Prisoners ’ experiences of custodial parkrun in the UK: links to rehabilitation culture and desistance

Prisoners’ experiences of custodial parkrun in the UK: links to rehabilitation culture and desistance Harriet Campana, Lisa Edmondson, Claire Edghill, Tanya Crowther, Julie Aspin, Lauren Aspey, Rosie Meek Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice, Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print, pp.- Parkruns are weekly, free, community-based, 5 km runs around open spaces, with a growing body of research indicating their social, physical and psychological benefits. Thirty-one custodial establishments in England and Wales regularly offer parkruns. The purpose of this paper is to consider prisoners' experiences of parkrun in custodial settings, and these are discussed in the context of the evidence base regarding parkrun in the community and the wider literature on prison sport, desistance, and rehabilitation culture.Using an inductive, qualitative approach, data was collected at three English prisons, via semi-structured interviews with 24 adult male prisoners who participated in parkrun. Data was subjected to thematic analysis.In total, five themes reflecting positive experiences associated with custodial parkrun were identified: connection with others; healthy living; a safe and predictable exercise environment; a sense of purpose; and a re-humanising experience. Factors appearing frequently in the wider parkrun research are present in the perceptions of parkrunners in custody. In addition, factors deemed important to desistance and promoting a rehabilitation culture...
Source: Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice - Category: Criminology Authors: Source Type: research