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# Lichfield prison officer clocks up 42 years of service
- URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/lichfield-prison-officer-clocks-up-42-years-of-service/
- Published: 2011-03-15T10:30:34.000Z
- Updated: 2011-03-15T08:55:24.000Z
- Author: Lichfield Live
- Tags: #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 19:32, News

A Lichfield prison officer is preparing to hang up his keys after more than 40 years in the job.

Steve Helden, 64, began his career in the Prison Service in 1969 before the moon landing and prior to Concorde’s first flight.

![Steve Helden](https://storage.ghost.io/c/e3/90/e390c3da-0866-4d2a-8ffe-ca4999d7ce1c/content/images/lichfieldlive-co-uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/steve_helden_2.jpg "Steve_Helden_2")

Steve Helden

After leaving school at 15, Steve went to work for the Post Office and Rockware Glass before heading for a job behind bars which would take him to  
prisons including Bristol, Erlestoke, Highdown and Foston Hall before moving to Swinfen Hall in 1997.

He explained:

> “I’d left a factory job at Rockware in Yorkshire, and saw an advert in the paper for prison officers. I’d never seen, let alone set foot in a prison before, so my first two weeks came as a bit of a shock. It was scary for the staff, who would deal with violence on a daily basis. I don’t think anyone would want to go back to the days of those kinds of conditions.  
>  
> “Thankfully, conditions are more humane now than they were when I began. The staff here at Swinfen Hall work very hard to prevent prisoners going on to commit further offences when released. They’re very enthusiastic and have kept me young, which I think is why I’ve stayed in the job for so long.”

Steve is planning to help out a local hospice when he eventually retires, as well as spending time with his family and travelling the world.

He added:

> “If I can stay healthy I will stay in the job until I’m 65 next year. I certainly feel sad thinking about it, but there comes a time when you have to say, ‘that’s enough’.”