Hm Prison Brixton

HM Prison Brixton is a local men's prison, located in Brixton area of the London Borough of Lambeth, in inner-South London. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service. HistoryThe prison was originally built in 1820 and opened as the Surrey House of Correction, Brixton Prison was intended to house 175 prisoners. However, regularly exceeding its capacity supporting over 200 prisoners, overcrowding was an early problem and with its small cells and poor living conditions contributed to its reputation as one of the worst prisons in London (worsened when Brixton became one of the first prisons to introduce treadwheels in 1821). There is an illustration of prisoners on the 1821 treadmill used to mill corn in Surrey House of Correction. Conditions for women were especially harsh as newly arrived female inmates were made to spend four months in solitary confinement and, following their introduction into the general prison population, would be required to maintain a condition of silent association. Female inmates were allowed over time to earn privileges, which included limited conversation, payment for labor, the right to receive letters and visitation rights. Eventually the problem of overcrowding was addressed with the prison expanding to house over 800 prisoners and, in 1852, the British government converted Brixton into a women's correctional facility after Van Diemen's Land (modern day Tasmania) became the final colony to refuse to accept women prisoners from England, under the penal transportation process.

HM Prison Brixton is a local men's prison, located in Brixton area of the London Borough of Lambeth, in inner-South London. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service. HistoryThe prison was originally built in 1820 and opened as the Surrey House of Correction, Brixton Prison was intended to house 175 prisoners. However, regularly exceeding its capacity supporting over 200 prisoners, overcrowding was an early problem and with its small cells and poor living conditions contributed to its reputation as one of the worst prisons in London (worsened when Brixton became one of the first prisons to introduce treadwheels in 1821). There is an illustration of prisoners on the 1821 treadmill used to mill corn in Surrey House of Correction. Conditions for women were especially harsh as newly arrived female inmates were made to spend four months in solitary confinement and, following their introduction into the general prison population, would be required to maintain a condition of silent association. Female inmates were allowed over time to earn privileges, which included limited conversation, payment for labor, the right to receive letters and visitation rights. Eventually the problem of overcrowding was addressed with the prison expanding to house over 800 prisoners and, in 1852, the British government converted Brixton into a women's correctional facility after Van Diemen's Land (modern day Tasmania) became the final colony to refuse to accept women prisoners from England, under the penal transportation process.