Read the report: HMP The Verne

HMP The Verne, a prison in Portland in Dorset holding men convicted of sexual offences, was found to be safe, with low violence and self-harm, and respectful.

Inspectors, however, found weaknesses in the provision of activities for the men held, as well as in some aspects of health care.

Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said the inspection of The Verne, a former immigration removal centre, in February 2020 had led to a positive report. “Outcomes were good, our highest judgement, in our healthy prison tests of safety and respect, not sufficiently good in purposeful acivity and reasonably good in rehabilitation and release planning.”

Few prisoners reported feeling unsafe and when violence or antisocial behaviour did occur, incidents were investigated well and victims received good support. Managers had worked effectively with prisoner peer support workers to promote a safe community ethos. “It was this sense of community and the positive relationships between staff and prisoners which encouraged good behaviour,” Mr Clarke said.

Relationships between staff and prisoners were among the best inspectors had seen: 97% of prisoners reported that most staff treated them with respect. Living conditions were good and residential units were clean and well equipped.

Health care provision, however, was less positive. It had taken too long for NHS commissioners to carry out a health needs assessment to reflect the needs of the prisoners. Mr Clarke said: “As a result, the health services team was under-resourced and was unable to meet the needs of the population.”

Prisoners were never locked in their rooms and had free access around the site for over nine hours a day. However, there was not enough activity to occupy all prisoners and, in addition, the education curriculum did not meet their needs. Too many prisoners were unemployed at the time of the inspection. While behaviour, attitudes to learning and punctuality were good, there needed to be more focus on progressing learners to the next stage of their education and better support for those with additional learning needs.

Support for prisoners to maintain contact with their family and friends was reasonable, though facilities for visitors were basic. Public protection procedures were reasonable but inspectors identified weaknesses in implementing contact restrictions, which needed to be addressed.

Overall, Mr Clarke said:

“This was a positive inspection of a well-run institution. Since The Verne reopened as a training prison, the Governor has established a culture where staff and prisoners treat each other with respect and legitimate concerns are responded to. However, there needs to be better partnership work and robust challenge of key partners to improve health care and activities provision.”

Phil Copple, HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) Director General of Prisons, said:

“This is an incredibly positive inspection, with the relationship between staff and prisoners amongst the best the inspector has ever seen. This is credit to the Governor and his staff for creating a safe prison, where offenders can focus on rehabilitation. Immediate steps have been taken with healthcare to improve services and more workshops are being provided, to give prisoners better access to education and training.”

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Notes to editors

1. A copy of the full report, published on 3 June 2020, can be found on the HM Inspectorate of Prisons website.
2. HM Inspectorate of Prisons is an independent inspectorate, inspecting places of detention to report on conditions and treatment, and promote positive outcomes for those detained and the public.
3. The citadel, on which HMP The Verne is built, was designed by Captain William Crossman R.E. and built by convicts from the nearby Portland Prison between 1860 and 1872. The Verne was mainly used as an infantry training centre and housed the Royal Engineers until 1948. On 1 February 1949, The Verne was handed over to the Prison Commission. Since then, the interior of the citadel has been substantially rebuilt by prison labour and was developed to become a modern, medium security prison for 580 men, with a considerable training programme for medium- and long-term sentenced prisoners. In September 2013, the Justice Secretary announced that HMP The Verne would change function to become an immigration removal centre. It served in this capacity for four years, until it was announced in October 2017 that it would return to the public-sector prison estate. The prison reopened in July 2018, reopening in phases to support a population of prisoners convicted of sexual offences. HMP The Verne’s full capacity of 580 was met in June 2019.
4. HMI Prisons assesses adult prisons against four ‘healthy prison tests’ – safety, respect, purposeful activity and rehabilitation and release planning. There are four grades – good (4), reasonably good (3), not sufficiently good (2) and poor (1). In 2020, the Verne scored 4-4-2-3.
5. Notable features from this inspection: in December 2017, the prison had re-roled from an immigration removal centre to an establishment holding prisoners convicted of sexual offences, reopening in July 2018; all prisoners had been allocated a key worker and there was a full complement of operational staff; nearly all prisoners in our survey said that staff treated them respectfully; nearly two-thirds of the population were serving 10 years or more; over half of the population were over 50; the oldest prisoner was 87; prisoners were never locked in their rooms on the main residential units; Dorset unit was a mobility and social needs support unit.
6. This unannounced inspection took place between 10 and 21 February 2020.
7. Please contact John Steele at HM Inspectorate of Prisons on 07880 787452, or at john.steele@justice.gov.uk, if you would like more information.