Coracle’s mission is to remove isolation from learning. Sometimes, this challenge is most visible in places where isolation is at its most intense. Recently, for the first time, Coracle has encountered this challenge at one of their locations.
A thoughtful decision: issuing a laptop on the segregation wing
A Coracle laptop was issued to a learner on the segregation wing. This was a decision made thoughtfully by the establishment’s Learning & Skills team in partnership with segregation staff. It was made with one clear aim – to give a learner who was struggling, a safe constructive focus at a difficult moment.
Our learner deliberately got himself moved to segregation because he felt unsafe on the main wing. He is serving a long sentence. However, once there, he found it tough to adjust to the segregation regime. Staff noticed that his mood was very low and that he was struggling to cope. Even though he didn’t want to return to the main wing, he continued to struggle.
Collaboration in action and balancing risk and opportunity: segregation staff and the Learning & Skills Manager
The member of the segregation team reached out to the Learning & Skills Manager (LSM). They asked whether they could consider a Coracle laptop to provide some purposeful activity. The wing staff believed that access to learning could provide structure, distraction, and a sense of purpose. In particular, they wanted something to help the learner settle.
People had understandable reservations. The learner had damaged his cell to get to segregation, and the team needed to be confident he would treat the device responsibly. But after discussing it together, they made the decision: being on the segregation wing shouldn’t exclude someone from having the opportunity to learn. The LSM and a colleague delivered the device together around four weeks ago. Segregation staff were “over the moon”, not because it was technology for technology’s sake, but because they could see what it might unlock – calmer days, a constructive routine, and something positive to work towards.
What changed in weeks: mood, responsibility, and a sense of purpose
Within weeks, staff on the wing reported a significant change. They described the device as having a huge impact on the learner’s attitude and his ability to resettle on the wing. The education team noticed the same shift in mood during their check-ins. The learner himself was overwhelmingly grateful and took seriously that the device was his responsibility. In conversations with staff, he shared how he was using it both for distraction and for learning. He also began writing a story about his life.
Writing as a pathway back to self
Our learner asked for help with spelling and with formatting his writing. He described the process as therapeutic and a way to get out of his own head and focus on something constructive. He even shared that writing had helped him revisit fond memories, which he then discussed with his mother over the phone. They laughed together over shared moments. For the staff supporting him, it was heartwarming to witness.
The next step: moving on from segregation with continuity of learning
Perhaps most significantly, the learner had adamantly refused to leave the segregation wing. But in the short time since receiving the laptop, he has agreed to move onto a protected wing. Staff felt that because he had put his head in a better place, he could consider that staying in segregation wasn’t the only option and he is now excited to move on. Staff reassured him he can keep using the device on the wing he is moving to, where other learners are already engaging with learning.
That continuity mattered. He didn’t want to lose what he had started.
What this story reflects
This is one story, but it reflects something we see again and again. When we give people safe, structured access to learning, it can change how they cope, how they behave, and how they see their next step.
Gratitude for careful, human decisions
The Learning & Skills teams and wing staff make us grateful for the careful, human decisions they make every day and for finding ways to remove isolation from learning, even in the hardest places.
