VIDEO: Cork Prison: New development to confine jail’s Dickensian conditions to the past

Cormac O’Keeffe visits the new Cork Prison which is due to open by the end of the year. With larger cells, a Visits Garden with a play area for children, among other facilities , it is hoped the new prison will offer a healthier environment for prisoners and their families than current conditions at the existing prison which have been widely condemned

THE Visits Garden alone signals the contrast between the old and the new.

Roofed and planted, with a modern play area for kids — complete with a soft playground surface — it will be a popular place for family visits.