HM Prison Holloway

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HMP Holloway
Holloway Prison.png
Holloway Prison c. 1896
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
LocationHolloway, London
Security classAdult female/Young offenders
Population501 (as of January 2008[1])
Opened1852
Closed2016
Managed byHM Prison Services
WebsiteHolloway at justice.gov.uk

HM Prison Holloway was a closed category prison for adult women and young offenders in Holloway, London, England, operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service. It was the largest women's prison in western Europe,[2] until its closure in 2016.

History[]

British police began using covert photography as a means to document suffragettes in Holloway Prison under falsified names, for later identification

Holloway prison was opened in 1852 as a mixed-sex prison,[3] but due to growing demand for space for female prisoners, particularly due to the closure of Newgate, it became female-only in 1903.

Before the first world war, Holloway was used to imprison those suffragettes who broke the law. These included Emmeline Pankhurst, Emily Davison, Constance Markievicz (also imprisoned for her part in the Irish Rebellion), Charlotte Despard, Mary Richardson, Dora Montefiore, Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, and Ethel Smyth.

In 1959, Joanna Kelley became Governor of Holloway.[4] Kelley ensured that long-term prisoners received the best accommodation and they were allowed to have their own crockery, pictures and curtains. The prison created "family" groups of prisoners, group therapy and psychiatrists to support some prisoners where required.[5]

In 1965, there was a change in responsibilities and the Probation Service was tasked with looking after prisoners once they had served their sentence. Kelley was not keen on the idea.[6] With Kelley's encouragement[6] they formed the Griffins Society. The name of the society came from the statues of two griffins that had been either side of the gates as women entered Holloway.[7]

Until 1991, the Prison was staffed by Home Office appointed, female Prison Officers. Male hospital officers from H.M.P. Pentonville were on weekly secondments until 1976. Their mission was to provide support for the agency nurses who worked in Holloway. However, The first 'Male, basic grade' Prison Officer to be posted to HMP Holloway in its history, was Prison Officer (Trg) Thomas Ainsworth, who joined the establishment direct from HMP College Wakefield in May 1991.

After the death from suicide in January 2016 of inmate Sarah Reed, a paranoid schizophrenic being held on remand, the subsequent inquest in July 2017 identified failings in the care system. Shortly after Reed died, a report concluded she was unfit to plead at a trial.[8]

Rebuilding[]

Holloway's Governor Joanna Kelley was promoted to Assistant Director of Prisons (Women) in 1966.[4] In 1967, they began to rebuild Holloway Prison. The previous design had been a "star" design where a single warder could oversee many potentially troublesome prisoners and then act promptly to summon assistance. Kelley felt this was wrong as at the time most women prisoners were not violent. It was her ideas that inspired the redesigned prison based on her experience as governor. It was completed in 1977.[5] During that time she had become an OBE in 1973.[9] The new design allowed for "family" groups of sixteen prisoners. Her ideas were in the design of the buildings but her ideas were never enacted.[4]

The redevelopment resulted in the loss of the "grand turreted" gateway to the prison, which had been built in 1851; architectural critic Gavin Stamp later regretted the loss and said that the climate of opinion at the time was such that the Victorian Society felt unable to object.[10]

Holloway visitor centre

Use[]

Holloway Prison held female adults and young offenders remanded or sentenced by the local courts. Accommodation at the prison was mostly single cells; however, there was also some dormitory accommodation.

Holloway Prison offered both full-time and part-time education to inmates, with courses including skills training workshops, British Industrial Cleaning Science (BICS), gardening, and painting.

There was a family-friendly visitors' centre, run by the Prison Advice and Care Trust (pact), an independent charity.

