Campania has renewed its protocol for promoting and managing library services inside prisons, with the stated goal of turning reading and study into tools for education, inclusion and social reintegration.

The plan centers on the creation of the Polo delle Biblioteche Carcerarie Campane, a network intended to connect prison libraries with public libraries across the region. Renewing collections and enabling interlibrary lending are among its main objectives.

What the renewed protocol provides

According to the validated reporting, the agreement supports the organization of library services in penal institutions and links those services to rehabilitation programs. Rather than treating prison libraries only as places to store books, the project presents them as spaces for study and social interaction.

Planned measures include:

  • development of the Polo delle Biblioteche Carcerarie Campane and its connection with local public library structures;
  • renewal of book collections held in prisons;
  • activation of interlibrary lending between prison and public libraries;
  • professional training in librarianship for detained people, including direct management of cataloguing and lending;
  • a "scaffale circolare" service making books available directly in cells.

The protocol is reported to have an annual duration, with a contribution of 4,000 euros allocated by the Regional Council and the regional ombudsman for detainees. The full text of the protocol was not available in the acquired sources, so operational responsibilities and the implementation timetable could not be verified directly.

Training, work and books in circulation

A distinctive element of the project is the involvement of detained people in running functional library services. The training covers library work, while cataloguing and loan management are intended to be handled directly by participants.

The "scaffale circolare" and interlibrary lending are meant to keep books moving rather than fixed in one room: books can circulate among cells and between institutions, and readers inside prisons can gain access to a wider catalogue through cooperation with public libraries in the area.

The project builds on earlier initiatives launched from 2021, including librarian courses, "Parole in circolazione. Liberiamo la cultura" and the "Cacciatori di libri" contest. The sources confirm those prior training activities and initiatives; details on the current state of individual collections were not fully established.

Why literacy and study matter here

The regional ombudsman has pointed to 301 illiterate detainees in Campania, underlining the need to strengthen literacy and education alongside access to books.

In that context, the sources also report that at Secondigliano, 54 high-security detainees and 28 medium-security detainees take part in seven courses offered by the University Federico II. The research does not establish the reasons for that participation, but the figures describe an existing educational presence inside one of the region's largest institutions.

"La cultura sarà strumento di riscatto" — culture as an instrument of redemption — is the phrase used to summarize the aim: study, reading and library access connected to personal development and preparation for life after detention.

What to watch next

Reports differ on the number of adult institutions involved, with Il Mattino citing 14 and ANSA and GNews citing 15. The acquired sources therefore support participation by multiple adult facilities, without confirming the exact final list.

For readers, the practical test will be whether the planned network produces stable, functional library services: updated shelves, working loan procedures with public libraries, continued training, and books that actually reach cells. The annual scope of the agreement means continuity will depend on renewal, funding clarity and published results from the first year.