Reading Borstal, Reading, Berkshire
In 1952, part of HMP Reading was turned over for use as a Borstal Institution. Its remit was to provide a corrective establishment for Borstal inmates who persistently misbehaved, a role previously carried out by Wandsworth Borstal.
Reading gained a reputation as Britain's toughest borstal. In 1967, an investigation was held into allegations by detainees of brutality by the institution's officers. After it concluded that there was substance to the complaints, one officer was disciplined and another prosecuted. The facility was closed in January 1969 and its inmates, together with those from the Recall Centre at Portsmouth, were transferred to a new purpose-built institution at Onley in Northamptonshire. The Reading premises then reverted to use as prison accommodation.
Records
Note: many repositories impose a closure period of up to 100 years for records identifying individuals. Before travelling a long distance, always check that the records you want to consult will be available.
- Berkshire Record Office, Berkshire Record Office, 9 Coley Avenue, Reading, Berks RG1 6AF.
- The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. Has a wide variety of crime and prison records going back to the 1770s, including calendars of prisoners, prison registers and criminal registers.
- Find My Past has digitized many of the National Archives' prison records, including prisoner-of-war records, plus a variety of local records including Manchester, York and Plymouth. More information.
- Prison-related records on Ancestry UK include Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951, and local records from London, Swansea, Gloucesterhire and West Yorkshire. More information.
- The Genealogist also has a number of National Archives' prison records. More information.
Bibliography
- Fox, Lionel W The English Prison and Borstal Systems (1952, Routledge & Kegan Paul)
- Behan, Brendan Borstal Boy (1958, Hutchinson)
- Hutton, John Portland Borstal Institutution Miscellany Volume 2 (2018)
- Lodge, Jeremy Lowdham Grange. Borstal! (2014)
Links
- Prison Oracle - resources those involved in present-day UK prisons.
- GOV.UK - UK Government's information on sentencing, probation and support for families.
Except where indicated, this page () © Peter Higginbotham. Contents may not be reproduced without permission.