Closure[]

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, announced in his Autumn Statement on 25 November 2015 that the prison would close and would be sold for housing.[11][2] It closed in July 2016, with prisoners being moved to HMP Downview and HMP Bronzefield, .[12]

As of September 2017, the prison buildings still stand, with draft proposals for the site including housing, a public open green space, playground, women's centre and a small amount of commercial space.[13]

Notable inmates[]

Suffragettes[]

For decades, British campaigners had argued for votes for women. It was only when a number of suffragists, despairing of change through peaceful means, decided to turn to militant protest that the "suffragette" was born. These women broke the law in pursuit of their aims, and many were imprisoned at Holloway for their criminal activity. They were not treated as political prisoners, the authorities arguing they were imprisoned for their vandalism, not their opinions. In protest, some went on hunger strike and were force fed[3] so Holloway has a large symbolic role in the history of women's rights in the UK for those in sympathy with the movement. Suffragettes imprisoned there include Emmeline Pankhurst, Emily Davison, Violet Mary Doudney, Katie Edith Gliddon, Isabella Potbury, Evaline Hilda Burkitt, Georgina Fanny Cheffins, Constance Bryer, Florence Tunks, Janie Terrero, Doreen Allen, Bertha Ryland, Katharine Gatty, Charlotte Despard, Janet Boyd, Genie Sheppard, Mary Ann Aldham, Mary Richardson, Muriel and Arabella Scott, Alice Maud Shipley, Katherine Douglas Smith, Dora Montefiore, Christabel Pankhurst,[14] Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, Leonora Tyson, Ethel Smyth and the American Alice Paul. Detainees later received the Holloway brooch. In 1912 the anthem of the suffragettes - "The March of the Women", composed by Ethel Smyth with lyrics by Cicely Hamilton - was performed there.[15]

Irish Republicans[]

Holloway held three important people closely associated with the Easter Rebellion of 1916: Maud Gonne MacBride, Kathleen Clarke and Countess Markievicz.

Fascists[]

Holloway held Diana Mitford under Defence Regulation 18B during World War II, and after a personal intervention from Prime Minister Winston Churchill, her husband Sir Oswald Mosley was moved there. The couple lived together in a cottage in the prison grounds. They were released in 1943.

Norah Elam had the distinction of being detained during both World Wars, three times during 1914 as a suffragette prisoner under the name Dacre Fox, then as a detainee under Regulation 18B in 1940, when she was part of the social circle that gathered around the Mosleys during their early internment period. Later, after her release, Elam had the further distinction of being the only former member of the British Union of Fascists to be granted a visit with Oswald Mosley during his period of detention there.[16]

Executions[]

A total of five judicial executions by hanging took place at Holloway Prison between 1903 and 1955:

The double execution of Sach and Walters at Holloway Prison

The bodies of all executed prisoners were buried in unmarked graves within the walls of the prison, as was customary. In 1971 the prison underwent an extensive programme of rebuilding, during which the remains of all the executed women were exhumed. With the exception of Ruth Ellis (who was reburied in the churchyard of St Mary's Church, Old Amersham), the remains of the four other women were subsequently reburied in a single grave at Brookwood Cemetery near Woking, Surrey. In 2018, the remains of Edith Thompson were reburied in her parents’ grave in the City of London Cemetery.

Other inmates[]

Noteworthy inmates that were held at the original 1852-era prison include Oscar Wilde,[17] William Thomas Stead, Isabella Glyn, F. Digby Hardy, Kitty Byron, Lady Ida Sitwell, wife of Sir George Sitwell, and Kate Meyrick the 'Night Club Queen'.

More recently it housed, in 1966, Moors murderess Myra Hindley; in 1967, Kim Newell, a Welsh woman who was involved in the Red Mini Murder; also in the late 1960s, National Socialist supporter Françoise Dior, charged with arson against synagogues; in 1977, American Joyce McKinney of the "Manacled Mormon case"; Sheila Bowler, the music teacher wrongly imprisoned for the murder of her elderly aunt, was detained there before being transferred to Bullwood Hall;[18] and in 2002, Maxine Carr, who gave a false alibi for Soham murderer Ian Huntley.

