Prison
Cat Category B, Local, YOI
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Bedford
IMB Annual Report 2021 · Published 26 November 2021
HMP Bedford operated under severe Covid-19 restrictions, largely maintaining safety against the virus. However, the prison continues to face significant challenges with unacceptably high violence levels, exacerbated by overcrowding and prolonged cell confinement. While healthcare provision was generally good, mental health services remained a concern, and resettlement planning was ineffective. Staffing issues, including an inexperienced workforce, also impacted overall performance during this challenging period.
Positive Findings
The Board commends HMP Bedford for successfully controlling Covid-19 outbreaks with only one hospitalisation and no fatalities. Significant improvements were noted in security measures, including new scanners, and the quality of use of force reporting has dramatically improved. The introduction of in-cell telephones, a well-stocked clothing store, and a new diversity and inclusion manager have positively impacted prisoner welfare. The chaplaincy team provided exceptional support, and complaints management has seen significant improvements, with a higher percentage of timely responses.
Key Concerns
Staffing
Prison officers were not prioritised to receive Covid-19 vaccines, indicative of the service being largely unrecognised and unappreciated.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Repeated
The management of prisoners’ property remains bedevilled by an antiquated paper system, a lack of any clear inter-establishment protocols and the absence of any performance measures.
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
The performance of the new contract for accommodation on release is less than encouraging, and the management arrangements make it difficult for the prison, locally, to influence outcomes.
Resettlement/Release
The removal of the community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) and the reintegration of probation services in June 2021 was not coordinated with new finance, debt and benefits contracts, which will not be in place until February 2022.
Estate/Conditions
Repeated
Reception is still an area that appears untidy and disorganised, which does nothing to suggest to new prisoners that they are coming into somewhere that is well managed and efficient.
Safety
A better system of investigation of self-harm incidents is needed to understand causal links, rather than apportion blame.
Safety
Repeated
Concerns regarding the implementation and effectiveness of the ACCT process, which has procedural and cultural failings.
Safety
Repeated
Significant issues raised in interim PPO reports on deaths in custody, with repeated themes of failures to recognise individual risk and implement ACCT processes correctly.
Safety
Repeated
Levels of violence, both prisoner-on-prisoner and prisoner-on-staff, remain unacceptably high and highest in Bedford’s comparator group.
Estate/Conditions
Repeated
The move of the Care and Separation Unit (CSU) to B wing has been promised for some time but remains postponed, leaving the subterranean CSU in unsatisfactory conditions.
Complaints/Property
Lack of integrated performance reporting for main prison complaints and healthcare complaints, leading to an incomplete picture across the establishment.
Healthcare
Issues around the dispensing of medication, including some prisoners not receiving it and inadequate supervision at the pharmacy leading to potential selling on.
Healthcare
Over a quarter of health appointments were missed because the prison was unable to deliver prisoners to the healthcare area.
Education/Purposeful Activity
The education arts specialist has left, with no intention to replace the role, limiting educational provision.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The gym was unavailable for the entire reporting period, negatively impacting prisoners' physical and mental health due to limited time out of cell.
Mental Health
Repeated
Ongoing concerns about the effectiveness of mental health services within the prison, despite recognising resourcing issues.
Equality/Diversity
Collective worship was prohibited for the entire reporting period, and larger groups still cannot be accommodated, despite adequate space, impacting prisoners' spiritual well-being.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Staffing at HMP Bedford remains a significant challenge, with approximately 35% of officers unavailable due to sickness, isolation, or training. The Board noted the lack of prioritisation for prison officers in receiving Covid-19 vaccines, highlighting a broader issue of the service being unrecognised. The prison continues to operate with a high proportion of inexperienced staff, with about a third having less than two years' experience, partly due to high turnover and recruitment challenges from nearby new establishments. The key worker scheme was largely non-operational, limiting crucial staff-prisoner interaction.
Healthcare
Healthcare services, provided by NHFT, maintained a good standard during the pandemic, with clinics delivered and effective management of Covid-19 outbreaks resulting in no fatalities. However, the Board remains concerned about the effectiveness of mental health services and the lack of co-location with physical healthcare teams. A significant issue is that over a quarter of health appointments were missed due to prisoners not being delivered from their cells. Problems with medication dispensing, including inadequate supervision at the pharmacy leading to some prisoners not receiving prescribed medication and others potentially selling it on, also persist.
