United Kingdom · Midlands · Nottingham
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UK Local 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
Midlands
Security level
Medium
Death-row facility
No
This review visit followed up on the concerns we raised at our last the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Ranby healthy prison outcomes in 2022 and 2025 At the last inspection, the influx of drones bringing large amounts of contraband into the prison was affecting outcomes for prisoners in many areas of prison life. Illicit drugs were the cause of poor attendance at activities, and levels of violence that were higher than in for ‘safety’ from good to not sufficiently good. Overall, we found that outcomes for prisoners depended very much on accommodation that was dilapidated and cells that were poorly equipped. — UK IMB Annual Report (2024) — Safety: 4.1 Reception and induction From the Board’s observations, the arrival of prisoners at reception was carried out efficiently and with care during the reporting year. All the relevant checks and processes were in place to enable prisoners to be passed through the system quickly and efficiently. All prisoners arriving at Ranby go through an induction process. Some issues are still arising with [...] Respect: 5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food After almost a year out of service, the laundry is now up and running once more. The Board has observed that prisoners seem to enjoy working in the laundry and staff report very few problems with the workforce. As reported in our last report, furniture and fittings in some of the house blocks are looking shabby and in need of refurbishment but are fit for [...] Purposeful activity: All prisoners attend an induction, which is undertaken in the education unit within the first two weeks of arriving at HMP Ranby. The inductions are carried out over two sessions. The first session is to complete any relevant screening of maths, English, learning difficulties or disabilities (LDD) and reading. The second is for them to learn about the offer of education and work in the prison and [...] Preparation for release: Prisoners frequently complain that they do not know who their offender manager (POM) is. Also, difficulties have arisen during the reporting year when they have been unable to get an appointment to see their offender manager. The Board receives very few complaints or comments regarding family social visits, so we can only assume that visits continue to go smoothly. As a result of the decision to [...]
This review visit followed up on the concerns we raised at our last What we found during this review visit At this visit to review progress, we found much that was encouraging. A number of workshops. At the time of this visit, the majority of men held
Format: Prisoner Name & Number, HMP Ranby, HMP Ranby Retford Nottingham DN22 8EU See map Help us to improve this page. Give us your feedback in this 2-minute survey .. Use Send Money to a Prisoner (GOV.UK) for funds — cash not accepted.
HMP Ranby is a category C training and resettlement prison in the East Note: rehabilitation and release planning became ‘preparation for release’ in October 2023. prisoners were not in purposeful activity, and were lucky if they got out most had access to purposeful activity and some good time out of cell along with efforts to reduce demand by providing a better regime and measure things were worse for these men, the regime was much more limited, This contrast was also reflected in the quality of purposeful activity. When cells. Astonishingly, 300 men at Ranby were not in purposeful activity at all and prisoners to do.
At the last inspection, the influx of drones bringing large amounts of many areas of prison life. Illicit drugs were the cause of poor attendance at activities, and levels of violence that were higher than in determined focus to limit drugs getting into the prison was also needed, The influx of drones bringing large amounts of contraband into this East areas. Illicit drugs were the cause of poor attendance to activities and levels of violence that were now higher than most similar prisons. This led to a fall in our the random drug test results showing a positive rate of 23% and staggeringly, nearly a quarter of prisoners in our survey saying they had developed a drug or cell bells took longer to be answered and there were more drugs available.
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
What the score is responding to:
This facility scores 30. The national average across 584 scored United Kingdom facilities is 4 — 26 points above national average.
Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.
1.1 HMP Ranby is a category C training and resettlement prison in the East Midlands, holding around 1,000 adult men. Originally a World War II army camp, it was converted to a prison in the early 1970s. Since then, several purpose-built accommodation units have been added. 1.2 This review visit followed up on the concerns we raised at our last inspection of HMP Ranby in 2025. What we found at our last inspection 1.3 At our previous inspections of HMP Ranby in 2022 and 2025, we made the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Ranby healthy prison outcomes in 2022 and 2025 Note: rehabilitation and release planning became ‘preparation for release’ in October 2023. 1.4 At the last inspection, the influx of drones bringing large amounts of contraband into the prison was affecting outcomes for prisoners in many areas of prison life. Illicit drugs were the cause of poor attendance at activities, and levels of violence that were higher than in most similar prisons. This led to a fall in our healthy prison assessment for ‘safety’ from good to not sufficiently good. 1.5 Overall, we found that outcomes for prisoners depended very much on where they were housed. The majority, who resided on houseblocks one, two, three and five, had a bleak existence, living in accommodation that was dilapidated and cells that were poorly equipped. Staff were not visible on these units and behaviour was poor, with officers failing to enforce even basic rules. Astonishingly, 300 prisoners were not in purposeful activity, and were lucky if they got out of their cells for two hours as day, which was not acceptable for a category C training prison. Report of an independent review of progress at HMP Ranby 1.6 For the those living on other houseblocks (around a third of prisoners), outcomes were reasonable; they were housed in decent