El Matrimonio

Time point one. Five PSMs were recruited at time point one. Two of these

participants had been PSMs since the beginning of the scheme in March 2018; the other three were newer to the role, having undergone their training in December 2018. Each participant was escorted to the Interventions Department, where we met for a one-to-one interview. Pseudonyms have been provided. Four of the participants were white and one was black, they varied in age, with the oldest participant being in his fifties and the youngest in his twenties.

‘Frankie’

Frankie presented confidently and spoke passionately about the scheme. Frankie was one of the original PSMs so had been in post for nearly twelve months. He seemed keen to impress on me his status and responsibility in the prison. Frankie was dressed in sportswear and apologised repeatedly for his appearance, saying he had only just got up. Shortly after the interview his position as a PSM was at risk due to the trafficking of substances and an

incident of violence. Frankie had gained parole by time point two. ‘Jason’

Page 50 of 169 Jason was new to the role when we met and had been working as a PSM for two months. Jason appeared confident and described his experiences slowly and clearly. He was expecting to leave the prison shortly after our interview as he was awaiting transfer to a category D open prison. He received this transfer several weeks later so was not available at time point two.

‘Ollie’

Ollie had been in the role since the beginning of the scheme. Ollie was dressed in work clothes, showing that he, like many of the PSMs, had another job in the prison. Ollie was energetic and eager to tell me about his experiences and show his understanding of psychological principles. During his interview he presented as quite grandiose and described experiences and beliefs that did not appear to be based in reality. As this was my first time meeting Ollie it was difficult to tell whether this was his personality, whether he was nervous, or whether he was under the influence of substances. When Ollie left the interview the staff member collecting him said she believed he may have smoked Spice prior to our interview. Despite this possibility Ollie was able to give a reasonably clear account of his experiences and data from his interview has been included in the analysis. Ollie was released shortly after our interview.

‘Olu’

Olu was dressed smartly for the interview. He articulated himself clearly, presented as quite calm and appeared to be comfortable with reflecting on his experiences. Olu was still at the prison at time point two but had taken a step back from his role as a PSM due to personal issues. He did however agree to a second interview.

‘Craig’

Craig was very busy on the day of the interview and missed his time slot twice due to work commitments at the workshop and assisting staff with collecting the meals for the wing.

Page 51 of 169 Craig arrived for his interview dressed in sportswear and gave a clear account of his

experiences as a PSM. Craig was unavailable for interview at time point two.

Time point two. The second round of interviews were carried out in June 2019. The interviews took place on a day when the PSMs were attending a training event to ease the pressure on the need for escorts for myself and the PSMs. Each of the participants is described in more detail below. The participants again varied in age and ethnicity, with the youngest participant being in his twenties and the oldest in his fifties. Two of the participants were white, one was black and the final participant was mixed-race.

‘Olu’

Olu was the only PSM that it was possible to interview at time point one and two. Olu presented in a very similar manner at the second time point.

‘Theo’

Theo presented as self-assured and described an enthusiasm for giving his opinions. Theo informed me that he was new to this prison and had only been an inmate for a few months at the time of the interview. Theo was a new PSM and had only completed his training the week before our interview. He was dressed in a jumper and t-shirt both bearing the PSM logo.

‘Leroy’

Leroy is serving a life-sentence and had been in prison for more than ten years years at the time of our interview. Leroy presented as very calm and softly spoken. Similarly to Theo, Leroy was new to the role and was wearing the PSM branded jumper. He appeared pleased with his position as a PSM and told me that he had applied for the role previously and been rejected. There were plans for Leroy to be moved to a category D prison shortly after our interview as part of a process deportation process, however this plan was changed, and he remained at the same prison.

Page 52 of 169 ‘Eric’

Eric had been a PSM since December 2018. He was dressed in the old PSM uniform. He presented confidently and apologised for not volunteering to interview at time point one, saying he was focussed on getting parole at the time. Eric described himself as a third- generation immigrant. He informed me that he was expecting to be released within the next couple of months and had left the prison by time point three.

Time point three. I aimed to interview both Leroy and Theo who were the only remaining PSMs from time point two. However, Theo declined to participate again, stating he had already given his opinions. It was only possible to recruit two further PSMs at time point three as there was a reduced pool of just five PSMs, and they did not all wish to participate.

‘Leroy’

Leroy was the only PSM whom it was possible to interview at time points two and three. He appeared relaxed about participating in the interview but was more disheartened in his presentation than previously.

‘Jake’

Jake had become a PSM in December 2018 but was released shortly after and therefore left the role. When he was recalled to prison in mid-2019 he re-joined the scheme. Jake was not wearing the PSM t-shirt or jumper at the time of the interview. He appeared to be thoughtful and reflective in his answers.

‘Chris’

Chris presented less confidently than his peers. He trained as a PSM in August 2018 but was released a few months later. When he was recalled to prison he also re-joined the scheme. Chris was wearing the PSM jumper and spoke very positively about the scheme. He explained to me that he was on a wing with a fellow PSM.

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