Life inside our prisons is gloomy, violent and humiliating. So why do around half of those who leave prison go back within a year? In his latest book, film-maker and former inmate Chris Atkins explains how our chaotic and inhumane system helps to create this bleak statistic.
In many incarceration stories, redemption comes through an individual who beats the institution against the odds. Andy Dufresne chisels his way through the walls of Shawshank prison. Viktor Frankl retains his appreciation for beauty despite being in a Nazi concentration camp. But in Time After Time the game is rigged. Those who aspire to change are defeated by the absurd logic of the system. Like Simon, whose licence conditions state that he isn’t allowed to be homeless, yet probation can’t offer him any accommodation. He’s in breach the moment he steps out of the prison gates. Another man, Ed, is given accommodation in a hostel with other people just out of prison, only for his probation officer to ask him: “Can you resist mixing with bad company?” Sex offenders are sent on a treatment programme even though a report finds it actually increases their chances of reoffending.