conditions and most had access to purposeful activity and some good time out of cell (see Glossary). At the time, I said that the aim of the local and regional leaders (see Glossary) must be to expand the many positives on which we reported, to cover a much larger proportion of the population. A determined focus to limit drugs getting into the prison was also needed, along with efforts to reduce demand by providing a better regime and treatment for those who were addicted. What we found during this review visit 1.7 At this visit to review progress, we found much that was encouraging. A strong and capable governor had a clear and well-communicated plan to address our concerns. Motivated and visible frontline managers were implementing new systems to drive forward improvements. While the larger houseblocks were still in a poor state and in need of investment, the environment was generally cleaner and living conditions were better overall. We saw low-level antisocial behaviour now being challenged, although more still needed to be done to motivate positive behaviour. 1.8 Although attendance at activities from houseblocks one, two and three was still not good enough, leaders were prioritising access to
The influx of drones bringing large amounts of contraband into this East Midlands, category C prison was affecting outcomes for prisoners in many areas. Illicit drugs were the cause of poor attendance to activities and levels of violence that were now higher than most similar prisons. This led to a fall in our healthy prison assessment for “safety” from good to not sufficiently good. With the random drug test results showing a positive rate of 23% and staggeringly, nearly a quarter of prisoners in our survey saying they had developed a drug or alcohol problem since they had been at the jail, there will need to be concerted action by the leadership and the prison service to make Ranby as safe as it was when we last inspected in 2022. Outcomes for prisoners at Ranby depended very much on where they were housed. The 700 living on houseblocks one to three and five had a pretty bleak existence, living in accommodation that was now badly dilapidated, and with many cells lacking basic furniture and almost no self-cook facilities. By every measure things were worse for these men, the regime was much more limited, cell bells took longer to be answered and there were more drugs available. Staff were not visible on these units and behaviour was poor, with officers failing to enforce even basic rules such as allowing prisoners to vape and walk around shirtless. This contrast was also reflected in the quality of purposeful activity. When inspectors ran a roll check, they found that only 10% of the men were in activity off the wing on houseblocks one, two and three while 35% were locked in their cells. Astonishingly, 300 men at Ranby were not in purposeful activity at all and were lucky if they got out of their cells for two hours as day. This situation is simply not acceptable for a category C training prison. Elsewhere outcomes for prisoners were reasonable. Conditions on houseblocks four, six, seven and eight were much better, with cleaner facilities and more for prisoners to do. The quality of provision in commercial industry workshops and some teaching in education and training was better than we see elsewhere, although higher-level learners did not make enough progress in English and maths. Dilapidated equipment in some workshops had led to frequent cancellations of sessions. Those who had been trained as mentors were used to support their fellow prisoners’ learning. The governor had got funding that would allow some prisoners to spend the whole day at work, taking their lunch breaks and replicating working practices outside the jail. The well-regarded governor had lots of ideas for improving the prison, but she needed to introduce more disciplined planning that used data to establish benchmarks, set targets and measure progress. Apart from aspiring to move to the better wings, leaders needed to be more creative in ways to encourage prisoners to behave and progress with their sentences. The governor had recently introduced a scheme to support the many inexperienced middle leaders. She had also funded a housing worker who was getting far more prisoners accommodation on release than in similar jails. For around a third of prisoners at Ranby outcomes were reasonable; they were housed in decent conditions and most had access to purposeful activity and some good time out of cell, but the rest lead a pretty diminished and depressing existence. The aim of the local and regional leadership must be to expand the many positives on which we report on at Ranby to cover a much larger proportion of the population. There must also be a determined focus to limit the amount of drugs getting into the jail, and to reduce demand by providing a much more positive regime and proper treatment for those who are addicted. Charlie Taylor HM Chief Inspector of Prisons May 2025
5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food After almost a year out of service, the laundry is now up and running once more. The Board has observed that prisoners seem to enjoy working in the laundry and staff report very few problems with the workforce. As reported in our last report, furniture and fittings in some of the house blocks are looking shabby and in need of refurbishment but are fit for purpose. Little appears to have been done to address this situation. From the Board’s observations, the wing cleaners do a good job of keeping their designated areas clean and tidy. The exterior areas around the larger house blocks are often strewn with debris and rubbish, which prisoners throw out of their windows. This encourages rats and vermin to flourish and leaves the area looking very scruffy and untidy. Bedbugs continue to be an ongoing problem. Cells are taken out of use to deal with the situation as it arises. It has become a bigger problem this year, due to the acute shortage of cells which, in turn, affects the number of prisoners the establishment can take. There have been complaints regarding washing machines being taken out of service for repairs, although the prison does try to attend to this in as timely a manner as they are able. Fire safety checks and drills are carried out regularly. This procedure is part of the staff induction courses. The Board rarely receive any complaints from prisoners about the food. 5.2 Segregation The segregation unit, or care and separation [...]
