David Foad: Why did you start Food Behind Bars?
Lucy Vincent: In 2016, a report was published by HM Inspectorate of Prisons called ‘Life in Prison: Food’. It assessed food standards in prisons across the UK and lifted the lid on what people eat behind bars. The conclusions were fairly damning - food was often not being used to promote people’s health and wellbeing, with not enough fruit and veg, too many carbs and limited access to communal dining.
At the time, I was juggling working in restaurants alongside forging a career as a freelance journalist. I came across the report in the press and had an instant interest. I had never considered before what people eat in prison, but the link between behaviour, reoffending and diet seemed so obvious to me.
A quick Google found a real lack of information, and there was a lack of firsthand accounts from the people actually eating the food. So I pitched a few articles and started writing about prison food, which involved me speaking to ex-prisoners about their experiences.
I became even more convinced about the importance of prison food, and how good food in prison could transform lives. Food Behind Bars was launched as a national campaign to improve prison food in November 2016, and in July 2020 we became a Registered Charity. I haven’t looked back since.
DF: What is its core mission?
LV: Our mission is to ensure that every prison in the country is serving food that is freshly cooked, nutritious and exciting. We want to see prisons using good food as a tool to improve people’s health, wellbeing and life chances. We also want to see every individual leaving prison with a positive relationship with food, having had the opportunity to learn how to cook, eat well or simply learn about the importance of a balanced diet.
DF: How has it changed since you started?
LV: Our mission has remained the same, although the way we achieve our goal has evolved considerably. When I first started, I wanted to get prison food on the public agenda and raise awareness around the subject. This is still an important part of what we do, but it’s our relationships with prisons and how we collaborate with them to push the boundaries of prison food which has developed.
The prison system has also changed in the last eight years. Overcrowding has increased, living conditions have declined and it’s more important than ever before to consider alternative ways of making prisons safer, more humane and more effective. Food plays a key role in this.
DF: Describe the work the charity does?
LV: Our work is split between our food education programmes and our work in the prison kitchen. We deliver a range of holistic food education in men’s and women’s prisons across the country.
At the moment, we are running a food growing and cooking course at HMP Stoke Heath, an on-the-wing kitchenette programme at HMP Manchester and a food programme for women at HMP Downview. We are passionate about teaching people how to cook and giving prisoners a rare opportunity to connect with food, connect with each other and eat together.
Our work in the prison kitchen is more bespoke. We typically work with a catering team over 4-6 months, understanding their challenges, ambitions and approach.
My team consists of food educators who are chefs and nutritionists. We are able to work collaboratively with the kitchen team (both staff and prisoners) to redesign menus, develop new recipes and deliver training.
You can often find us in the prison kitchen, testing out a new range of salads for the lunch menu or introducing homemade versions of some typically ‘pre-made’ items. We recruit prisoner food reps who we consult with regularly and run regular tasting sessions to create a buzz.
DF: Tell us about the team at Food Behind Bars?
LV: We have a small team that consists of professional chefs and nutritionists. Our head of food education, Nat, has worked with me for three years. She is a chef with a degree in criminology - what a combo! She has been absolutely integral in our success and is a real master in her field.
Our food educators are all able to bring in their own interests, expertise and ideas to hopefully inspire some of the staff and prisoners we work with.
DF: What are the biggest challenges you face?
LV: The biggest challenge of working with prisons is logistical. Sometimes even getting a group of prisoners in one place to attend a cooking class is difficult.
There are also huge logistical challenges around cooking and serving food in prison. I always say that a prison chef has the toughest job in catering - rolling out thousands of meals per day, on a budget of £3 per head, catering to every dietary requirement, managing a workforce of 20 prisoners and transporting meals to several wings (all the while trying to keep the food hot and appetising) is no mean feat.
We work creatively within these boundaries - our goal is always to make a prison catering team’s job easier, not harder. But there’s no denying it’s an incredibly tough environment to work in and to produce good food in.
DF: What are the most rewarding moments?
