Anne Owers, the chief inspector of prisons, last week published positive reports on the therapeutic community (TC) care given to inmates at Grendon Underwood jail, near Aylesbury, and Dovegate prison in Staffordshire. The reports provide an insight into an aspect of penal life that usually receives little attention outside the prison world, and serve as a reminder that prejudice can still prevent good practice from being as widely embraced as it should be.