Edexcel GCSE History (1HI0) — Crime and Punishment in Britain and Whitechapel
In the 19th century, prisons were designed to break criminals with silence and pointless hard labour; by the 20th century, the focus shifted to rebuilding them. From c1900, the British penal system began transitioning away from deterrence and retribution toward a model of rehabilitation.
The real driving force for this change was Prison Commissioner Alexander Paterson, who served from 1922 to 1946. He famously argued: "Men are sent to prison as a punishment, not for punishment." He officially ended the Victorian separate system of solitary confinement. Under his leadership, prisoners were allowed to speak to each other, the degrading broad-arrow uniform was replaced with ordinary clothes, and food and heating were improved. Paterson also introduced education, vocational training, and psychiatrists to address the root causes of crime.
The 1948 Criminal Justice Act was a landmark piece of legislation that legally formalised this rehabilitative shift. It completely abolished penal servitude, hard labour, and flogging (corporal punishment) in prisons.
Explain why the prison system changed in the early 20th century. (12 marks)
Step 1 (Role of the Individual): Identify Alexander Paterson's influence in moving the system away from the punitive separate system toward social interaction and education.
Step 2 (Social Attitudes): Link this to changing societal attitudes, where crime was increasingly viewed as a result of poverty or mental health struggles, rather than just a moral failing.
Step 3 (Role of Government): Cite the 1948 Criminal Justice Act as the government's formal legislative end to Victorian-style punishments like hard labour.
Open prisons were introduced as an experimental new approach to incarceration, beginning at New Hall in 1933. The first permanent facility was HMP Leyhill, which opened in a former US military hospital in 1946.
These Category D facilities have distinct negative features: they do not have high perimeter walls, bars on the windows, or locked cell doors. Instead, they rely heavily on trusting inmates who are deemed "low risk" to the public, usually those nearing the end of their sentence.
The main goal of an open prison is resettlement. Inmates frequently use Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL), which allows them to leave the prison for set periods during the day. This is used to work in the community or maintain family ties, directly preparing them for life after release.
Throughout the 20th century, there was a growing consensus that young people should be kept away from hardened adult criminals to prevent them from learning habitual criminal behaviour.
The Borstal system (1902–1982) was formally established by the 1908 Prevention of Crime Act for offenders aged 16 to 21. These institutions were run like strict boarding schools. They focused on discipline, sports, and vocational training (such as bricklaying and gardening). However, they were eventually abolished by the Criminal Justice Act 1982 due to extreme rates of recidivism, with 60–75% of ex-inmates re-offending.
They were briefly replaced in the 1980s by Youth Detention Centres, which used a punitive "short, sharp shock" regime of military-style drill. This approach was largely considered a failure. Today, youths aged 15 to 21 are sent to Young Offender Institutions (YOIs), established by the Criminal Justice Act 1988. YOIs mandate that inmates complete at least 25 hours of education or vocational training per week. Since 1991, custodial sentences for youths have been legally treated as a "last resort".
Prisons face massive modern challenges: they are incredibly expensive (costing over £40,000 per prisoner annually), suffer from severe overcrowding, and short sentences have a notoriously low success rate in preventing re-offending (around 75% of ex-inmates re-offend within nine years).
To combat this, the justice system expanded the use of non-custodial sentences. These aim to keep offenders in the community, allowing them to maintain their jobs and family ties to prevent further descent into crime.
Students often assume all late 20th-century reforms were purely rehabilitative, but the 1980s 'short, sharp shock' detention centres were highly punitive and focused entirely on deterrence.
In 12-mark 'Explain why' questions about modern prison changes, use Alexander Paterson as your 'Role of the Individual' factor and changing ideas about the causes of crime as your 'Social Attitudes' factor.
When asked to describe the features of open prisons (4 marks), examiners will award marks for explicitly stating what they do NOT have—such as high perimeter walls or locked cell doors.
Be prepared to sequence the timeline of youth justice: Borstals (1908) came first, followed by the punitive Detention Centres (1982), and finally modern YOIs (1988).
Rehabilitation
The process of changing an offender's behavior through education, work, and support to prevent re-offending and aid reintegration into society.
Separate system
A 19th-century penal method based on solitary confinement and silence, abolished in the 1920s.
Open prison
A minimum-security prison with no physical barriers to escape, relying on prisoner trust and the goal of resettlement.
Category D
The lowest security classification for prisons in the UK, used for open prisons.
Resettlement
The period of preparing a prisoner for life after release, focusing on housing, employment, and social integration.
Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL)
A system allowing inmates in open conditions to leave for employment or training to prepare for release.
Borstal
A specialized youth reformatory used between 1902 and 1982 that emphasized strict discipline and vocational skills.
Recidivism
The tendency of a convicted criminal to re-offend after serving their punishment.
"Short, sharp shock"
A 1980s punitive policy involving military-style drill intended to deter young offenders, largely considered a failure.
Young Offender Institutions (YOIs)
Current custodial facilities for youths focusing on education and preventing re-offending, established in 1988.
Non-custodial sentence
A punishment served outside of a secure institution, such as fines, tagging, or community service.
Community Payback
The modern name for community service orders requiring offenders to do unpaid manual labour to benefit the local area.
Electronic tagging
The use of an electronic ankle device to monitor an offender's movements and ensure curfew compliance.
Put your knowledge into practice — try past paper questions for History
Rehabilitation
The process of changing an offender's behavior through education, work, and support to prevent re-offending and aid reintegration into society.
Separate system
A 19th-century penal method based on solitary confinement and silence, abolished in the 1920s.
Open prison
A minimum-security prison with no physical barriers to escape, relying on prisoner trust and the goal of resettlement.
Category D
The lowest security classification for prisons in the UK, used for open prisons.
Resettlement
The period of preparing a prisoner for life after release, focusing on housing, employment, and social integration.
Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL)
A system allowing inmates in open conditions to leave for employment or training to prepare for release.
Borstal
A specialized youth reformatory used between 1902 and 1982 that emphasized strict discipline and vocational skills.
Recidivism
The tendency of a convicted criminal to re-offend after serving their punishment.
"Short, sharp shock"
A 1980s punitive policy involving military-style drill intended to deter young offenders, largely considered a failure.
Young Offender Institutions (YOIs)
Current custodial facilities for youths focusing on education and preventing re-offending, established in 1988.
Non-custodial sentence
A punishment served outside of a secure institution, such as fines, tagging, or community service.
Community Payback
The modern name for community service orders requiring offenders to do unpaid manual labour to benefit the local area.
Electronic tagging
The use of an electronic ankle device to monitor an offender's movements and ensure curfew compliance.
