Pedophiles serving time in UK prisons are being permitted to record bedtime stories and podcasts for their child relatives using state-of-the-art facilities behind bars.
Yes, really. It sounds like something from Brass Eye, but it’s real.
Taxpayer-funded multimedia studios have been built in sex offender jails, with predators being given microphone time, while the same system hunts down and even imprisons citizens for tweeting about grooming gangs.
The revelation centres on HMP Whatton in Nottinghamshire – Europe’s largest prison for sex offenders – where around 70 per cent of the 836 inmates are convicted of sex crimes. The Category C facility boasts a “multimedia studio” that allows selected prisoners to produce content shared on the prison’s internal TV and radio channels.
As highlighted by the Daily Mail, the programme falls under the long-running Storybook Dads initiative. Prisoners who pass risk assessments can read stories that are recorded and sent as CDs to children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews to “strengthen family ties.” No direct contact with victims is permitted.
A spokesman for the victims’ charity Justice for Victims slammed the scheme: “Far too often, victims and their families feel let down by the justice system. This is just another example of offenders being given an easy ride. They are serving time for some of the most heinous crimes as sex offenders, they should not have access to what many would consider luxuries.”
“Of course it’s important that consideration is given to rehabilitation, but tax payers money should not be spent on making their time an enjoyable experience,” the spokesman added.
Hellbound and Down 