Prisoners at work: A collaboration between documentary photographer Andy Aitchison, Barbed graphic design studio (HMP Coldingley) and the Howard League for Penal Reform’

The photographs reproduced here represent an alternative way of communicating the experiences of those incarcerated in British prisons through visualising and contextualising ‘prisoners at work’. The photographs were taken by Andy Aitchison, a freelance professional photographer with experience working in the prison system, and commissioned and produced as an exhibition piece by design studio, Barbed Design. Barbed Design is part of the Howard League for Penal Reform and based in HMP Coldingley, Surrey, England. The studio employs and trains prison inmates in graphic design, IT, and pre-press. Managed by an experienced graphic designer, and with regular participation from visiting experts, volunteers and professional teachers, Barbed is a working design studio. It is run as a profit-making enterprise which competes for and carries out design work for external clients. All profits are put back into the charitable work of the Howard League for Penal Reform. What is unique about Barbed, in addition to its location, is that employed prisoners are paid minimum wage. They pay tax and national insurance, start bank accounts and pensions, and they are protected by employment legislation. These conditions enable Barbed staff to contribute toward supporting their dependents while incarcerated.