Scottish prisoners are set to enjoy virtual visits online from their loved ones.
Prison visiting areas will be revamped and fitted with computer screens and broadband connections to enable prisoners and their families to see one another and to talk without anyone having to travel to the jail.
Once the technology and equipment have been set up by the Scottish Prison Service, it is likely to become the new normal for many visits, easing the burden on relatives to travel to keep in touch with loved ones.
A source said: “It might be that rather than making a journey every week, you save time and money by doing it once a month and have the rest of your visits online.
“Certainly, once the equipment has been installed, at some cost to the taxpayer, and the facility is there, it makes no sense to take it away.”
All prison visits were stopped more than five weeks ago when the lockdown started to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
There have been concerns for the mental health of prisoners who rely heavily on visits to stay in a positive frame of mind, and they are also considered essential in helping to keep family units and relationships together.
The most likely prisoners to reoffend are those who are released without anyone to return to.
Those who manage to sustain relationships and have a partner or a family to return to tend to fare better at staying out of trouble.
The source added: “One of the reasons that relationships break down is because the travel to visits can be difficult, especially with young children, and it can be expensive.
“This adds to the tension that is already there due to the enforced separation and can be the breaking point.
“On this occasion, reacting to the conditions created by the coronavirus could be a real positive as it is forcing conservative bodies like the prison service to use technology that has been there for some time to solve a problem.”
The news was revealed yesterday by the SPS on a question-and-answer section of its website designed to give the families of prisoners updates on managing the virus in jails.
It said: “We are working to secure the additional equipment needed to facilitate these visits and ensure the booking process is as simple as possible.”
The Q&A also confirmed that restricted provision of mobile phones would also be available shortly to allow them to maintain family contact: “We are working with the service provider to introduce mobile handsets as quickly as possible.”
Although the prison service are keen to allow prisoners access to friends and family, it is understood that mobiles or computer equipment are unlikely to be allowed in cells.
The source said: “I don’t think we could ever allow virtual visits to be conducted in private. While prison staff supervise visits, they don’t listen in on conversations, but their presence stops people getting carried away.
“In the privacy of a cell, it’s inevitable some prisoners would get carried away.”
A spokesman for the SPS said: “We are looking at ways we can make this happen but there are a number of technical issues to resolve first.”
