Support from staff is important during imprisonment

Prisoners and persons serving community sanctions emphasise the importance of their encounters with the staff for the smooth running of their everyday lives, according to the latest quality survey by the Prison and Probation Service.

Support during imprisonment and the quality of everyday life are central themes in the experiences of prisoners. In particular, studying, work, and other meaningful activities promote wellbeing and coping. Support provided by the staff, good social relations, healthcare, and communication with loved ones are also important.

The results highlight the significance of predictability in everyday life and continuity in activities: when the structures of everyday life are strained and activities discontinuous, this is reflected in prisoners’ experiences as a lack of activities and restlessness in everyday life.  Overall, prisoners’ experiences of the quality of life in prison have remained unchanged or improved slightly compared to the 2022 quality survey.

“For the development of the Prison and Probation Service, it is extremely important to obtain research-based information on the experiences of prisoners and persons serving community sanctions. The sentence term is a unique opportunity to support offenders towards a life without crime,” says Anna Arola-Järvi, Director General of the Prison and Probation Service.

Persons serving community sanctions rate their treatment very positively

Persons serving community sanctions feel that they receive appropriate, fair and respectful treatment at the probation offices. The support received from supervisors is considered important. Many respondents felt that serving the sanction had increased their self-understanding and faith in the future.

Although the number of respondents was relatively small, the data suggests that the intensity of the work and the tightness of resources are occasionally reflected in the frequency of appointments and time pressure, but this does not reduce the perceptions of staff professionalism and support. The ratings have remained at a high level since 2016.

Staff find their work meaningful and their professional foundation strong

In many respects, the results of the staff survey provide a parallel view of the experiences of prisoners and persons serving community sanctions.  Limited resources, rising workloads, and expanding administrative obligations reduce opportunities for planned work.

According to prison staff, the work is considered quite demanding and stressful, especially in closed prisons. However, prison staff’s experiences of the quality of working life have improved slightly compared to 2022.  In probation offices, wellbeing at work has improved significantly.

“Professional identity, interaction skills and a strong work ethic support everyday work even in demanding conditions and form the basis for the quality of work,” says Senior Specialist Peter Blomster.

Assessments related to safety and security show a cautiously positive trend. The staff feel that safety and security arrangements and operational readiness have improved. In closed prisons, gang activity, overcrowding, and the layout of physical facilities weaken the sense of safety and also affect prisoners’ experiences of the calmness and predictability of everyday life.

Quality survey provides research-based information to support development

The regularly conducted quality survey produces information on key dimensions of the quality of prison and probation work and supports the development of the operations of the Prison and Probation Service. The 2025 survey was completed by 1 700 prisoners, 352 persons serving community sanctions, 701 prison staff members, and 161 staff members working in probation offices or the Prison and Probation Centres.

The number of respondents serving community sanctions was relatively small, which means that the results concerning them should be interpreted with caution. The response rates of prisoners and staff were, however, good, which strengthens the representativeness of the results.

The quality survey is available in Finnish with an English summary.

Further information: Senior Specialist Peter Blomster, Development and Guidance Department
tel. +358 29 568 8552
firstname.lastname(at)om.fi