Regime & Daily Life
The prison's regime was severely restricted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with many prisoners locked in their cells for 22-23.5 hours a day for most of the reporting period. This exacerbated issues of overcrowding in a Victorian-era prison, leading to a lack of privacy and dehumanising conditions. Purposeful activity was minimal, with the gym closed for the entire period and education largely confined to in-cell work. Collective worship was suspended throughout the year, significantly impacting prisoners' spiritual well-being, especially for larger groups like Muslims.
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 transfers) | 45 | — | |
| Adjudications | 13 | — | |
| Bail applications | 2 | — | |
| Clothing and property | 18 | — | |
| Communications and visits | 23 | — | |
| Complaints (including responses) | 26 | — | |
| Discipline, Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) | 6 | — | |
| Education | 4 | — | |
| Employment and activities | 5 | — | |
| Equality and diversity | 0 | — | |
| Family issues | 1 | — | |
| Food | 1 | — | |
| Health and mental health | 20 | — | |
| IPP (Indeterminate Sentence for Public Protection) | 0 | — | |
| Legal | 5 | — | |
| Miscellaneous | 14 | — | |
| Release | 10 | — | |
| Safety | 3 | — | |
| Staff conduct | 1 | — | |
| Substance misuse | 0 | — | |
| Total | 204 | — | |
| Treatment and respect | 4 | — | |
| Welfare | 3 | — |
Recommendations (15)
Other: 1
HMPPS: 4
Governor / Director: 10
7 repeated
Recommendation 1
We find it surprising that prison officers were not prioritised to received Covid-19 vaccines, and see this as indicative of the service being largely unrecognised and unappreciated. We would like to see the minister take the lead in raising the national profile of the Prison Service.
Other
(minister)
Staffing
Recommendation 2
Repeated
The management of prisoners’ property remains bedevilled by an antiquated paper system, a lack of any clear inter-establishment protocols and the absence of any performance measures. It is unclear whether there is any will to resolve these issues and so address a real ongoing problem for prisoners.
HMPPS
Property
Recommendation 3
Repeated
The performance of the new contract for accommodation on release is less than encouraging, and the management arrangements make it difficult for the prison, locally, to influence outcomes. As with all the outsourced services, the prison Governor is accountable for the outcomes without the responsibility for delivery. Clear and quick mechanisms need to be in place for the resolution of local performance issues.
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 4
It is very surprising that the removal of the community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) and the reintegration of probation services in June 2021 could not be coordinated with the letting of new finance, debt and benefits contracts, which, we understand, will not be in place until February 2022, some eight months later. Without support in these key areas, released prisoners are much more likely to find themselves back in prison.
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 5
The removal of the CRCs and the integration of many probation and resettlement services gives, in our view, an opportunity for improved effectiveness, but it does require clear leadership and a strong focus on outcomes.
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 6
Repeated
Reception is still an area that appears untidy and disorganised, which does nothing to suggest to new prisoners that they are coming into somewhere that is well managed and efficient.
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 7
While there is a steady decrease in self-harm incidents, we feel that a better system of investigation of incidents, to understand the causal links, would lead to further improvements.
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 8
Repeated
We echo the concerns of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) regarding the implementation of the assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) process and would hope that the new version might lead to improvements. We can also see real value in involving prisoners in assessing the effectiveness of the ACCT system.
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 9
Repeated
The interim Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) reports on two deaths in custody raise some significant issues and we would ask that a clear action plan is put in place in response to the final reports.
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 10
Repeated
Despite some improvements, levels of violence remain unacceptably high.
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 11
Repeated
The move of the CSU to B wing has been promised for some time and, although it is understandable that it was postponed by the pandemic, it is important that it happens in the next 12 months.
Governor / Director
Estate
Recommendation 12
We feel that there would be considerable benefits in integrating the performance reporting of the main prison complaints and complaints to healthcare, so that there is a full picture across the establishment.
Governor / Director
Complaints
Recommendation 13
There are issues around the dispensing of medication that need resolving. Some prisoners are not receiving their medication, while others may be selling it on, as there has been inadequate supervision at the pharmacy.
Governor / Director
Healthcare
Recommendation 14
Over a quarter of health appointments were missed because the prison was unable to deliver prisoners to the healthcare area, which is both a waste of healthcare resources and really unhelpful for prisoners.
Governor / Director
Healthcare
Recommendation 15
We regret that the education arts specialist has left and that there is no intention to replace the role.
Governor / Director
Education
Other IMB Reports for Bedford
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
30 Oct 2023
Unannounced
Safety: 1
Respect: 1
Activity: 1
Release: 2
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.