Even after a year after Pia Sinha, prison governor of HMP Risley took charge of the men's resettlement, she unfailingly surprises people when she introduces herself. The barely over 5 ft tall Asian woman however, takes it as a compliment. “You get a lot of raised eyebrows and and some people openly say, 'You are not what I expected',” she said. Sinha began her career in prisons 20 years ago and describes the atmosphere as an “acquired taste”.
After she began her career as a psychologist at HMP Holloway, a woman's prison in London, the 44 year old came a long way, working in women's and men's prisons. Her first governorship was the adult male prison, HMP Thorn Cross in Cheshire. About adapting her approach, Sinha said, “Even though Thorn Cross is a male prison there was scope to use my female dominant skill. It was a place where you can be creative, the focus was overtly on resettlement.” She added, “But when I came to HMP Risley it was like starting again because it had a very male culture. It required masculine skills. I had to be clear in my communication. There is no room for discussion and dialogue when you're expected to give strong leadership.”
She admits she's often heckled by prisoners. “It can be very intimidating and unpleasant but when I walk on to the wings, I need to feel comfortable,” she said. Given the unpredictability of her job, one of her tasks is crisis management. Sinha and her staff have often dealt with self-harm, violence, bullying, and antisocial behaviour. She attributes most of the chaos to drug use.
About her life working in a high-security environment, the beaming and proud prison governor said, “You're not able to bring your mobiles into work. You can't do any personal admin during lunch breaks or quiet times. We have our own intranet, but there's limited access to the internet. It's very very firewalled.” She said prison “shuts off the outside world, whilst the world wants to remain blissfully unaware of what happens inside.”