Other inmates included Linda Calvey, Amie Bartholomew, Emma Last, Matthew Etherington, Alison Walder, Jayne Richards, the Tinsel Fight Murderer, Bella Coll, and Chantal McCorkle and Emma Humphreys.[19]

In 2014 disgraced judge and barrister Constance Briscoe began a 16 month sentence at the prison.[20]

Inspections, inquiries and reports[]

In October 1999, it was announced that healthcare campaigner and agony aunt Claire Rayner had been called in to advise on an improved healthcare provision at Holloway Prison. Rayner's appointment was announced after the introduction of emergency measures at the prison's healthcare unit after various failures.[21]

In September 2001, an inspection report from Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons claimed that Holloway Prison was failing many of its inmates, mainly due to financial pressures. However, the report stated that the prison had improved in a number of areas, and praised staff working at the jail.[22]

In March 2002, Managers at Holloway were transferred to other prisons following an inquiry by the Prison Service. The inquiry followed a number of allegations from prison staff concerning sexual harassment, bullying and intimidation from managers. The inquiry supported some of these claims.[23]

An inspection report from in June 2003, stated that conditions had improved at Holloway Prison. However the report criticised levels of hygiene at the jail, as well as the lack of trained staff, and poor safety for inmates.[24] A further inspection report in September 2008 again criticised safety levels for inmates of Holloway, claiming that bullying and theft were rife at the prison. The report also noted high levels of self-harm and poor mental health among the inmates.[25]

A further inspection in 2010 again noted improvements but found that most prisoners said they felt unsafe and that there remained 35 incidents a week of self-harm.[26] The prison's operational capacity is 501.[1]

Sarah Reed case[]

On 11 January 2016, Sarah Reed, an inmate at Holloway, was found dead in her cell. Her family were told by prison staff that she had strangled herself while lying on her bed.[27] For The Observer, Yvonne Roberts wrote "Sarah's final days were harrowing. She was hallucinating, chanting, without the medication she had relied on for years, sleepless, complaining a demon punched her awake at night. She was on a basic regime, punishment for what was classed as bad behaviour. In spite of her mental and physical fragility, she was isolated, the cell hatch closed, without hot water, heating or a properly cleaned cell. 'For safety and security' a four-strong 'lockdown' team of prison officers delivered basic care."[28] Observations of Reed had been cut to only one an hour though she was obviously severely psychotic, had threatened suicide and had self harmed.[29] A prison officer told Reed's mother, "We deal with restraint and maintaining the law. We're not designed to deal with health issues."[30]

The jury at her inquest decided that Reed took her own life when the balance of her mind was disturbed, but were unclear whether she had intended to kill herself. They said failure to manage her medication and the failure to complete the fitness to plead assessment in a reasonable time were factors in her death. The jury were also concerned about how Reed was monitored and claimed Reed received inadequate treatment in prison for her distress.[31]

Deborah Coles of Inquest said: "Sarah Reed was a woman in torment, imprisoned for the sake of two medical assessments to confirm what was resoundingly clear, that she needed specialist care not prison. Her death was a result of multi-agency failures to protect a woman in crisis. Instead of providing her with adequate support, the prison treated her ill mental health as a discipline, control and containment issue."[31]

In popular culture[]

Film[]

  • One of the characters in the 1997 Canadian sci-fi/horror movie Cube is named after Holloway Prison.

Literature[]

Music[]

Television[]

  • In the Thames Television series Rumpole Of The Bailey episode "Rumpole and the Alternative Society," the girl whom Rumpole was defending (until she admitted her guilt to him) was sentenced to three years imprisonment which she served at HM Holloway Prison.
  • In the TV series Upstairs, Downstairs, the second-season episode "A Special Mischief" has Elizabeth Bellamy joining a band of suffragettes who go out one night vandalising wealthy homes. Rose, the parlourmaid, follows them; they are apprehended by the police. Rose is mistakenly thought to be a suffragette and is put in a ladies' prison, and Holloway is very much implied. Elizabeth is spared going to jail as her bail is paid for by Julius Karekin, one of the rich men being targeted. Elizabeth and Karekin bail Rose out of prison.[34]

Caitlin Davies has written Bad Girls (published by John Murray), a history of Holloway Prison. The prison closed in July 2016; the site is being redeveloped for housing and a Women's Building as a transformative justice project. Davies was the only journalist granted access to the prison and its archives.[citation needed]

Judy Rabinowitz Price exhibition 'The End of the Sentence' 2020 presented the artists research on Holloway Women’s Prison and the impact of the criminal justice system on women.

