Prison Race Equality Officer
Football fan Kev Graham first became interested in a prison career after his soccer buddy joined Her Majesty’s Prison Service. Although he expected the profession to be rewarding, he didn’t anticipate the added bonuses his new job would bring – such as finding his future partner.
Kev’s relationship with fellow prison worker Sonia Ebbs first brought him to HMP Peterborough in 2005.
The couple met during a social event for staff working at Manchester-based HMP Forest Bank the year before. When Sonia was offered a job as an operational middle manager at HMP Peterborough, Kev decided to apply for a transfer.
The Liverpudlian doesn’t regret his decision.
Since May 2007, he’s been the prison’s Race Equality Officer, responsible for investigating allegations of racism, assisting foreign prisoners and encouraging diversity and equality. He loves his job because “you’re never bored and there’s always something to do”.
Career kicks off
Kev’s prison career kicked off in 2002 as a result of discussions with football buddy Roy Gilmore. At the time Roy was working as a duty officer at HMP Forest Bank, a private prison based in Salford. After football practise, the two would compare notes about their jobs.
It wasn’t long before Kev decided to give his sales job the red card and apply for a prison custody officer post at Forest Bank. The prison is run by Kalyx, the same private firm responsible for running HMP Peterborough.
Since joining the Prison Service, Kev’s never looked back. He enjoys the challenges associated with his career and the many opportunities for learning and development.
Unexpected romance
It was while working at the Manchester jail that Kev, a former dental technician, met Sonia. The couple got together during a staff social do in 2004.
Having a partner who’s also employed in the Prison Service has its benefits, Kev says.
“When you go home and talk about the prison, your missus won’t look at you like you’ve got four heads. If she works there too, she’ll understand the pressures of the job.”
Despite both now working at HMP Peterborough, Kev and Sonia rarely see each other during work time as they’re based in different parts of the prison. Sonia’s the Interventions Manager, running education and work programmes for prisoners about to be released. Meanwhile Kev works as the Race Equality Officer and is also a senior prison officer.
Working inside a prison
Many people have preconceptions about what working inside a prison would be like but the reality’s very different.
“Everyone thinks it’s going to be like Bad Girls and that we’re all like Jim Fenner – but it’s not like that at all,” Kev says, speaking about the long-running television series.
“The perception is that we're all big Neanderthals. It couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Kev believes in treating prisoners with compassion, regardless of the crimes they’ve committed. He says that although bad behaviour inside prison is never justified, it can often be explained.
“You should put yourself in a prisoner’s position. Say you’ve got a prisoner smashing up a cell. You ask: ‘Why are you doing this?’ They say: ‘My kid’s been really ill and I haven’t heard from them for three weeks.’ Put yourself in their position. If you didn’t know if your kids were alive or dead, you’d probably act like a lunatic too.”
Riot commander
For the past few years, Kev’s been a “tornado” commander, trained to deal with potential riots. He oversees a unit of 12 officers, specially trained to control riots. Part of the training involves taking part in simulated exercises, wearing full protective gear.
So far Kev’s only dealt with one actual incident – started by inmates at another jail after telephone lines went down.
HMP Peterborough
HMP Peterborough is unusual in many ways. It’s the only dual-purpose prison in the country, meaning that it houses both male and female prisoners, although the two sexes are kept completely separate.
It’s also one of the most modern, opened in 2005. It’s privately run, operated by Kalyx (formerly called UKDS) under a 25-year-contract to the Home Office.
The category B local prison, constructed on the site of the old Baker Perkins engineering works, caters for male and female remand prisoners from the age of 18. Sentenced prisoners have to be 21 or older. The prison takes male remand and newly sentenced prisoners from all the Crown and Magistrates’ courts in Cambridgeshire.
HMP Peterborough also caters for long-term category B and category C prisoners, allowing Cambridgeshire offenders to serve a large part of their sentences close to their community.
It normally houses up to 624 male prisoners and 396 female prisoners, including a 12-bed, 13-cot mother and baby unit for infants up to the age of 18 months.
Equality
As the prison’s Race Equality Officer, Kev’s responsible for investigating all racial complaints by prisoners and staff. Part of the challenge is that different people take offence at different things.
“You’ve just got to be open-minded,” Kev says.
“The key word is equality. I believe everyone should be treated equally – man, woman, black, white, Asian. That’s why I get on with the prisoners. If you’re entitled to something you should get it. If you want to wear headgear that you’re entitled to wear because of your religion, you will get it.”
HMP Peterborough caters for different diets and religious requirements. For example, during the month of Ramadan, there are special provisions for fasting Muslim prisoners.
Foreign nationals
Kev also helps to arrange interpreters for prisoners who can’t communicate in English.
Although the vast majority of inmates at HMP Peterborough are classified as white Britons, a number of prisoners are foreign nationals, some of whom can’t understand any English. For them prison is an even bigger culture shock than normal.
Kev says: “They come into a foreign country and can’t speak the language. They are like rabbits caught in the headlights.”
To address this issue, the prison provides advice in 22 different languages. The most used foreign languages at HMP Peterborough are Vietnamese, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian and Chinese. English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) is taught at the prison.
A world map is kept in reception so that staff can help new prisoners with little or no understanding of English.
Kev says: “We get them to point where they’re from. We can then arrange for an interpreter to speak to them over the phone.”
Prison careers
Honesty, respect and an open mind are important qualities for anyone considering a career in the Prison Service, Kev says.
He finds that honesty is the best policy when dealing with prisoners – even if you’re delivering bad news. He’s not one for sugar-coating the truth.
“Prisoners can tell if you’re taking the Mick.”
The 35-year-old believes that having some life experience can also help.
He says: “You’ve got to have integrity and know right from wrong.”