Prison libraries and their future potential in England and Wales

This article aims to add to the empirical evidence of prison library research. Firstly, the article will discuss the purpose of prison libraries and current practice in England and Wales. It will then explore the trends in access to prison libraries and their resource materials using survey data collected by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) from adults in prison over the last 20 years. This will support prison leaders on how to optimise prison libraries for people in prison, prison establishments and wider society, and to guide further research.