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The warden ( US,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
) or governor ( UK, Australia), also known as a superintendent (US,
South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...
) or director (UK, New Zealand), is the official who is in charge of a
prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...
.


Name

In the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, warden is the most common title for an official in charge of a prison or jail. In some US states, the post may also be known as a superintendent. Some small county jails may be managed by the local sheriff or
undersheriff An undersheriff (or under-sheriff) is an office derived from ancient English custom that remains in, among other places, England and Wales and the United States, though performing different functions. United States In American law enforcement, ...
. In the UK and Australia, the position is known as a governor. In
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
and private prisons in the UK, the position is known as a director. In
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
and Sri Lanka, the English-language title is a jail superintendent or just superintendent. The exact title varies depending on the type of prison.


Duties

The prison warden supervises all the operations within the prison. Prisons vary in size, with some housing thousands of inmates. They are responsible for the prison's security, the performance of staff of the prison (including prison officers, prison
doctor Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...
s,
janitor A janitor (American English, Scottish English), also known as a custodian, porter, cleanser, cleaner or caretaker, is a person who cleans and maintains buildings. In some cases, they will also carry out maintenance and security duties. A simil ...
s,
cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...
s and others), the management of its funds, the maintenance of its facilities and the welfare of its inmates. In practice, the day-to-day management of security is typically delegated to the head of security, who will be an assistant or subordinate of the warden. A warden's regular work may involve supervising security, making inspections, carrying out disciplinary procedures, writing reports, managing admissions and liaising with other professional staff who visit the prison, such as medical staff, probation officers, and social workers. Wardens are sometimes members of a
parole board A parole board is a panel of people who decide whether an offender should be released from prison on parole after serving at least a minimum portion of their sentence as prescribed by the sentencing judge. Parole boards are used in many jurisdiction ...
. They may also train staff to work in the prison service. The nature of the work depends on the size and type of prison. The amount of security a prison needs varies from
open prison An open prison (open jail) is any jail in which the prisoners are trusted to complete sentences with minimal supervision and perimeter security and are often not locked up in their prison cells. Prisoners may be permitted to take up employment w ...
s to supermax or high-security prisons.


Skills and interests

Prison wardens should: * Be able to work well with a variety of other people. * Have good written and spoken communication skills. * Care about prisoners' welfare and be sympathetic to their problems. * Be self-confident and able to lead both staff and prisoners. * Be able to cope with pressure and enforce discipline. * Be able to handle difficult situations and emergencies, such as
prison gang A prison gang is an inmate organization that operates within a prison system. It has a corporate entity and exists into perpetuity. Its membership is restrictive, mutually exclusive, and often requires a lifetime commitment. Prison officials and ot ...
violence.


By country


India

Prisons in India Prisons, and their administration, is a state subject covered by item 4 under the State List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India. The management and administration of prisons falls exclusively in the domain of the State governme ...
are run by the provincial prison service. Each jail or prison is managed by a superintendent. The precise title varies by prison and state. A superintendent is typically assisted by a deputy superintendent and one or more assistants.


United Kingdom

There are currently 139 operational prisons in England and Wales, 16 in Scotland and three in Northern Ireland. There are three separate prison services covering
England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...
,
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, and
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. The manager of a prison is known as a prison governor. The exception is a number of private or contracted-out prisons which are managed by a director instead. The director is assisted by a controller, appointed by the
Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Just ...
. Entry and training varies between these services. Prospective governors would need to pass medical, eyesight and fitness tests, and should be a UK citizen or EU national and be prepared to relocate if necessary. The companies that run private prison establishments each have their own entry requirements and recruitment methods. Entry to governor jobs is competitive, by whichever route. In England and Wales graduate vacancies are advertised each year (usually October) in the national press. Opportunities for direct entry in Scotland are advertised in both the Scottish and national press. In England and Wales there are two main routes into becoming a prison governor. The first is for existing staff to move up through the ranks (from being a prison officer, for example, or to move across from other management roles). The second route is through the Prison Service Intensive Development Scheme (IDS). This route is only open to those holding degrees, with a preference for candidates with relevant experience in the armed forces or police. The upper age limit for prison governor entry is 57. With this scheme it is possible to reach senior management in less than five years rather than the usual average twenty years. In
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, there are two ways to enter. This is again through promotion from prison officer ranks or through direct entry. Direct entry applicants usually need a degree and substantial management experience.


Associate warden

The associate warden is the name of an acting warden in the US that would run the prison during the absence of the actual warden.https://www.bop.gov/foia/docs/associatewardenpositiondescription.pdf


Notable people

*
Joe Arpaio Joseph Michael Arpaio (; born June 14, 1932) is an American former law enforcement officer and politician. He served as the 36th Sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona for 24 years, from 1993 to 2017, losing reelection to Democrat Paul Penzone i ...
- The former sheriff and jail warden for the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona, US, and self-styled "America's toughest sheriff". * Olin G. Blackwell - The fourth and final warden of
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island, also known simply as Alcatraz (, ''"the gannet"'') or The Rock was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, the site of a ...
. * James A. Johnston - The first warden of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. * Paul J. Madigan - The third warden of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. *
Thomas Mott Osborne Thomas Mott Osborne (September 23, 1859 – October 20, 1926) was an American prison administrator, prison reformer, industrialist and New York State political reformer. In an assessment of Osborne's life, a ''New York Times'' book reviewer wrote ...
- The warden of
Sing Sing Sing Sing Correctional Facility, formerly Ossining Correctional Facility, is a maximum-security prison operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision in the village of Ossining, New York. It is about north of ...
. *
Edwin B. Swope Edwin Burnham Swope (May 6, 1888 – December 26, 1955), nicknamed "Cowboy", was the second Prison officer, warden of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, which was situated on Alcatraz Island, California, US. He was a native of New Mexico, having been ...
- The second warden of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. * Alex Villanueva - The 33rd sheriff of the
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD), officially the County of Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, is a law enforcement agency serving Los Angeles County, California. LASD is the largest sheriff's department in the United States ...
in Los Angeles County, California, and jail warden for Los Angeles County jails. * George S. Weed - A judge and warden of Sing Sing who was later succeeded by Thomas Mott Osborne.


References

{{Incarceration Imprisonment and detention Law enforcement occupations Penal imprisonment * Positions of authority