Autism in Prisons: An Overview of Experiences of Custody and Implications for Custodial Rehabilitation for Autistic Prisoners

Taking a predominantly social model perspective, this chapter aims to introduce and explore some of the challenges faced by autistic individuals serving prison sentences. In addition, the chapter will identify and explore potentially supportive features of prisons for autistic prisoners. The chapter introduces how the social model can develop our understanding of the challenges that autistic individuals may face, before specifically exploring how this could be relevant and understood in a prison context. This is followed by a discussion of some of the most common challenges faced by autistic individuals living in a prison environment. Examples of some of these challenges include difficulties with the social environment, inconsistencies in the prison routine and regime, and aspects of the prison sensory environment. The chapter then considers some elements of prison life that have been found to be supportive features for autistic prisoners. Such features include specialised support provisions, peer support, and additional simple adjustments or accommodations. The chapter also highlights the nuances associated with rehabilitating autistic prisoners in a prison environment, exploring how the prison context can be both supportive and hindering to interventions and rehabilitation for offending behaviours. The chapter concludes with overarching recommendations on how best to work with and support autistic prisoners, with a firm focus on utilising collaborative approaches and listening to the voices of the prison autism community in the design and development of research and practical changes.