What 40+ Prison Cells Look Like Around the World

All around the world, countries come up with prisons and jails as an answer to housing people who commit crimes. However, the conditions in these prisons and jails aren't always the same around the world. Here, we'll take a look at some of the different conditions in jail cells around the world.

HMP Addiewell in Lothian, Scotland

Some prisons are focused on simply housing inmates under the lowest-quality conditions they can get away with while they serve the length of their sentence. Instead of focusing solely on punishment, HMP Addiewell in Lothian, Scotland is set up as a learning prison.

Here, inmates don't spend their time just sitting around in plain cells. Instead, they participate in counseling and learning, and there's a significant focus on familial contact and spending time in nature.

Black Dolphin Prison in Sol-Iletsk, Russia

Not every prison is as focused on offering inmates ways to grow as they're incarcerated, preparing them for the outside. Black Dolphin Prison in Sol-Iletsk, Russia is one of the harsher prisons on this list.

The prison is made to house the offenders with the harshest crimes. Black Dolphin Prison was covered by National Geographic where it was made pretty clear that the inmates housed there weren't there to be rehabilitated and released.

Bastøy Prison in Horten, Norway

When you think of the term "prison cell," you probably think of a single room that the person incarcerated can't leave except under certain, strict conditions. That's not quite how Bastøy Prison in Horten, Norway is run.

Instead of a prison as you might think, the facility is set up as its own small community. While these conditions are often criticized by some as "too cushy," if you look at the reoffending rates here versus the rest of Europe, you'd be impressed.

Halden Prison in Halden, Norway

Maximum security prisons make many people think of harsh conditions, barbed wire-topped fences, and other intense security measures to keep prisoners in place.

That's not quite what it's like at Halden Prison in Halden, Norway. Instead, they try to make it as much like life outside of the prison as they can. The focus here is heavily on rehabilitation, not just the punishment of inmates. It's received rewards for both its interior design and humane practices.