Most FutureLearn courses run multiple times. Every run of a course has a set start date but you can join it and work through it after it starts. Find out more This course is for anyone looking to investigate whether prisons are a suitable punishment for offenders. The course will be useful for professionals such as social workers, probation officers, and anyone that supports prisoners. This course is also useful for learners interested in studying criminology or related disciplines at undergraduate or postgraduate level. You can use the hashtag #FLincarceration to talk about this course on social media.

Topics Covered

• Identify the aims of imprisonment as punishment and recognise the justifications and ethical implications of subjecting individuals to custody.
• Explore prison conditions and regimes, considered in relation to punishment being solely ‘loss of liberty’.
• Identify issues facing prisons, including safety and security, overcrowding and drug misuse.
• Compare jurisdictions with different aims and objectives.
• Explore the criminal justice system: what sanctions are available and where punish and imprisonment fits.
• Examine rehabilitation as a key to reducing reconviction rates and crime by changing the individual and/or providing skills ready for release.
• Explore alternatives to custody for less serious crimes: fines, community orders and suspended sentences.
• Assess the effectiveness of such sanctions in comparison with custody.
• Discuss the extent to which rehabilitation and resettlement are key to reducing reoffending.