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UK Closed female prison operated by HM Prison & Probation Service. Listed in the GOV.UK Find a prison directory.
Capacity
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Current population
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Occupancy
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Year opened
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Operational
Figures from official sources · verified 7 Jul 2026 · methodology
Operator
HM Prison & Probation ServicePopulation held
male
Opened
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Region
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Security level
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Death-row facility
No
Safety: Suicide and self-harm, deaths in custody From our observations in the care and separation units (where prisoners are segregated from the rest of the population) and in the healthcare units at both the men’s prison and the women’s prison, the care of prisoners who are at risk of suicide and self-harm appears to be well managed. Wing officers are very supportive, and the assessment, care in custody [...] Respect: In the reporting period, there have been significant improvements to several key aspects of fair and humane treatment. However, the Board is concerned that, in other areas, the prison has taken steps in the wrong direction (see below). On the positive side, diversity and inclusion (D&I) is now being effectively managed by a permanent manager who is established in post. From the Board’s [...] Purposeful activity: Not covered Preparation for release: Not covered Progression: For both the men’s prison and the women’s prison, our report for 2023-24 noted that there had been a critical Ofsted/HMIP inspection, which the prison was responding to. The Board is now pleased to report that: • In the men’s prison, there has been some progress is developing the education offer to meet the different needs of remand prisoners, although the change in prison population means that [...]
Visits booked online via the GOV.UK Prison Visits Booking service. Photo ID required. Visit frequency varies by the inmate's IEP level.
Format: Prisoner Name & Number, HMP Peterborough. Use Send Money to a Prisoner (GOV.UK) for funds — cash not accepted.
Assisted Prison Visits Unit can help with travel costs for eligible families. Email a Prisoner service is available via the official website.
No major issues documented in our database.
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
What the score is responding to:
This facility scores 12. The national average across 584 scored United Kingdom facilities is 4 — 8 points above national average.
Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.
Suicide and self-harm, deaths in custody From our observations in the care and separation units (where prisoners are segregated from the rest of the population) and in the healthcare units at both the men’s prison and the women’s prison, the care of prisoners who are at risk of suicide and self-harm appears to be well managed. Wing officers are very supportive, and the assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) system (used to support prisoners who are at risk of self-harm and suicide) is effectively implemented. Self-harm incidents at Peterborough have decreased since last year and statistics show that the women’s prison is at the low end when compared with other, similar prisons. MEN’S PRISON Violence As the proportion of remand prisoners from Bedfordshire/Luton Courts has grown, HMP Peterborough has seen an increase in violence. However, from the Board’s observations, the prison is making good progress in dealing with this issue. In the second half of the reporting period, there was an increase in violent incidents. In the Board’s view, this was due, in large part, to the influx of gang-affiliated prisoners to HMP Peterborough. 9 Male Violence Fights Assaults Assaults on Prisoner Assault on Staff Serious 10 17 12 17 27 14 6 23 12 6 20 17 9 5 9 9 8 15 19 8 24 15 15 16 12 13 15 37 15 40 29 25 27 26 34 20 36 24 18 25 24 23 14 4 11 8 126 15 5 9 6 8 6 6 6 178 20 8 16 3 21 3 9 10 156 198 Use of force The prison continues to review and invest in reducing the effects of the [...]
In the reporting period, there have been significant improvements to several key aspects of fair and humane treatment. However, the Board is concerned that, in other areas, the prison has taken steps in the wrong direction (see below). On the positive side, diversity and inclusion (D&I) is now being effectively managed by a permanent manager who is established in post. From the Board’s observations, the relationships between staff and officers is generally respectful. • We find that adjudications (disciplinary hearings when a prisoner is alleged to have broken prison rules) are generally procedurally just and sanctions proportionate. However, we are often frustrated by procedural adjournments, owing to reporting officers being unavailable to testify or because the report was of such poor quality, it was unable to be used. • Prisoners regularly raise concerns during extreme weather events (hot or cold) about the climate control within the prison. During cold months, heating regularly fails and during hot months there is a regular shortage of fans. • The Board finds that whilst the performance development unit (PDU) is very efficient at ensuring almost all complaints are responded to within the stated time frame, the quality of the response is often inadequate and either fails to address the concern, is short and dismissive, or a proposed resolution isn’t promptly implemented. • The change to being an 80% remand prison on the men’s side brought with it significant challenges [...]
For both the men’s prison and the women’s prison, our report for 2023-24 noted that there had been a critical Ofsted/HMIP inspection, which the prison was responding to. The Board is now pleased to report that: • In the men’s prison, there has been some progress is developing the education offer to meet the different needs of remand prisoners, although the change in prison population means that employment skills’ opportunities have not attracted priority attention; • In the women’s prison, the shortcomings identified have largely been addressed in 2024 so that the employment skills’ offer has improved significantly. Men’s prison • The library is now being well-used. There are many prisoners who regularly access books. and games such as chess are routinely available. • There has been a drive to ensure that purposeful activities (work and education) have been more fairly distributed. In the main, prisoners say they are satisfied that they get allocated to the work/activities they need. • We have been told that the prison has plans to extend the role of the offender management unit (OMU) so that they will be expected to be more involved in dealing with prisoners who have been violent, e.g. in Rule 45 reviews, and in. challenge, support and intervention plans (CSIPS), which are used to support and manage prisoners who pose an increased risk of violence. • Family contact services are well provided, and the number of social visits has been increased in line with the needs of men [...]
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World Prisons. (2026). HMP Peterborough. Retrieved July 21, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-peterborough
"HMP Peterborough." World Prisons. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-peterborough.
@misc{worldprisons-hmp-peterborough,
author = {{World Prisons}},
title = {HMP Peterborough},
year = {2026},
url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-peterborough},
urldate = {2026-07-21}
}