The Bishop of Gloucester, Rachel Treweek, has expressed disquiet about the treatment of young people jailed after the riots across England this month. The bishop, who is the Church of England’s lead on prisons, says there must be consequences for actions, but jailing people for social media offences in the riots is not right. Interviewed by the Sunday programme on Radio 4, she said that sending offenders to prison for months or years, if no appropriate intervention is made, is foolish. To ensure people change and contribute to their communities, society must look at creative and appropriate punishments, such as community orders and probation. She added that there’s no evidence that locking people up does transform people, as the re-offending rate is very high, and she urged more consideration on what kind of intervention will transform people on the wrong side of the law.
