A significant change in prison design and prison culture is happening all over the world due to the increasing impact of ICT-led solutions. These apply to an ever-increasing amount of applications including prison security and building management systems, alongside a broad range of rehabilitative practices.
The panel, inspired by the insights of two EuroPris expert groups (Real Estate and ICT), will explore the need to take modern ICT solutions into account when designing new prison facilities, and will examine how ICT solutions need to be tailored to an existing older prison's unique architectural and operational needs.
Our panellists, including European and global specialists, will discuss the challenges and opportunities ICT integration presents in prisons. This will include the importance of taking account of ethical and legal compliance considerations.
This panel discussion aims to highlight innovative ways of technological implementation within the prison estates, and what the modernization of prison infrastructure in the context of technological integration could look like.
Two EuroPris Expert Groups (ICT and Real Estate) are currently preparing a joint guidance paper which seeks to highlight the possibilities and challenges of this transformation. The panel will discuss the key areas of the guidance which include: (1) Strategy, concept, and culture, (2) Infrastructure and technical questions, (3) Services, users, and partners, (4) Research, and (5) Artificial Intelligence.
European states are not uniform in their use or deployment of ICT within their prisons due to disparities in economic resources, technological infrastructure, policy priorities, and legislative frameworks reflecting broader socio-economic differences. However, countries at various stages of ICT integration can learn from each other, and there should be an effort to document and extend the best practices found in different countries.
Evidence-based research regarding cost-effectiveness and other benefits of this digital development are needed to justify sufficient funding, organizational engagement, and even political interest for this development. The European and global perspectives on ICT-led prison design must be combined to advance this development as equally as possible across the world.
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Pia Puolakka
Senior Specialist, Team Leader, Prison and Probation Service of Finland, Finland
Ms Pia Puolakka has been working in the field of corrections since 2008. In 2018-2022, she worked in the Smart Prison project implementing Finland’s first cell devices with digital services to a new women’s prison.
She has specialized in rehabilitative and digital services in prisons and is also a specialist in Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications for corrections. She has also done research regarding prison digitalization and use of AI in corrections which has received international attention. She is a member (co-chair) of the EuroPris ICT Expert group, and in 2021-2023 she was part of the Council of Europe’s Council for Penological Co-operation’s (PC-CP) expert group developing recommendations for the use of AI in corrections. By education, she is a forensic psychologist and psychotherapist and is currently studying international leadership.
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Jacques Hensen
ICT Manager, Administration Pénitentiaire Luxembourg, Luxembourg
After 14 years of experience as technical and software engineer in different industries in private sector, Jacques Hensen joined the public sector in 2005. He is currently working as ICT Manager at Luxembourg Penitentiary Center, responsible for IT, security and communication projects in Luxembourg prisons. In addition, he contributed to implement Electronic Monitoring in Luxembourg since 2009. Since 2016, he is a member of the EuroPris ICT Expert Group.
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Mark McGoldrick
Head of Estates, Irish Prison Service, Ireland
Mark has served with the Irish Prison Service for the past 15 years and has vast knowledge and expertise in prison design, development, and delivery of major capital projects as well as day-to-day minor works/repairs and renovations. He is also responsible for the infrastructural services and maintenance of the Estate’s portfolio.
Having an educational background in building design and construction with a particular focus on Fire Safety, Mark has held senior management positions with the Irish Prison Service, Health Service Executive (Irish Health Service), and Dublin Airport Authority.
Mark is a Chartered Engineer and in a previous roles he was the Fire Safety Manager and Capital Project Manager for the Irish Prison Service for a number of years.
In his Project Management role he has oversaw the delivery many multi million euro capital projects for example the new Cork Prison in 2016 (€49m), Castlerea Prison Phase 1 redevelopment (€4.8m) and more recently the Limerick Prison redevelopment project (€71.5m).
Today as the Head of Estates with Irish Prison Service, Mark has delivered the Estates strategic direction as set out in the IPS Strategic Plan(s). He excels at prison planning and is aware that the prison estate is complex, dynamic and ever changing to meet the needs of an ever growing prisoner population and in particular addressing the complex needs of male and female prisoners in providing suitable building environments.
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Kavan Applegate
Director, GB-Architects, Australia
Kavan is the Chair of the ICPA Planning and Design Network and Director of Guymer Bailey Architects, specialising in specialist in justice and correctional architecture – therapeutic environments that facilitate rehabilitation, empower behavioural change and create a sense of hope to ultimately reduce recidivism rates and create a better, safer community for all.
Knowing that our environment has a profound effect on us, his passion is in harnessing the transformative effects of architecture to help people live better lives. Through the creative and sustainable use of building form and materials and the rehabilitative effects of daylight, Kavan believes architecture can significantly change the quality of life for those inhabiting its space. It is this ‘architecture of hope’ that he seeks to provide each day by delivering well planned, operationally effective and delight-filled masterplanning and building solutions.
Over the last 25 years, Kavan has led the design of many of Australia’s most innovative and iconic justice and correctional projects alongside our team including Hopkins Correctional Centre, Ravenhall Correctional Centre, Western Plains Correctional Centre, Rivergum Residential Treatment Centre, Southern Queensland Correctional Centre (St2), Southern Remand Correctional Centre, and the Thomas Embling Forensic Hospital Expansion as well as works in numerous other secure facilities.
As a Director of Guymer Bailey Architects, Kavan leads the exceptional architecture, landscape architecture and interior design team across our Melbourne and Brisbane Studios and overseeing our large-scale correctional projects.
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Helena Pombares
Prison architect specialist/ Lecturer/ Researcher, University of West London, United Kingdom
Helena is an architect and criminologist with 18 years’ experience in justice architecture, and a lecturer at two universities in the UK. Helena is also at the final steps of her journey on a professional doctorate degree, researching how to reshape prison design for the 21st century using salutogenic architecture. She joined Pick Everard, to connect research evidence and practice base. Helena’s most recent contribution has been the HPM Glasgow project and the UK Ministry of Justice Women’s Estate scheme. Her research on salutogenic architecture of carceral spaces feeds her passion on the effects the built environment has on the users of the space, like staff and inmates, using the evidence found to inform planning and design of carceral spaces to positively impact society.
