Leaving voicemails

All prisons have a phone number for their Safer Custody teams. Safer Custody is the department in the prison whose job it is to keep prison safe for everyone.

When you ring the number, you might speak to a person, or you might get put through to Safer Custody's voicemail machine.

The voicemails should get picked up every day. You’ll only be able to record a message roughly two minutes long, so keep it short and to the point.

Before you call

• Before leaving the voicemail, take a deep breath. If you weren’t expecting to leave a message, put the phone down and plan what you want to say – then call again once you’re ready.
• Consider writing a script or bullet points for yourself, especially if you’re feeling emotional. If you are too upset to talk, you could ask someone else to leave the voicemail for you.
• Be as polite as possible. Try to remember that the person who will pick up your message is there to help you.

Recording your message

• State your loved one’s name, prisoner number and date of birth slowly and clearly. Say their details twice – sometimes people leave messages that are unclear, and then the prison can’t tell which prisoner the message is about.
• State your name and your relationship to the prisoner.
• Briefly describe the issue. Be clear and to the point – this isn’t the place for lots of detail.
• Focus on facts. Don’t give your opinions or judgements (for example, don’t say “it’s disgusting” or “they couldn’t be bothered”) – just state the plain facts of what is happening.
• Explain the steps you’ve already taken, i.e., who you’ve already contacted about the issue.
• Use key phrases to grab the staff’s attention but take care to be genuine about what is actually happening. Key phrases include, “at risk”, “safety”, “vulnerability”, “threat of self-harm", “significant change” (in your loved one’s behaviour, in their demeanour, etc.), “debt”, and “bullying” (say by whom, if you know).
• Explain what you want to happen as a result of your voicemail, for example, for someone to call you back or for your loved one to have a welfare check.
• If your loved one doesn’t speak English, say the language they speak.
• If you want to be called back, clearly state your phone number.

After the beep 

• At the end of the recording, you’ll hear a beep. If you have the option to replay your message, do.
• Decide if you’re happy with your message or if you need to re-record it.

Did you know? 

• Prison staff get trained to communicate on their radios in a similar way to the military. They are used to short, sharp messages and communicating without emotion – just stating the facts and what needs to happen.
• Some prison staff say that when families communicate in a similar way, it’s easier for the staff to process what families are saying.