Violence now rising once more in jail the place inmates are taught about historic Greek philosophy of Stoicism

Violence has begun to rise again in a men’s prison which saw assaults plummet after inmates were given lessons in the ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism.

Inspectors had praised staff at HMP Wayland, Norfolk, for their approach and found it had ‘significantly reduced the level of violence against other prisoners and against staff’.

Inmates were taught the Stoic values of prudence, fortitude, temperance and justice in a programme which inspectors said was aimed at increasing their ‘inner resilience’.

But the latest report from the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) found that towards the end of the year, the trend of prisoner violence against staff and other inmates was ‘upwards rather than downwards’.

Inspectors also found the prison’s Care and Separation Unit (CSU), a specialised, isolated wing used to keep inmates from their peers for safety or disciplinary reasons, was full.

Many inmates were in the CSU for ‘violence-related reasons’ according to the IMB.

Though violence had reduced ‘significantly from what it had been like in previous periods’, inspectors found HMP Wayland had still been ‘consistently’ under average levels in other comparable prisons.

There was also a marked rise in prisoners who felt unsafe at HMP Wayland – an IMB survey found 27% of inmates did not feel safe when they arrived at the prison, almost twice as many as the 14% who reported the same feeling in 2024.

In the report, the inspectors said ‘whatever the origin of this deterioration’, the numbers were ‘striking’.

The ‘fear factor’ within the prison demanded ‘some deeper investigation’, according to the report.

However it also noted the prison governor’s ‘swift response’ and a proposed violence reduction unit aimed at diverting inmates from repeated misbehaviour.

‘We trust that this is in place as soon as possible in order for Wayland to improve, again, in its delivery of a safe custodial experience,’ inspectors said.

In the previous IMB report on HMP Wayland published in March, inspectors noted staff led a course ‘heavily influenced by the Greek philosophy of Stoicism’.

‘Voluntary courses are well-attended and well-received and, due to demand, are almost continuously scheduled now,’ the report found.

‘This sort of effort distances [the prison] from punitive and simply educative approaches and, instead, seeks to increase a prisoner’s inner resilience.

‘The governor’s approach has significantly reduced the level of violence against other prisoners and against staff to one of the lowest amongst comparable prisons in the country.’

Responding to the latest rise in violence, a Ministry of Justice spokesperson said HMP Wayland had taken ‘immediate action’ and there was investment nationally to ‘clamp down on the contraband that fuels violence behind bars’.

Stoicism, founded by Zeno of Citium more than 2,300 years ago, centres on four cardinal virtues – prudence, fortitude, temperance and justice – that help followers lead a ‘well-lived life’.

Stoics believe we should only concern ourselves with things within our control and accept what we cannot control, like other people’s behaviour or external events.

They argue that emotions like anger or envy are not triggered by actual events but by our interpretations of them, so if we can change our thinking, we can master our emotions.

Modern Stoicism often means using daily reflection, journaling or mindfulness to keep perspective, remain calm under pressure and make ethical choices.

Famous Stoic thinkers have included Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Roman statesman Seneca the Younger and Greek philosopher Epictetus.

HMP Wayland is a category C men’s prison near Thetford, Norfolk, and houses around 900 inmates.

Notable former inmates at the prison include gangster Reggie Kray and Khalid Masood, who carried out the 2017 Westminster terror attack and spent two years at HMP Wayland.