POA Learning have been aiding staff development at their HMP Dartmoor Learning Centre by providing bespoke online learning in Autism Awareness.

In March 2015, following a public meeting in Parliament on autism and the criminal justice system, the Prisons Minister wrote to all prisons and young offenders’ institutes in England and Wales suggesting that they could support prisoners with a diagnosis of autism more effectively if they achieved The National Autistic Society ‘Autism Accreditation’. 

A significant numbers of adults who come into contact with criminal justice could be made vulnerable by a system that is poor at recognising and meeting their particular support needs. Difficulties with communication and in understanding the requirements of the criminal justice process can be especially challenging for certain individuals. 

Andy Harding is POA Learning Centre Manager at HMP Dartmoor. Andy decided to carry out an analysis of offenders at HMP Dartmoor and discovered that 33% of the offender population are registered with a known learning disability of some form.

In light of the Prison Ministers request, Andy was asked by the Governor of HMP Dartmoor to source appropriate learning opportunities that would raise staff awareness of learning disabilities generally, and autism specifically.

Through the POA Learning Centre Andy managed to source a short online training course for all staff to access that suits the bill perfectly. The online learning is provided by The National Autistic Society and to date 200 staff from HMP Dartmoor have signed up to attend the Learning Centre over the next two months and undertake the learning sessions. POA Learning Learner Support workers Ivan Judd and Kevin Watts are at hand to assist staff with any queries that they may have.

Andy Harding stated:

The online learning provided by POA Learning is perfect for raising staff awareness of the signs of autism and how for some of our offenders simply being in prison with diagnosed autism is such an ordeal. 

Staff need to understand how best to manage offenders who exist on the autistic spectrum so that those offenders can get the very best out of the opportunities afforded them to reduce reoffending."

Pete Lewis, Deputy Governor at HMP Dartmoor added:

The online course in Autism Awareness provided by POA Learning meets the needs of both the staff and the establishment perfectly. 

Raising awareness of autism has been key in the way in which our staff can better understand offender management in relation to those offenders with a defined learning disability. Ultimately this process will lead to better offender engagement with the entire regime, which will go a long way in making the experience of custody more purposeful."