Prison
Cat women's, YOI
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Peterborough (women)
IMB Annual Report 2023 · Published 20 October 2023
HMP/YOI Peterborough (Women) is generally well-led, offering a disciplined and fair regime with humane treatment. Key strengths include improved safety focus, reduced self-harm (despite a prolific individual temporarily skewing numbers), and increased education attendance. However, significant concerns remain regarding the influx of severely mentally ill prisoners not receiving appropriate external care, delays in prescribed medication, and inconsistencies in key work delivery and regime due to staff shortages. The Board highlights challenges in resettlement, particularly accommodation, and issues with delays in offender management processes.
Positive Findings
The Board has found HMP Peterborough to be generally well led and managed, with a disciplined, structured and fair regime. Prisoners are treated with respect, care and compassion. There has been a maintained focus on safety, with much improved multi-disciplinary working, and the staff of the Healthcare Unit are commended for their vigilance and compassion. A welcome decrease in positive results from mandatory drug tests was noted. Accommodation, facilities, food, and canteen services are generally good, and segregation is well managed. Education attendance has increased post-Covid-19, and special educational needs (SEND) are well embedded. Priority is given to maintaining family links and resettling prisoners into accommodation.
Key Concerns
Mental Health
The number of prisoners showing extreme symptoms of mental illness, who should be directed to appropriate healthcare pathways rather than being detained in prison.
Healthcare
Prisoners being left without prescribed medications for days and in some cases weeks upon arrival, transfer, or return from appointments, which is a factor in self-harm.
Estate/Conditions
Inadequate climate control in cells during extreme weather, with insufficient fan provision in summer and heating issues in winter.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Repeated
The inconsistent quality and decreased compliance of key worker allocation and contact, with some prisoners unaware of the system.
Mental Health
Concerning delays in arranging assessment and admission to hospital for mentally unwell prisoners, and a perceived shortfall in psychiatric coverage.
Staffing
Staff shortages requiring curtailment of the regime, particularly at weekends and impacting purposeful activity like library access.
Resettlement/Release
Delays in completion of risk assessments for Home Detention Curfew (HDC) and Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) applications due to Community Offender Management (COM) input.
Resettlement/Release
Securing ample post-release accommodation remains a significant challenge, despite exceeding the target percentage.
Food/Catering
Several key items of kitchen equipment are unserviceable, causing significant strain on the kitchen to produce a full menu.
Equality/Diversity
Insufficient smaller/petite size clothing available in reception, impacting prisoners' self-esteem and well-being.
Food/Catering
Verbal complaints that food is bland and 'stodgy', with requests for more salads and fruit.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Insufficient staff resources to consistently and promptly process social video call applications for family contact.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Significant postal delays causing distress and frustration to prisoners, likely due to staff shortages.
Board Commentary
Staffing
The prison manages its staff recruitment and training needs locally, with recruitment continuing through the reporting year. However, staff shortages have sometimes curtailed the regime, especially at weekends. The time allocated to staff for key worker tasks is not always sufficient, and staff morale in the Female Separation and Care Unit suffered during a protracted change of leadership.
Healthcare
Healthcare services are generally on-par with the community but are delivered via several different, poorly integrated contracts. Prisoners are often critical of health services, a concern the Board found to stem from weak communication about health matters and unrealistic expectations. The Board is extremely concerned about the number of prisoners with severe mental illness being sent to the prison, rather than being diverted to appropriate healthcare.
Regime & Daily Life
The regime is disciplined, structured, and fair, with standard and enhanced prisoners averaging 7.48 hours out of cell daily. This figure reflects shorter times early in the reporting year and ongoing staff shortages, which sometimes necessitate curtailment of the regime, particularly at weekends. The library, although well-used, is often among the first aspects of the regime to be closed due to staff shortages.
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 | 21 | 12 | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogues | 9 | 10 | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, incentives scheme, sanctions | 0 | 4 | |
| Equality | 5 | 15 | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 19 | 6 | |
| Food and kitchens | 2 | 3 | |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 54 | 92 | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection, restrictions | 21 | 23 | |
| Miscellaneous | 24 | 4 | |
| Property during transfer or in another facility | 4 | 3 | |
| Property within the establishment | 17 | 29 | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, time out of cell | 14 | 7 | |
| Sentence management, including HDC, ROTL, parole, release dates, re-categorisation | 24 | 15 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 48 | 39 | |
| Transfers | 4 | 0 |
Recommendations (5)
Ministry of Justice: 2
HMPPS: 1
Governor / Director: 2
1 repeated
Recommendation 1
Can the Minister work with the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure women with serious mental health issues in the criminal justice system are directed to an appropriate pathway?
Ministry of Justice
Mental Health
Recommendation 2
Can the Minister take action to prevent prisons being deemed a place of safety for women with serious mental health issues?
Ministry of Justice
Mental Health
Recommendation 3
What steps is the Service taking to ensure that the Probation Service is adequately staffed, especially in respect of Community Offender Managers?
HMPPS
Staffing
Recommendation 4
Can the Director take steps to ensure women’s regime is not curtailed because of staff shortages?
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 5
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Can the Director continue to focus on embedding quality key work?
Governor / Director
Regime
Response
Coverage improved and refresher training delivered to key workers. Further work needed to embed.