Read the report: HMP Gartree

HMP Gartree, an adult male prison in Leicestershire holding 645 prisoners serving indeterminate and life sentences, was found by inspectors from HM Inspectorate of Prisons to have responded well to the COVID-19 threat, keeping prisoners and staff safe from the virus.

However, Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said most of the prisoners were still locked in cells for more than 22 hours a day under a severely restricted regime. Some of the indicators of safety at Gartree were concerning, he added. “The number of prisoner assaults and the seriousness of the violence remained similar to the period before the regime was restricted, even though prisoners were locked up for most of the day.

“Levels of self-harm and the use of force were higher than before March, and we had some concerns about oversight of segregation. When the restrictions were first imposed, the prison had stopped most of its strategic functional meetings to focus on the emerging crisis. While this might have been proportionate at the time, there seemed to be less justification six months on. A weakened strategic oversight of safety meant that although the prison was collecting and analysing data, the results were not being used effectively to learn lessons and drive improvement.”

The promotion of equality and diversity had also suffered because it too had been given insufficient priority when compared to the continued focus on managing the impact of the pandemic. The governor had, however, recently started necessary improvements.

The condition of the older residential accommodation was poor – dark and dingy and in poor repair. There was no privacy screening around most toilets in cells, and an outdated heating system meant cells could be oppressively hot or very cold.

Around a quarter of staff were in their first year of training but there were nevertheless good staff-prisoner relationships which mitigated some of the negative aspects of the restrictions in place. Staff were knowledgeable about the prisoners in their care, and most prisoners said they had someone they could turn to. Unlike some other prisons visited during this period, most prisoners had benefited from a key work session.

Health care had improved but inspectors were concerned about the continued delay in reinstating a full dental service which had created a significant backlog of appointments and put the oral health of prisoners at risk.

The prison had retained essential work for about 12% of the population but the majority of prisoners were locked up for over 22 hours a day. There were plans to return prisoners to work and education part time to enable social distancing, but these were not yet timetabled.

Video visits had been in place since June, but face-to-face social visits were only reintroduced in early September. Take-up of both was disappointing, Mr Clarke said, and adjustments were needed to make visits more attractive to prisoners and their families.

Rehabilitation and the ability for prisoners to progress were perhaps the greatest casualties of the pandemic. The prison was a national hub for programmes and therapeutic interventions, but both had been greatly affected by the restrictions. However, it was reassuring that public protection work had not halted.

In conclusion, Mr Clarke said:

“Managers and staff at Gartree had responded well to the threats presented by the national pandemic. However, it is important that the senior team seeks to strengthen oversight and delivery of the prison’s core work. This is needed to improve the outcomes for prisoners who have been subject to an extremely restricted regime for over six months. More specific and time-bound recovery plans would help the prison to do this more quickly in the move to the next stage of the national framework for easing restrictions.”

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Notes to editors

1. Read the report: HMP Gartree. This report was published on 30 October 2020.

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. Read about the development of scrutiny visits (SVs) in response to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. These are short inspections which, while not as exhaustive as our full inspections, are more in-depth than the short scrutiny visits used in the early months of the pandemic. They include the reintroduction of a prisoner survey.

4. HMP Gartree opened in 1965 as a category C training prison but changed its role and came within the high security system, reverting to a category B prison in 1992. Since then the population of indeterminate sentence prisoners has been growing, and in 1997 the prison’s role changed to that of a main life-sentenced prisoner centre. In 2017 it became part of the Prison Service’s new long-term high security estate. At the time of the scrutiny visit the prison accommodated 645 prisoners serving indeterminate and life sentences. The roll was lower than usual due to a wing closure for maintenance work. This had enabled the transfer out of a significant number of category C and D prisoners to appropriate prisons and had eased the burden on staffing at a challenging time.

5. This scrutiny visit took place between 22 and 29-30 September 2020.

6. On pages 13-14 of the report you can find a summary of key concerns and recommendations, and five examples of notable positive practice identified by inspectors.

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.