News and Events

This site is designed to provide background information on prison education in Dublin prisons as well as news and events of particular interest to teachers in Prison Education Centres. The site also contains samples of work by prisoners who attend the Education Centres in Dublin prisons. Art exhibitions, drama productions, music performances and publication of writings provide the students with the opportunity to have their work seen and heard by those outside the prison gates. We hope and expect that this site will provide a platform for their work to be viewed by a wider audience and extend this viewing beyond the lifespan of an exhibition or performance.

Except in the case of group projects, all works shown here are done so with the understanding that they are owned solely by the prisoner accredited and that the accredited prisoners have consented to them being used on this site. The images, poems and music samples are also copyrighted to this site and cannot be reproduced elsewhere without permission from the site owners, who in turn must get permission from the relevant accredited prisoner. Ownership of any work featured on the site remains that of the accredited prisoner.

Check out a new addition to the site - Mountjoy Prison Museum

Cloverhill Charity Event

The Cloverhill Charity Event for 2010 was held in aid of The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation. The Foundation provides early intervention home respite to families with children requiring extensive medical and nursing care at home.
The event took place on February 10th, 2010 in three different gyms in the prison and consisted of each prisoner completing a triathlon, including running, rowing and cycling. A total distance of 300km was covered through the activities. Fifty prisoners took part in the event. Each landing raised money through sponsorship cards, and many prisoners sent out sponsorship cards to their families. Sponsorship was also collected from the staff of the prison. Each participant who completed the triathlon was presented with a Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation t-shirt and a certificate of appreciation. The total amount raised was €1250. - Caitriona McGrath

Erwin James Visits Mountjoy

Guardian columnist and writer Erwin James visited Mountjoy School in March to talk to students about his time in prison. He began by outlining his early life. He was born to itinerant Scottish parents in Somerset in 1957. A family lifestyle described as, “brutal and rootless” by a prison psychologist following the death of his mother when James was seven, led to a limited formal education.  At the age of ten he was sleeping rough when he gained his first criminal conviction for the burglary of a sweet shop which resulted in him being taken into care. He left the care home at 15 and spent the rest of his teenage and early adult years drifting, living with extended family members, and again often sleeping rough.
He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1984. After some encouragement from a prison worker, Erwin embarked on an education programme. Six years later he graduated with the Open University, gaining an arts degree majoring in History. Around the same time he developed an interest in writing. His first article for a national newspaper, The Independent, appeared in 1994. In 1995 he won first prize in the annual Koestler Awards for prose. His first article in The Guardian newspaper appeared in 1998 and he began writing a regular column for the paper entitled A Life Inside in 2000. The columns were the first of their kind in the history of British journalism.
On release in 2004 James became a trustee of the Prison Reform Trust and in September 2009 he became a trustee of the Alternatives to Violence Project Britain. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of the Arts (FRSA) and an Honorary Master of the Open University. Erwin James now works full-time as a freelance writer.
During his two sessions, Erwin emphasised to students the importance of utilising the available resources while incarcerated, especially education. He was very positive about the transformative effect education had in surviving imprisonment and rebuilding his life after twenty years in prison.
Further details are available at www.erwinjames.co.uk - Cormac Behan

Parenting Classes in the Training Unit

Parenting classes have been running in the Training Unit for many years. However, this year we decided to run them as ‘intensive’ short courses. We offered FETAC ‘Caring for Children’ (level 3 and 4) and ‘Child Development and Play’ (level 3).
Both courses are very practical. Caring for Children focuses on the day-to-day care of babies and young children and covered aspects such as making a formula bottle, changing a nappy, child-proofing your home and basic First Aid.

Child Development and Play looks at the importance of play in the intellectual, physical, social, emotional and linguistic development of children. Students also get to make a play item for a child as part of the course – a kite in our case.
We also integrated FETAC ‘Personal Effectiveness’ (level 3) into the courses.
All groups of students completed both courses one after the other and gave very positive feedback on the whole experience. - Florence Abécassis and Mary Clark

Richard Moore Visits Wheatfield

On April 14th this year, at the invitation of teacher Jane Newman, Wheatfield Education Unit had the pleasure of hosting Mr. Richard Moore as a guest speaker. In 1972, when he was 10 years old, Richard was left permanently blind as a result of being struck between the eyes by a plastic bullet, fired from a British Army observation tower in Derry’s Bogside area. In recent years he has met and become friends with Charles, the British Army officer who fired the bullet that changed his life. Taken with the curiosity of this capacity for forgiveness and his work with the charity he founded – Children in Crossfire – our CSPE class decided to invite Mr. Moore to speak to the group as part of the Action Project for this course.
Children in Crossfire has become an international organisation working to protect and promote the rights of some the world's most vulnerable children. (see www.childrenincrossfire.org)
His talk was such a refreshing, enlightening and uplifting portrayal of positive thinking. He spoke about the incident that left him blind, his process of recovery, family reactions, learning to play guitar and achieving a University degree. He informed us about the successful pub business that he operated and eventually sold to set up the charity. Richard’s candid recollection of his life experiences had a telling effect on those in the room. In the afternoon Richard had a more informal questions and answers session with Jane’s Holistic class.
From a prison education viewpoint the visit presented us all with a story that exemplifies the theoretical viewpoint of ‘transformative learning’ – the ability to challenge our existing frames of reference. By giving us a snapshot of his life history, Richard Moore delivered an inspirational story about having the courage and vision to see beyond our philosophical darkness, as a process of seeking to develop new pathways of learning in our lives. His life story embodies the positive potential for personal change by unburdening ourselves from the shackles of historically formed negative thought processes and striving to seek positive change by taking personal responsibility for our decisions and actions.- Jane Newman and Damien Carberry

Literacy Software Package Launched in Arbour Hill

The Interactive Literacy software package was launched in Arbour Hill on Friday, 25th June this year. It was based primarily on a literacy workbook produced by Jimmy O’Rourke and further enhanced by basic computer skills elements introduced by Helen Cawley. Two students in the Education Unit of Arbour Hill prison combined to programme the software package. The Interactive Literacy software endeavours, together with the accompanying workbook, to explore everyday literacy needs and opportunities.

The key design features include:

• Ease of use is facilitated at the outset through an introduction to basic computer and keyboard skills
• Learners are given a high level of independence in their learning
• Learners can reflect on and monitor their own progress on a session by session basis
• Many of the exercises are based on the accompanying workbook
• All exercisers are printable, allowing learners construct materials for certification by their local VEC and or FETAC

The interactive elements include:

• Reading words and stories
• Keeping a diary
• Writing letters
• Improving spelling skills
• Developing a learning plan
• Building up a personal dictionary
• ICT literacy

The software package also includes a Guide for Literacy Tutors. It was enthusiastically received by all and should prove to be a valuable tool in teaching literacy. The package is expected to be delivered to the Education Units in September. - Jimmy O'Rourke and Helen Cawley