HMP Littlehey

Reports

• NPM-uk-imb-preparation-for-release1 Jan 2024

  7.3.1 The Board reports that there are dedicated prison offender managers (POMs) acting as single points of contact (SPoC) for specific wings to support sentence progression and raise prisoners’ awareness of the support available. Also, there are two offender management unit (OMU) orderlies, who attend inductions weekly to speak to new receptions about the role of the OMU. Also, as D wing is being developed for ISP (life sentenced and IPP) prisoners, OMU clinics are being provided each month to deal with questions specific to those prisoners. 7.3.2 The Board notes that progress on OASys (offender assessment system) reports has continued and the backlog is now down to 50. Also, there appears to be an improved focus on progressions through the prison, with F wing being used for prisoners with two years to go to parole and an increase in category D boards (which assess if a prisoner is eligible for transfer to an open prison). 7.3.3 The Board is extremely pleased to note the success of the ROTL (release on temporary licence) scheme, introduced over summer for prisoners to work improving the grounds around the outside of the prison. This has been undertaken in consultation with the local council and the prisoners are subject to the full ROTL review process, as though they were being released into the community. The scheme is restricted to prisoners on G wing (who are the most trusted and well behaved men) who volunteer. Their application goes to their POM and a full risk [...]

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• NPM-uk-imb-purposeful-activity1 Jan 2024

  7.1.1 The Board notes that the prison has almost doubled the number of prisoners in Maths classes, from 30 to 60, and more than doubled the number of prisoners in English classes. The Board also acknowledges the continuing supportive role played by the Shannon Trust reading and literacy charity in this output. However, we are concerned that all this good work seems to have been wiped out, and a further 16 places lost, due to the 40% reduction in the training budget. 7.1.2 The Board notes that a reading strategy to support literacy is well embedded, with over 900 assessments completed. It is used to guide the provision of reading support, using support coordinators and the Shannon Trust. The comments from the Ofsted report in the previous reporting period have been successfully addressed. More widely, a digital education platform has been introduced so that tutors can access more resources to help with course teaching. 7.1.3 The Board can report that the library provision is much improved since the previous reporting period. The Woodlands library has always been available, but the Lakeside library now has established library managers and is reliably open for three days each week. All prisoners on the wings have the opportunity to visit the library, and it continues to provide outreach services so that prisoners can access all library resources. The library also timetables sessions for the Shannon Trust; for quiet time when prisoners can conduct their own research; education [...]

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• NPM-uk-imb-respect1 Jan 2024

  5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food 5.1.1 Excluding the care and separation unit (CSU), where prisoners are kept apart from the rest of the prison population, there are 1,125 in-use cells at HMP Littlehey, all certified normal accommodation, or CNA (the number of prisoners a prion can hold without being overcrowded), for single occupancy. However, 116 of these cells have been approved for double occupancy by the Prison Group Director (PGD), giving an operational capacity (the maximum number of prisoners that can be held without serious risk to safety, security, good order and the proper running of the prison) of 1,241. There were four constant-watch cells available, including one in the CSU. 5.1.2 The wing functions were restructured after the opening of G wing during the previous reporting period. Prisoners now know when they come into reception where they will live to start with, what each wing does and how they can move around as part of their progression. F wing is now a resettlement unit. G wing continues to be reserved for prisoners who have demonstrated the best behaviour and are serving sentences of ten or more years; it offers the opportunity for them to demonstrate independent living and emotional management. E wing is the reception wing; I and J wings provide support for elderly prisoners; and M wing is for those with imprisonment for public protection (IPP) sentences. A wing is a recovery unit, while D wing is predominately for prisoners with life sentences. There [...]

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• NPM-uk-imb-safety1 Jan 2024

  4.1 Reception and induction 4.1.1 During the reporting period, 476 prisoners transferred to Littlehey, a significant reduction from the 555 in the previous reporting period and closer to previous norms, with the impact of opening the new wing in 2023 having passed. The number of transfers per month varied, from the lowest of 27 in June, to the highest of 54 in May. Arrivals after the ‘lockout time’ of 4pm have continued, with prisoners who arrive later receiving the ‘basics’, including seeing healthcare, but with the full process being conducted the following day. 4.1.2 From the Board’s observations, in general, the reception process for those arriving at the prison is well managed, with good collaboration between the reception staff, orderlies (trusted prisoners who take on work to provide services that contribute to the running of the prison) and induction wing officers. 4.1.3 The induction wing contains only double cells, and the 1,241 operational capacity of the prison assumes that all these will house two prisoners. However, the prison receives high-risk prisoners who cannot share a cell and have to be accommodated in the induction wing. This results in induction staff having to move prisoners out early to create the wing spaces required to accommodate new arrivals to the prison. 4.2 Suicide and self-harm, deaths in custody 4.2.1 During the reporting year in HMP Littlehey, there were 18 deaths in custody, of which 17 were due to natural causes. For these 17, the Prisons [...]

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