Jesuit Centre questions Thornton Hall prison move

The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice has just published the April 2008 issue of Working Notes entitled Thornton Hall Prison – A Progressive Move?. It focuses on concerns about the proposed relocation of both the Central Mental Hospital and the Dóchas Centre, the women’s prison in Mountjoy, to the controversial new prison complex at Thornton Hall, north county Dublin. The Central Mental Hospital Carers Group, which represents relatives and friends of patients in the hospital, argues that there are no possible therapeutic reasons for locating the hospital beside the prison. In addition, the Carers Group shows that there is a feasible alternative, which would enable much-needed new hospital facilities to be provided on the existing site. This issue of Working Notes also carries an article exploring the impact of imprisonment on families. View the full issue online here.