Prison
Cat local
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Elmley
IMB Annual Report 2021 · Published 3 March 2022
HMP Elmley experienced a challenging year ending October 2021 due to its status as a COVID-19 outbreak site, leading to highly restricted regimes and persistent staffing shortages. The Board noted positive initiatives like the Accelerator project and OMU surgeries, but raised significant concerns regarding prolonged confinement, inadequate food budget, and issues with property loss and unlock list management. The report highlights critical needs for improved staff recruitment and retention, better analysis of self-harm incidents, and a review of external service contracts.
Positive Findings
The Accelerator project, piloted at Elmley, shows good prospects for coordinating agencies for newly released prisoners. Offender Management Unit (OMU) surgeries on house blocks have been successful in responding promptly to prisoners' issues and are set to expand. The prison had the highest uptake of Purple Visits video calling in the region, and Spurgeons, the family services provider, is commended for their active engagement during a difficult period.
Key Concerns
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The prolonged confinement of men for long periods in small spaces, often shared, with little in the way of facilities, and the resulting negative impact on their physical and mental health.
Staffing
Difficulties in recruitment have meant that Elmley has been short of staff, exacerbated by the pandemic, highlighting the need for more officers and incentives to recruit and retain them.
Food/Catering
The budget for food, at £2.14 per man per day, is inadequate and needs an overhaul.
Complaints/Property
The contract with DHL needs to be reviewed and reinforced to ensure the company abides by its contractual obligations, given the poor service, long delays in refunds, and deteriorating fresh produce.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Poor management of the unlock list on house blocks disrupts education and healthcare appointments, leading to missed appointments and wasted staff time.
Mental Health
There should be greater, more formal analysis of self-harm, as the underlying causes in relation to the prison environment are not being identified.
Complaints/Property
Prisoners’ property getting lost in the system is a perennial problem, requiring staff to have more care and respect for property during relocation and cell clearance.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Difficulties in recruitment have led to Elmley being short of staff, with the pandemic further exacerbating this. This has impacted the flexibility of managing prisoner 'bubbles' and highlighted the need for more officers and incentives to recruit and retain them. Healthcare staff have also struggled with recruitment and retention, with many leaving the profession or finding better conditions elsewhere, though the Board commends those who remained.
Healthcare
Health provision has been patchy due to chronic staffing difficulties, with healthcare staff feeling unsettled by contract changes and generally uncomfortable working in the prison environment. Prisoners face long waiting lists for treatment, especially dental services, and the outpatient system is impacted by high numbers of no-shows due to inefficient unlock procedures. The inpatients unit is often full, and there are delays in mental health transfers, though the early days in custody scheme and the in-reach team provide valuable support.
Regime & Daily Life
The prison experienced a very restricted regime as a COVID-19 outbreak site, with prisoners often confined to cells for 23 hours a day, allowed only one hour for showers and domestics. This severely impacted physical and mental health. While an outdoor gym was introduced and in-cell packs provided, the Listeners scheme was suspended, and the prolonged confinement in shared cells exacerbated negative thoughts, reflected in increased self-harm incidents.
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 | 14 | 25 | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogue(s) | 19 | 29 | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, IEP, sanctions | 9 | 7 | |
| Equality | 1 | 5 | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 5 | 14 | |
| Food and kitchens | 14 | 8 | |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 94 | 76 | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection restrictions | 18 | 24 | |
| Miscellaneous, including complaints system | 68 | 58 | |
| Property during transfer or in another establishment or location | 29 | 18 | |
| Property within this establishment | 47 | 33 | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, library, regime, time out of cell | 10 | 11 | |
| Sentence management, including HDC, release on temporary licence, parole, release dates, recategorisation | 55 | 68 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 75 | 86 | |
| Transfers | 7 | 14 |
Recommendations (7)
Ministry of Justice: 1
HMPPS: 3
Governor / Director: 3
Recommendation 1
We hope that the minister will give careful thought to the notion of confining men for long periods in small spaces, with little in the way of facilities, in order to protect them from infection. More thought should be given to the effect on their physical and mental health.
Ministry of Justice
Regime
Recommendation 2
Difficulties in recruitment have meant that Elmley has been short of staff in this reporting year. The pandemic has further impacted on staffing and highlighted the need to recruit more officers. The situation for prisoners could have been ameliorated to some extent if staffing had allowed more flexibility in managing the bubbles. There need to be incentives to help recruit and retain staff.
HMPPS
Staffing
Recommendation 3
The budget for food needs an overhaul. The budget of £2.14 per man per day is inadequate (see section 5.1 paragraph 3).
HMPPS
Food
Recommendation 4
The contract with DHL needs to be reviewed and reinforced to ensure that the company abides by their contractual obligations (see section 5.1 paragraph 6).
HMPPS
Regime
Recommendation 5
The poor management of the unlock list on the house blocks is disrupting education and healthcare appointments as well as work in industries. The number of missed appointments in outpatients wastes the time of staff in healthcare who are already overstretched (see section 6.1). Prisoners benefit from being encouraged to engage but they need to be let off the house block and directed to the right resource. The discipline derived from work and education could play an important part in their rehabilitation and resettlement.
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 6
There should be greater, more formal analysis of self-harm. The assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) documents are valuable for recording such events and their possible triggers, but the underlying causes seem never to be identified in their relation to the prison environment, which could be modified.
Governor / Director
Mental Health
Recommendation 7
Prisoners’ property getting lost in the system is a perennial problem. Staff should be encouraged to have more care and respect for property when relocating prisoners, particularly in terms of cell clearance.
Governor / Director
Fair Treatment
Other IMB Reports for Elmley
2023
Published 17 Jul 2025
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.
Prevention of Future Deaths Reports
Coroner PFD reports issued to this establishment.