Can people in wheelchairs go to jail/prison?
Due to the rising prison population and the significant increase in elderly people in custody there are now believed to be a record number of disabled prisoners, although the Prison Service does not currently collect data on disability. Disabled prisoners say that they are rarely given equal access to prison activities and some complain of poor treatment and discrimination. Lack of information on what facilities do exist in different prisons means they are not able to make informed choices. The Prison Reform Trust’s advice and information service has received a significant number of letters from disabled prisoners and their families highlighting their experiences. These have ranged from a wheelchair bound prisoner being confined to his cell for 24 hours a day and being left sitting in his urine because of no facilities for him to bathe and a deaf prisoner missing out on exercise and education due to not hearing shouted instructions. In addition to concerns raised, the Prison Reform Tru