LV: The most rewarding thing for us is seeing our work have an impact. We often get feedback from prisoners who tell us our food is the best meal they’ve eaten in prison, or that our classes gave them space to cook food they love, connecting with past memories and each other.
Just last week, a participant in our food growing and cooking programme at HMP Stoke Heath told us his blood pressure had reduced since starting the course.
DF: How do you measure your overall effectiveness?
LV: We work very closely with our prison partners to gather as much information as possible during the course of a project. This involves regular feedback from prisoners and staff, including food surveys and running regular forums with our food reps.
We regularly analyse menu data to observe who is picking what and monitoring the take-up of any new sets of recipes. We also look at wider prison data around behaviour and mental health to measure the impact of our work.
DF: Can you describe your relationships with prison staff, especially catering teams?
LV: We pride ourselves on having great relationships with prison staff and catering teams across the UK. These relationships are some of the most important aspects of our work. Without them, it wouldn’t be possible.
It’s important for me to make catering staff feel listened to, supported and understood. I never want them to feel as though we are pointing the finger, or shaming what they do. They do an incredibly tough job day in, day out, and don’t get enough recognition or support for it.
When I first started visiting prisons eight years ago, I was understandably met with some hostility - I probably would have acted that way myself if I was in their shoes. I was very lucky to have a couple of catering managers and governors who took me under their wing.
These days, I hope we’ve built a good reputation and shown that what we want is actually to make their jobs more enjoyable, easier and fulfilling, and that we work in a collaborative way. We regularly get catering managers reaching out to us wanting to work together. That means a lot and hopefully shows that we are operating in the right way.
DF: How responsive are prisoners to the work you do?
LV: Very! Food is one of the most important aspects of a prisoner’s daily life. The vast majority of people I meet in prison want to eat in a healthier and more varied way. They are very responsive to the work we do.
DF: What does the latest research suggest about the link between good food and behaviour?
LV: There is still a lack of research into the links between nutrition and behaviour, particularly in a custodial setting. But a landmark study by Think Through Nutrition found that better nutrition in prison reduced violence by 37%.
Our understanding of the link between diet and mental health has also evolved over the years. Individuals classified as obese, for example, have a 55% higher risk of developing depression. We know that two thirds of the prison population suffer from mental health conditions. Diet should be a key part of the treatment.
DF: How does prison food in the UK stack up against what is provided in other countries?
LV: I was recently lucky enough to be awarded a Churchill Fellowship and spent three weeks visiting prisons in Denmark, Finland and Sweden. We will be publishing a report on our findings in the Autumn. But it was an eye-opening trip that fuelled me with ideas and inspiration, much of which we’re now using in our work.
Scandinavian prisons offer self-catering as the norm - the majority of prisoners cook all their meals for themselves and eat together, often with staff. The region as a whole also has much stricter government food policy, meaning that food procured for prisons often had to be ethically-produced, organic and high quality.
It resulted in a very different end plate of food and goes a long way in explaining why this region has some of the lowest reoffending rates in the world.
DF: What changes to the way prisons are run would help the work of Food Behind Bars?
LV: A change in the prison regime to better reflect normal life would be a hugely beneficial step. At the majority of prisons, there is a 2.5 hour gap in the day where prisoners are locked in their cells.
It disrupts the working day and can make learning disjointed, as well as not preparing them properly for everyday life on the outside.
I’d like to see a change in the way prisons are designed. More opportunities to cook food and eat together would have a huge impact on people’s lives, again preparing them for release but also bringing a sense of normality and commensality to prison life.
Finally, I’d like to see catering managers given greater freedom. This would mean freedom to choose their own suppliers, fix their own equipment and design a regime that works for their kitchen and their workers.
DF: Are you optimistic about the future?
LV: Very. I am an eternal optimist and I try to bring hope and positivity into the prisons I work with. We have a new Prisons Minister who cares deeply and understands the issues facing prisons right now, and I am hopeful he will provide some bold solutions to the chronic problems that exist in our prison system.
I’m also excited for the future of FBB - we have some very exciting projects coming up that I believe have the potential to improve prison food on a large scale, and I’m looking forward to rolling them out.