Below is an overview of existing international, European and national legislation related to the provision of prison library services.

Nelson mandela Rules

The right for all incarcerated persons to access library services is made clear in the The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. These rules were first adapted in 1955 and in 2015 were revised and renamed the Nelson Mandela Rules to honour the legacy of the late President of South Africa, who spent 27 years in prison. This set of international rules were written to ensure that the human rights of people in prison are respected and that they are treated with dignity.

Rule 64 states: Every prison shall have a library for the use of all categories of prisoners, adequately stocked with both recreational and instructional books, and prisoners shall be encouraged to make full use of it.

You can download the full document here.

The European Prison Rules

The European Prison Rules were drawn up by the Council of Europe to lay out good principles and practices in the treatment of people in custody. They were most recently revised in 2020. Regarding prison libraries, they state:

(28.5) Every institution shall have a library for the use of all prisoners, adequately stocked with a wide range of both recreational and educational resources, books and other media.

(28.6) Wherever possible, the prison library should be organised in co-operation with community library services.

(Council of Europe, 2020)

national Prison rules

There are separate rules for the prison services across England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Existing rules in each jurisdiction regarding prison library services are shown in the table below, and show the legal precedent for having a prison library. You can click on the title links to access the full set of prison rules.

HMPPS (England and Wales) The Prison Rules 1999 Rule 33: A library shall be provided in every prison and, subject to the directions of the Secretary of State, every prisoner shall be allowed to have library books and exchange them.
Scottish Prison Service The Prison and Young Offenders Institutions (Scotland) Rules 2011 Rule 88(1): The Governor must make arrangements for lending library services for the use of prisoners which take into account, so far as reasonably practicable, the prisoner’s educational, informational and recreational interests.
Northern Ireland Prison Service Prison and Young Offenders Centre Rules (Northern Ireland) 1995 Rule 54(1): A library shall be provided in every prison and every prisoner shall be allowed to have books or other items borrowed from the library, and to exchange them, under such conditions as the governor or the Department of Justice may determine.

UNESCO Policy Brief

In 2020, the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning published a short policy brief outlining the ways in which prison libraries can support rehabilitation. It proposes five main recommendations for the successful provision of prison libraries:

  • The role of prison libraries needs to be recognized in relevant policy regulations
  • Prison libraries should network and model the general library system.
  • Prison libraries need to be managed by qualified prison library staff with access to sufficient budget and resources.
  • Prison libraries should be attractive meeting and learning spaces.
  • Prison libraries should contribute to a literate environment that encourages prisoners to develop, enhance and sustain literacy skills.

You can read the full brief at this link.