Prison
Cat open women's prison
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Askham Grange
IMB Annual Report 2023 · Published 21 May 2024
HMP/YOI Askham Grange, a women's open prison focused on resettlement, maintains a safe environment with rare incidents of violence or self-harm and positive staff-prisoner relationships. While offering robust education, work, and resettlement opportunities, challenges persist, including the impact of short sentences on prisoner progression and delays in ROTL access due to external staffing issues. Concerns also relate to shared accommodation, low in-house prisoner pay, and transport problems due to a lack of prisoner drivers. Healthcare services received positive CQC feedback, but dental provision and medication locker malfunctions require attention.
Positive Findings
The Board found Askham Grange to be a safe establishment with very rare incidents of violence or self-harm, and generally very good staff-prisoner relationships. There is a strong emphasis on resettlement, with good education and work opportunities, and high rates of external employment and employment on release. Healthcare services were commended by the CQC for their high standard of care, and mental health support has improved significantly with new appointments.
Key Concerns
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
The increasing number of prisoners arriving at HMP/YOI Askham Grange with short sentences, preventing them from fully benefiting from the progression and resettlement planning and Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) opportunities.
Resettlement/Release
Insufficient provision of community offender managers, leading to delays in accessing Release on Temporary Licence (ROTLs) and hindering effective release planning.
Overcrowding
The prison is not at full capacity, suggesting closed prisons are not sufficiently identifying women who would benefit from transfer to HMP/YOI Askham Grange.
Estate/Conditions
The continued use of shared-cell accommodation, which is often unpopular with women who have transitioned from single cells in closed prisons.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Limited availability of the prisoner driver to help alleviate travel costs associated with ROTLs and limit options for where prisoners can work.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Concerns regarding the level of pay received for in-house work, with prisoners struggling to afford essentials and cover costs associated with home or family leave, exacerbated by inflationary pressures.
Safety
A reported increase in verbal abuse from staff (28% of women) and an unofficial fear among prisoners of being returned to closed conditions if they make complaints.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Healthcare services are not fully staffed with permanent members, leading to reliance on expensive bank staff and requiring existing permanent staff to work extended hours, indicating stretched staffing levels. Staff shortages have also impacted the availability of the prisoner driver, affecting travel for some women. The report notes positive appointments for a neurodiversity support manager and head of employment, learning and skills.
Healthcare
Healthcare services at Askham Grange received positive preliminary feedback from the CQC, noting high standards of care and efficient service delivery, particularly praising the mother and baby unit. Improvements in healthcare management and cleanliness were also highlighted. While GP waiting times are good, there are issues with dental provision, including long waiting lists post-Covid and contractual limitations on sedation. Medication locker technology malfunctioned, requiring a return to manual collection, and healthcare staffing remains stretched.
Regime & Daily Life
Askham Grange operates as an open women's prison with a strong resettlement ethos, offering full-time work opportunities. While relationships between staff and prisoners are generally good and key worker targets were met, accommodation presents challenges, including the prevalence of shared rooms which many women dislike, and issues with worn mattresses and damp bathrooms. The nursery outdoor area needs repair, and laundry facilities faced machine breakdowns. Education attendance is a concern, and prisoners expressed difficulties with in-house pay, exacerbated by inflation and transport issues, impacting their ability to afford essentials and home leave. An increasing number of prisoners with short sentences cannot fully benefit from resettlement programs.
Applications to the IMB
Prisoners can apply to their IMB about any aspect of their treatment. This table shows application counts by category.
| Category | Current | Previous | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation, including laundry, clothing, ablutions | 0 | 1 | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogues | 0 | 0 | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, incentives scheme, sanctions | 4 | 0 | |
| Equality | 1 | 0 | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 0 | 1 | |
| Food and kitchens | 0 | 0 | |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 0 | 1 | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection, restrictions | 2 | 1 | |
| Miscellaneous | 2 | 1 | |
| Property during transfer or in another facility | 1 | 0 | |
| Property within the establishment | 0 | 0 | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, time out of cell | 0 | 2 | |
| Sentence management, including HDC (home detention curfew), ROTL (release on temporary licence), parole, release dates, re-categorisation | 1 | 0 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 3 | 3 | — |
| Transfers | 0 | 0 |
Recommendations (5)
Ministry of Justice: 1
HMPPS: 3
Governor / Director: 1
1 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Can the Minister consider reducing the number of prisoners arriving at HMP/YOI Askham Grange with short sentences so that more prisoners can benefit from the full progression and resettlement planning on offer?
Ministry of Justice
Resettlement
Recommendation 2
Can the Prison Service consider improving the provision of community offender managers to help speed up access to ROTLs and improve release planning?
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 3
The prison is not at full capacity. Can closed prisons more readily identify women who would benefit from HMP/YOI Askham Grange?
HMPPS
Overcrowding
Recommendation 4
Will the Prison Service consider phasing out shared-cell accommodation?
HMPPS
Estate
Recommendation 5
Can anything be done to improve the availability of the prisoner driver to help alleviate the travel costs associated with ROTLs?
Governor / Director
Regime
Other IMB Reports for Askham Grange
2022
Published 17 Jul 2025
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
19 Jun 2023
Unannounced
Safety: 4
Respect: 4
Activity: 4
Release: 4
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.