Prisons and the justice system often make headlines for issues like overcrowding or sentencing, but there’s a quieter, more transformative side to life behind bars that rarely gets attention.

While offending behaviour programmes are well established in prisons, research from my colleagues and I has focused on the rehabilitative potential of a very different aspect of prison life – prison dairy farm work.

At HMP Prescoed, an open prison near Usk in south-east Wales, prisoners are getting their hands dirty at Cilgwri Farm, a fully functioning dairy operation. Here, prisoners help manage a large herd of dairy cows and their calves, learning not only essential farming skills but, perhaps more importantly, how to care and connect in ways many may have never experienced before.

Our interviews with prison staff suggested that working with a dairy herd could help the men move away from crime.

Working with cows isn’t just about milking and feeding. It’s also about teamwork, trust and care. We found that the relationships between the farm staff and the prisoners was an important part of the positive experience of those working on the farm.

Members of staff showed the prisoners how to care for the cows. For some of the men, this was the first time they had been shown how to care for something and how to deal with their feelings when cows got sick or died.

Staff noticed that off the farm and away from work, prisoners started to support each other with other activities like reading and writing. Like any other “family”, this group of people had to learn how to communicate effectively with each other. This seemed to be made easier because of their shared interest and care for the cows. It was a sense of community that many hadn’t experienced before.

Cow companions

There has been a lot of research about companion animals, such as dogs, with people in prison. Much of this work has been based on understanding the effects and benefits of a human-companion animal bond.

But prison farm animal work had not been looked into in depth. This raised questions about whether prisoners working with farm animals could develop care and empathy for them in a similar way to that seen with prison companion animals.

Despite their size and potential danger, the prisoners formed strong bonds with the dairy cows. Cows were treated like pets in being named, fussed and cared for. Some prisoners even asked for photos of their favourite cow to take with them upon being released.

Work started at 5.30am and continued late into the evening. Prisoners were also happy to help staff deliver a calf in the middle of the night, for example, or to do extra work looking after sick animals.

All of the participants in our study described their observations of the therapeutic impact of the prison dairy work. Stressed cows produce less milk, so the men had to learn, with staff support, how to behave calmly around them.

But it wasn’t just the cows who benefited. Being in daily contact with the cows seemed to relax and calm the men. It helped them deal with angry and sad feelings – lessons crucial for rehabilitation.

How may this help reduce crime?

Regardless of the different views on crime, punishment and sentencing, the prison dairy workers will be released back into the community at some stage. The farm could therefore be more than just a good employment opportunity. It could be a space for the prisoners to learn how to receive and give compassion.

Caring for the cows may help reactivate a part of them that had long been suppressed. The sense of being valued, not just as prisoners but as farm workers, also may help to shift their identity away from crime. Learning to control behaviour and emotions and to communicate better is also crucial to successful rehabilitation.

Our research in this sphere continues, though our initial findings are promising. Perhaps the key to reducing re-offending lies not just in programmes behind bars, but also in connecting with something beyond oneself – whether it’s another person or a herd of cows.

Libby Payne, Forensic Psychologist & Senior Lecturer in Forensic Psychology, Cardiff Metropolitan University

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