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Holloway Prison information". HM Prison Service/HM Government Ministry Justice. 5 March 2012 [operational capacity as of 23 January 2008]. Archived from the original on 4 March 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Spending Review: Holloway prison closure announced". BBC News. Retrieved 2016-04-03.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Holloway Prison closure announced". BBC News. 2015-11-25. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Joanna Kelley". The Independent. 2003-05-06. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Joanna Kelley". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b Rumgay, Judith (2007). Ladies of Lost Causes: Rehabilitation, Women Offenders and the Voluntary Sector. Routledge. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-84392-298-8.
  7. ^ Heidensohn, Frances (2013-01-11). Gender and Justice. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-01414-9.
  8. ^ Taylor, Diane (20 July 2017). "Care failings contributed to death of woman in prison, inquest finds". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Joanna Kelley". The Daily Telegraph. 16 April 2003. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  10. ^ Binney, Marcus (8 January 2011). "Victorian genius brought low by bombs and bulldozers". The Times. p. 93.
  11. ^ "Holloway Prison to close and be sold off for housing". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2016-04-03.
  12. ^ "First prisoners moved to Downview as Holloway closes". BBC News. 2016-05-03.
  13. ^ "Have your say on plans for the future of the Holloway Prison site" (Press release). Islington Borough Council. August 2017.
  14. ^ "Christabel Pankhurst". www.bl.uk.
  15. ^ Collis, Louise (1984). Impetuous Heart. The story of Ethel Smyth. ISBN 0-7183-0543-4.
  16. ^ McPherson, Angela; McPherson, Susan (2011). Mosley's Old Suffragette - A Biography of Norah Elam. ISBN 978-1-4466-9967-6. Archived from the original on 2012-01-13.
  17. ^ https://www.timeout.com/london/blog/six-things-you-never-knew-about-holloway-103015[bare URL]
  18. ^ Grania Langdon-Down (1998-02-06). "'If I had been sent back to prison, I would have died' - Life & Style". The Independent. Retrieved 2012-12-26.
  19. ^ For Humphreys, see Mills, Heather (20 December 1995). "Sickening sight of rat-infested jail". The Independent.
  20. ^ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/judge-jails-arrogant-liar-briscoe-for-16-months-92337rn5vwx[bare URL]
  21. ^ "Prison calls in Claire Rayner". BBC Online. October 5, 1999.
  22. ^ "Inmates 'neglected' in women's prison". BBC Online. 28 September 2001.
  23. ^ "Managers moved from women's prison". BBC Online. 15 March 2002.
  24. ^ "Women's jail 'still has problems'". BBC Online. 30 March 2005.
  25. ^ "Bullying 'rife' in women's prison". BBC Online. 15 September 2008.
  26. ^ "Prison life: what Chris Huhne and Vicky Pryce face now". The Week. 11 March 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
  27. ^ Dearden, Lizzie (3 February 2016). "Sarah Reed: Woman who had been victim of police brutality found dead in prison cell". The Independent. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  28. ^ Roberts, Yvonne (30 July 2017). "I sleep at peace at night because I know I fought for my daughter to the very last". The Observer. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  29. ^ Taylor, Diane (4 July 2017). "Mentally ill woman died in cell after monitoring was reduced, inquest hears". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  30. ^ Gentleman, Amelia; Gayle, Damien (17 February 2016). "Sarah Reed's mother: 'My daughter was failed by many and I was ignored'". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  31. ^ Jump up to: a b Taylor, Diane (20 July 2017). "Care failings contributed to death of woman in prison, inquest finds". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  32. ^ George, Elizabeth (1994). Playing for the Ashes (trade paperback ed.). New York: Bantam Books. p. 674. ISBN 978-0-553-38549-6.
  33. ^ The Kinks – Holloway Jail, retrieved 2020-06-26
  34. ^ Updown.org.uk - Upstairs, Downstairs: A Special Mischief Retrieved September 30, 2014

External links[]

Coordinates: 51°33′14.43″N 0°07′31.11″W / 51.5540083°N 0.1253083°W / 51.5540083; -0.1253083

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