HMP Spring Hill

Reports

• HMIP19 Aug 2022

  Spring Hill was making a good recovery from the pandemic restrictions that had made the operation of this open prison in Buckinghamshire difficult for the last two years. When I visited briefly in March 2021 during our scrutiny visit of neighbouring HMP Grendon, the prisoners I spoke to were bored and frustrated with being stuck on site, unable to be released on temporary licence (ROTL) either to go to work or to see their families. It was a pleasure to return just over a year later to find a much more productive and happier place. Everyone at the prison was given work or allocated to education on arrival, although many of the jobs were somewhat contrived and a lot of prisoners were underemployed, with two or three appearing to be doing the work of one. They were at least getting into the good habits of working that they will need on release, such as getting up in the morning. Once prisoners had navigated the extensive bureaucratic process and many delays caused by outside agencies, they were able to go off site to work. During the inspection week, an average of 64 prisoners were working or studying outside the prison and another six were attending medical appointments, out on overnight release, or seeing their families. When the regime reaches its final, settled state, more than half of prisoners should be out at work every day, especially in a part of the country that has that has job vacancies in many areas. The accommodation in the prison was awful, showing a woeful lack of investment from the prison service. Prisoners slept in pre-fabricated house blocks built in the 1960s and designed to last for 20 years. Half a century later, they were beyond repair: holes in the walls; erratic plumbing; floors that were coming up and windows that did not open. There were signs everywhere of the remedial repairs that had been needed over many years to extend the life of buildings that should have been replaced years ago. Three larger accommodation blocks had been condemned because they no longer met fire safety standards, and as a result, the jail was operating well below its usual capacity of 335, holding only 241 men at the time of the inspection. The prison service had provided 40 temporary sleeping pods that were popular with prisoners, but these in time will begin to wear. Meanwhile, the plan to provide another 80 sleeping pods had been delayed by more than a year because of unfathomable contractual issues between the prison service and the contractors. Ultimately, the prison service must find the money to rebuild all the accommodation on site to provide sustainable, decent facilities for these prisoners. In category C prisons across the country, prisoners who have met the criteria are stuck waiting to move to category D prisons because there are not enough spaces. The governor and her team had done well to restore a sense of purpose at this well-run prison, but their work continued to be hampered by inadequate infrastructure. Our 2014 inspection report of Spring Hill noted “… very good arrangements to enable many prisoners to use their skills on projects in the prison… Construction projects included the new gym facilities, the ‘eco’ building (built using sustainable materials and energy saving methods), and renovation of the old gym”. With a bit of imagination from the prison service, there is surely no reason why new accommodation could not be built by prisoners at the jail, who would leave with skills that would get them into well-paid work on release. Charlie Taylor HM Chief Inspector of Prisons June 2022

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