‘A sad day’: UK cultural organisations criticise contractor’s decision to remove artworks from court cells

UK cultural organisations focused on prisons criticised government contractor Serco for removing artworks from court custody suites across England and Wales, according to a report discussed by The Art Newspaper on 11 February 2026. The works—made by prisoners at HMP Doncaster and commissioned by the government’s Prisoner Escort and Custody Services—were intended to improve often windowless, underground court cells, but Lay Observers reported they were largely displayed only in courts operated by GEOAmey. Pictora director Robert Morrall, whose organisation has worked with prison art since 2009, called the removals “a sad day” and argued that access to art is supported by Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Morrall also cited an estimated £18.1 billion cost of reoffending to the UK, arguing that art can support rehabilitation and resettlement.

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