‘Public safety’s our

Castle Huntly governor on dealing with challenges

WITH almost 30 years’ experience of working in maximum security prisons, Andy Hodge has been responsible for managing of some of the country’s most violent criminals.

However, in his latest role as governor of Dundee’s HMP Castle Huntly Open Estate, one of the biggest challenges has been dealing with “low risk” prisoners who are preparing for life on the outside.

Part of that role involves trusting the inmates with release from the prison for days at a time.

As such, there have been several cases of absconding this year.

Mr Hodge, who took over as governor in August, said public protection is at the forefront of any decision made by the institute.

Andy, 52, said: “People abscond for a variety of reasons.

“We analyse every absconder in terms of whether there were any triggers or anything we could have done differently and there is no correlation between cases. It’s really down to individual circumstances.

“Some people struggle to fit back into the family unit. Some have addiction issues, so to go back into society causes them problems and they relapse.

“There’s everyday challenges and everyday pressures, which you and I face, but that they haven’t faced for a long period of time.

“In every decision we make at Castle Huntly, we have public safety at the forefront. Risk management for prisoners is exactly that — making sure the public is safe, first and foremost.

“What you can’t predict is how somebody is going to react. We’re talking about human beings.”

Looking for inmates who have absconded takes up police time and resources. However, Mr Hodge feels