All prisoners attend an induction, which is undertaken in the education unit within the first two weeks of arriving at HMP Ranby. The inductions are carried out over two sessions. The first session is to complete any relevant screening of maths, English, learning difficulties or disabilities (LDD) and reading. The second is for them to learn about the offer of education and work in the prison and to complete a pathway and a personal learning plan (PLP) with the information, advice and guidance (IAG) service. During this session they go to the library for their library induction. Prisoners are taught in either classroom or workshop settings, or one-to-one in outreach. Support is offered to neurodivergent learners. The prison’s outreach team supports learners who are not comfortable in the classroom to help them transition. The following courses are provided by the education unit: • Functional skills, maths: Entry level 1 – Level 2 • Functional skills, English: Entry Level 2 • Essential digital skills: Entry 1 – Entry 3 • Business: Entry 2 – Level 2 • Art: Level 1 – Level 2 • Painting and decorating: Level 1 – Level 3 • Plumbing: Level 1 – Level 2 • Multi-skills: Level 1 • Joinery: Level 1 • Horticulture: Level 1 • Tickets: Level 2 • Catering/Mess: Level 1 – Level 2 • Cookery: Entry 3 • Food safety: Level 2 • Drugs, alcohol, conflict (OMU) Referral course: Level 1 • Digital graphics: Level 2 • Monitoring: Level 3 • Safeguarding: Level 2 • Variety of LDD units delivered in [...]
Prisoners frequently complain that they do not know who their offender manager (POM) is. Also, difficulties have arisen during the reporting year when they have been unable to get an appointment to see their offender manager. The Board receives very few complaints or comments regarding family social visits, so we can only assume that visits continue to go smoothly. As a result of the decision to release prisoners early, due to lack of places in the prison estate, the resettlement department worked very hard to process the prisoners selected to be released in September 2024 and October 2024. Little has changed since our last report regarding providing accommodation to prisoners leaving the prison. There are just not enough places for people who require them. The early release scheme has exacerbated this situation. Resettlement staff raise a referral form, which is a risk assessment, with all the prisoner’s history. Once again, it has been noted that prisoners tend to blame the resettlement team for not being able to provide accommodation for them in the areas they would prefer to live on release. The resettlement staff inform us that landlords can be much more choosey when selecting people for their accommodation, as housing is very scarce. The local council (in theory) should be able to assist with emergency accommodation, but in practice this rarely appears to happen. 18 8. The work of the IMB Board statistics The Board has had a difficult year regarding our monitoring [...]
4.1 Reception and induction From the Board’s observations, the arrival of prisoners at reception was carried out efficiently and with care during the reporting year. All the relevant checks and processes were in place to enable prisoners to be passed through the system quickly and efficiently. All prisoners arriving at Ranby go through an induction process. Some issues are still arising with property being lost between prison transfers, as well as during cell clearances once in the prison. 4.2 Suicide and self-harm, deaths in custody There were four deaths in custody during the reporting year. Incidents of self-harm from 1 April 2024 to February 2025 were as follows: Apr 24 May June 24 July 24 Aug 24 Sept 24 Oct 24 Nov 24 Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Total 24 52 77 53 53 49 39 36 40 47 44 43 533 Assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) plans (used to support prisoners at risk of self-harm and suicide) opened from 1 April 2024 to February 2025, as follows: Apr May June 24 July 24 Aug 24 Sept Oct 24 Nov 24 Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Total 24 24 24 16 29 17 25 17 14 27 18 24 18 20 225 Board members routinely check ACCT documents when visiting house blocks or in the CSU. 4.3 Violence and violence reduction, self-isolation Prisoner assaults on staff from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025: Apr 24 May Jun 24 Jul 24 Aug 24 Sep 24 Oct 24 Nov Dec 24 Jan 25 Feb 25 Mar 25 Total 24 24 8 2 6 12 9 7 8 7 5 10 8 - 82 Prisoner-on-prisoner assaults from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 Apr 24 May 24 Jun 24 [...]
1.1 HMP Ranby is a category C adult male training and resettlement prison in rural Nottinghamshire. Holding around 1,000 men, the prison is spread over a large campus comprising accommodation units and a number of workshops. At the time of this visit, the majority of men held were serving between two and 10 years, and most had been at the prison for less than 12 months. 1.2 At our previous inspections of HMP Ranby in 2018 and 2022, we made the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Ranby healthy prison outcomes in 2018 and 2022 Good Reasonably good Not sufficiently good Poor
As a result of concerted efforts by prison leaders, and with the use of better technology, Ranby, a category C training and resettlement prison in Nottinghamshire, was much safer jail than at our inspections in 2016 and 2018. The flow of drugs had been a chief cause of violence but had been stemmed with better perimeter security, use of dogs and body scanners. Leaders had taken advantage of the COVID-19 lockdowns to reset, focusing on breaking the cycle of violence. Our survey showed that prisoners felt much safer than they had at the time of our last inspection, and longer-serving staff members also said they were not experiencing anything like the levels of threat that they had suffered in the past. We saw improvements across all parts our safety test, for which the prison was awarded our highest grade, ‘good’, with fewer assaults on staff and prisoners, better oversight of the use of force, good planning, and provision in place to improve the behaviour of the most violent prisoners and care for the most vulnerable.
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World Prisons. (2026). HMP Ranby. Retrieved July 21, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-ranby
"HMP Ranby." World Prisons. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-ranby.
@misc{worldprisons-hmp-ranby,
author = {{World Prisons}},
title = {HMP Ranby},
year = {2026},
url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-ranby},
urldate = {2026-07-21}
}