Based on a focused ethnographic study, this paper demonstrates how performance measurement culture affects the programme integrity of two English prison-based Therapeutic Communities. The study reveals how completion targets limited staff discretion in both programmes, although the two handled these pressures through different strategies. The paper analyses the factors that shaped these strategies and their consequences. It is argued that, whatever the reasons behind the recent flourishing of rehabilitation programmes in prison, their day-to-day monitoring reflects a highly managerialistic approach. Although the promotion of an entirely ‘target-less’ rehabilitation environment may not be realistic, the paper suggests that over-reliance on completion targets can be highly damaging to the fidelity of the implementation of such programmes.
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