Angela Devlin

In a book that is accessible to general readers and professionals alike, Angela Devlin has vividly recreated the realities of prison life for women at the end of the twentieth century. She describes the cavalier way in which women can be treated; the lack of provision for many basic needs; the over crowding; the liberal use of medication as a means of control; the violence which stems from drug misuse; the plight of black and ethnic minority women and foreign nationals; and the self-mutilation and suicide attempts of women in desperate need of help. Invisible Women 'lifts the lid' on women's prisons. It is a book that will shock as well as inform.… (more)

I found this study very interesting. The study is basically looking at the links between educational failure and future offending behaviour. It is a collection of first hand accounts by prisoners of their experiences. There is a glossary to explain the words used such as YOI (Young Offender Institution) etc and the part I found most informative was a list of the all of the prisoners interviewed, to look at the wide ranging crimes/sentences and their specific comments throughout the book. Also included is a list of prisons in the study which wasn't something I referred to.

Her study is split into 10 sections which looks at: attending multiple schools, having unnoticed special needs, social disadvantage, influences of teachers, being bullied, truanting, peer groups, school punishments, importance of praise and a final chapter offering practical suggestions for the future of schools.

A really wide ranging bibliography is detailed at the end. What is missing that I would have liked, is an appendix with the actual questionnaire in it. An excellent piece of research, the reasons behind it are interesting in the introduction.… (more)