as we work hard and are reasonably fair understanding people, thanks for your comments.

Thanks Foxy, your opinion means a lot.

Thanks for the support purple i,d make u a cuppa if u came on my wing love xxxxxxxx

kehko you know what u said and it couldnt be further from the truth, have u ever spent anytime in a british prison, if you had you would understand the level of responsibility we carry (in Great britain) you really havent got a clue what u are saying have you? You keep using the US prison service as a comparison..WHY?? Im British and so proud of that fact, i love my job but feel undervalued by the british goverment who continually fill our prisons with no extra resources or credit to the harworking loyal staff who work in these places. PS i have never gone to sleep whilst on duty, it must be an American thing, i dosent happen over here, if ive made any spelling or grammar errors i do apologise mate, im not a clever as u, your great.....DIK

Kekho i've drawn three conclusions to your rants that you have chosen to put my way. And they go a little something like this:- a. You aint got a life worth anything.
b. You wanna be a Prison Officer.
c. If you have got any friends in
London they need to be extradited
now before they start using long
pointless words like you do.

To conclude you really have a problem with authority figures and think we all have an hidden agenda, you need to get a mirror, look in it and say, christ im a ****, four times a day that should cure u let me know how you get on, bye MISTER!

Answer 1

I have never thought about this question,but now you ask,I regard prison officers highly has it takes a special kind of person to carry out the role of such a job.I dont consider it to be a case of locking doors etc.has you have a greater role of reabilitaion of offenders.
To my thoughts you would have to be the complete opposite of what the american gentleman says.
So keep up the good work matey

Answer 2

I think prison officers have an incredibly difficult job to do. I work in probation and it's stressful working with offenders 9-5, let alone in the tense atmosphere of the prison wing. Also I see the huge amounts of people in prison with serious mental health problems which are undiagnosed or untreated or both, and prison officers just left to cope with this with no training and little support.

That said, I have met some prison officers (ones I might categorise as "old school") who don't give me the impression that they are "reasonably fair understanding people". They seem to think their job is to give me as a probation worker coming in to do a report a hard time, and, judging by inspectorate enquiries, some of this type are prepared to run their wing by violence and intimidation. Obviously this gets into the press and affects how the general public see things.

Anyway, you and I know that they way things are in criminal justice right now, it's all forms, forms, forms, so no-one could get a job in the system if they couldn't read or write!!

Answer 3

You misquoted me, mister! You're not being fair, are you?

When prisoners are asleep, so are some of the guards on duty at night; they take turns sleeping...

I didn't say that you can't read or write but if you represent Corrections Officers... well, never mind.

A lot of sleeping goes on in hospitals at night, too, according to my ladyfriend and my niece who are both supervising Registered Nurses in different hospitals. Hey, my step-brother is an MD and so is my nephew (Trauma Surgeon) and my nephew's wife (Pediatrician), too, and they are the first ones that say this to me often enough! It HAPPENS! I am merely stating a fact, why do you take offense with the truth? Are you hiding the sky with your hand? The fact that they sleep doesn't make them incompetent; it means that the patients are asleep and they have the opportunity to get some rest (nothing wrong with that).

Both my brother-in-law (retired finally as an Assistant Warden) and my buddy's older brother (Supervisor) retired from Corrections. Yes, there are some times when the job CAN get extremely stressful, but that is the exception rather than the rule, and that's when the measure of your training comes into play.

No one is saying there's absolutely no stress; DO try to put this issue into its proper perspective.

The ones don't don't whine and complain are the ones that are doing the job and can be counted on in times of emergencies! The problem is that the incompetent and inept barely got into the system with the lowered standards... they are the ones that jeopardize the safety (and lives) of the competent, experienced men/women that do the job; the ones that are usually whining and complaining and trying to get out of the undesirable duties do not belong on the job (that from a retired Supervisor and a retired Assistant Warden) but that goes everyday in other fields, too, not just Corrections Officers.

You're a gentleman, too. I have no animosity nor enmity toward you; I simply disagree with you. Hasn't anyone ever disagreed with you, mister? Good luck and best wishes.

EDITED: In your original statement in the earlier post I replied to, you did not indicate the UK or England, and now you qualify this post by stating "Prison Officers in the UK" in your hunt for praise; let me say one thing: I've never poked an eye out either but I can surely tell you the disadvantages of having only one eye.

YOU, sir, are guilty of exaggerating the facts for purposes of self-aggrandizement and self-glorification. I contacted a few friends in London and I was amused with what they wanted me to reply to you. Oh, but you will probably have some smartass answer for that, too, no? In order for you to rehabilitate or "punish" as you originally stated, prisoners, tell me what educational background you have? How many credits in Psychology, how many credits in Sociology, Human Behavior and Law do you possess? Tell me, please, how long was your Internship before you were actually allowed to work with the prison population under the supervision of a qualified and certified and/or licensed person? How long was your training? I'd also like to know what educational institution of higher learning you attended with your poor academic skills. Good luck to you! And smile.

Answer 4

Having never been in Prison I dont think I am qualified to have an opinion. I would hope they are fair minded and balanced people. I dont think films like 'SCUM' help to much and I am not sure if that was based on any fact.

The job is an important one and the responsibility's are Huge. I wish you and them the best and continue the good work. However, any prison officer proved to abuse his power or turn a blind eye to violence and bulling should not only be sacked but also prosecuted and imprisoned for a long term themselves.

Answer 5

The Lot of Prisoners Officers must be one of the Worst Possible ways of earning a Living , --Dammed if They Do and Dammed if They Dont-- in constant Danger , Dealing with Human Beings of " an Unknown Nature , Never Having Been to Prison but having Known several P O,s I known some are cursed with the instinct to be Bullies and Cruel , but at the same time some who are truly Humanist and will be Kind and Helpfull to Inmates , whenever Possible , Also two who have suffered dreadfull injuries when caught "Off Guard" , to have to face , Daily , the utter Misery and Despair of Prison Life must really be a Trial in itself

Answer 6

Being a prison officer in the uk is having to have a multitude of skills all at once. Security gard, psychologist, councillor and morale officer are just a few skills needed. It is a very tough job and likewise I have a lot of respect for you. In america I think the norm is to just lock them up and read the paper in the control station. We have a very different prison system here and I bet that american would have his mind blown at the service you guys provide. Invite him over and let him see what you do in a days work!

Answer 7

Some are good, some are crap.
Some are humans, some are automatons.
Some are fair, some are institutionalized.
Some do it for the power trip and others go with the flow.
Sleeping on the job? Nah. Spare time is used for pool practice :-)

Maybe the American gentleman thinks you are like the ones in his country?

Answer 8

It relies upon on what occupation you want, in case you purely favor to be contained locally and patrol the streets, you may do a Public facilities route in school and keep on with to be an section help Officer (Plastic Police) for adventure at 18+. similar with A ranges, you may enter the rigidity at any time after 18+, yet you may to boot flow to college and both study regulation Enforcement and/or Psychology. i might want to propose Social technology A ranges, which incorporates Psychology, regulation, and non secular study and/or Philosophy and/or Sociology.

Answer 9

I have nothing but respect for prison officers, it must be one of the hardest jobs out there. The American gentleman is probably one of the 75% of Americans (and yes, I know the % varies from statistician to statistician) who don't hold a passport and thinks all British men are like Hugh Grant.

Answer 10

As a Detention Deputy in the US, I have nothing but respect for anyone who pins on the Badge, and supervises inmates.
It is usually a thankless job, but very entertaining sometimes!