“People often ask what it’s like working in a prison, telling me they can’t imagine it. But we have such well-structured security here at HMP Preston – it’s a safe environment. We have alarms in every room and in the 15 years I’ve been teaching here, I’ve pressed it once. Instead, we aim to use the strategies we’ve learned to calm the situation before it escalates.”
Alison Brown, 52, a digital skills teacher and local education manager at HMP Preston, a category B men’s prison in Lancashire, retrained as a teacher “later in life” at 38. Her background was art and design, and she previously worked in fashion, alongside other managerial roles. Working in prison, she says, almost happened by accident.
