Please note: Shepton Mallet Prison will be closed 25th - 26th December.
Offer your students a school trip to remember. From the moment they step through the giant prison gates, they’ll know that they are in for a truly immersive and memorable experience.
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Created by a team of specialists in education and history, the Education Behind Bars Programme is aligned with the national curriculum and has been designed to support learning through thought provoking exercises and activities.
We provide supportive learning materials for teachers, which can be taken back into the classroom, ensuring school visits are truly educational and reach beyond the traditional.
Education Behind Bars consists of three core elements, each of which is delivered by a team of trained guides and facilitators.
Each student will receive an Education Behind Bars pack containing;
Your tour of Shepton Mallet Prison is run by a guide with encyclopaedic knowledge of the prison’s history, from when it opened to the day it closed. Students will hear first-hand what life inside a prison is like and discover the prison’s history dating back more than 400 years.
The tour experience will take in all areas of the prison including the 19th century hard labour yard, and treadwheel house, the Old Gate Lodge, original cells dating from the 17th century, our largest prison wing with 94 cells, the exercise yard and the execution room.
Tours include an In-Cell Experience, giving students the opportunity to step behind the cell doors and get a glimpse into the life of a prisoner.
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Our specially designed programme of Educational Activities are delivered in our bespoke education rooms. Led by a trained facilitator, activities are group led discussions capturing the students’ curiosity and triggering their imagination.
Each Education Activity has been designed alongside the national curriculum. By the end of the programme students will be able to;
Supported by your Tour Guide, students will explore Shepton Mallet Prison in small groups. Completing Activity Booklets, which have been designed to engage and educate students in an immersive and informal manner.
Each student will be provided with an Activity Booklet to complete, and your Tour Guide will be on hand to support students in their journey behind bars.
Once complete students will reconvene to compare their answers, before being awarded their Certificate of Completion.
Each student will receive an Education Behind Bars pack containing;
Explore the evolution of crime and punishment, dive into history to understand how society’s views have shaped the justice system today
Explore justice through history and debate the past as you unpack the complexities of capital punishment in the real-life case of Harry Dainton.
Explore how the media glamorises crime through the Kray twins, contrasting legend with reality and examining its powerful influence on society’s views of justice.
Explore how the media glamorises crime through the Kray twins, contrasting legend with reality and examining its powerful influence on society’s views of justice.
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