Prison
Cat C
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Ashfield
IMB Annual Report 2021 · Published 12 November 2021
HMP Ashfield is judged to be a well-managed Category C prison for sex offenders, maintaining high standards and humane treatment despite significant COVID-19 challenges. The prison effectively managed the pandemic, achieving low infection rates and progressively easing restrictions to maximize purposeful activity. Key concerns include persistent difficulties in securing suitable accommodation for released prisoners, a severe reduction in offending behaviour programme places, and issues with mental health support and equality and diversity monitoring.
Positive Findings
HMP Ashfield is judged to be a well-managed prison with high standards, treating prisoners fairly and humanely in a safe environment. The management of COVID-19 outbreaks was highly effective, with very low infection rates and successful transitions to less restrictive regimes to maximise time out of cell and exercise. ACCT processes are well-embedded, and property management is well-run. The OMiC model has shown benefits with stable staffing and improved OASys record keeping. The chaplaincy team provided excellent pastoral care during restrictions, and in-cell TV and library delivery services were greatly appreciated by prisoners.
Key Concerns
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
The difficulties securing appropriate accommodation in a timely fashion for prisoners released from Ashfield continue to be a major concern exacerbated by the Covid-19 restrictions.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
COVID-19 restrictions have severely reduced the number of offending behaviour programme (OBP) places available. For a large percentage of the population at Ashfield, OBPs feature on their sentence plan and the reduced availability of places is causing anxiety and concerns that, where relevant, the chances of parole have decreased if OBPs have not been completed.
Resettlement/Release
The Board notes that the number of category D places in the only open prison in the south west, HMP Leyhill, is set to reduce in coming years; it also notes that the only other open prisons accepting prisoners convicted of sexual offences are located in Suffolk, Lincolnshire and Cumbria.
Equality/Diversity
The prison does not routinely collect ethnicity data with regard to behaviour warnings, which limits investigation into perceived disproportionate warnings for BAME prisoners.
Equality/Diversity
The scheduling of diversity and equality action team (DEAT) meetings four to five weeks after the quarter to be reviewed is, in the Board’s view, not conducive to timely action to address emerging issues and the brevity of the minutes is not helpful to record the work being undertaken in this area.
Mental Health
The Board does have some concerns about the support to prisoners with conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Aspergers, autism and those with other learning difficulties. Primarily this is due to the lack of access to neurodiverse specialists.
Food/Catering
The Board has seen a significant change in prisoners' views of the catering and from the information available it would appear to be linked mostly to the change of supplier in November 2020. The comments ranged from complaints about portion sizes to the quality of food/cooking.
Board Commentary
Staffing
The prison experienced a turnover of approximately one-third of custodial staff and 50% of the prisoner population, impacting staff-prisoner relationship development. Staffing shortages also affected the catering and mental health departments due to sickness and COVID-19 requirements. Formal key working was suspended during lockdown but reintroduced for vulnerable prisoners, supplemented by weekly welfare chats. Positively, offender management teams achieved full staffing levels and saw a stabilisation of turnover.
Healthcare
Basic healthcare provision at Ashfield is generally good, matching community standards, and the management of COVID-19 outbreaks was highly effective with minimal prisoner infections and high vaccination rates. However, the Board holds concerns regarding mental health support, which has been severely impacted by COVID-19 restrictions, staff shortages (including a long-term vacant Band 6 nurse position), and a lack of access to neurodiverse specialists. Group therapy sessions have been significantly restricted, leading to a lengthy backlog. Liaison with other departments has improved, and medication management is being enhanced with new lockers.
Regime & Daily Life
The prison adeptly managed severe COVID-19 restrictions, commendably maximizing time out of cell and exercise opportunities by progressing from Stage 4 (most restrictive) to Stage 2 by year-end. During peak restrictions, prisoners received about 90 minutes out of cell daily, increasing to 10 hours for those in work/education by June 2021. However, face-to-face education and vocational training were largely suspended, with essential work limited to small parties. In-cell TV and a daily library delivery service were vital for engagement and purposeful activity.
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) | 19 | 22 | |
| Adjudications | 2 | 10 | |
| Family contact | 10 | 12 | |
| Finance | 0 | 0 | |
| Food | 3 | 2 | |
| Health and wellbeing | 2 | 3 | |
| Incentives | 0 | 0 | |
| Legal | 1 | 3 | |
| Other | 1 | 1 | — |
| Prison procedures and policy | 11 | 13 | |
| Property (including transfers) | 31 | 39 | |
| Rule 45 and cellular confinement | 2 | 9 | |
| Staff (including discrimination) | 19 | 28 | |
| Work, education, activity | 4 | 2 |
Recommendations (5)
Ministry of Justice: 1
HMPPS: 2
Governor / Director: 2
1 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Can the Minister confirm how many of the 200 approved premises new placements can be used for prisoners convicted of sexual offences and the timescale for delivery of these placements?
Ministry of Justice
Resettlement
Response
The difficulties securing appropriate accommodation in a timely fashion for prisoners released from Ashfield continue to be a major concern exacerbated by the Covid-19 restrictions. The Board welcomes the response to last year’s report on this issue but the accommodation challenges facing prisoners convicted of sexual offences continue unabated. The response from the Minister detailing efforts to address these problems was welcomed. Sadly, the measures outlined have yet to make any difference to the problems being encountered.
Recommendation 1
In the light of the backlog of prisoners awaiting places on OBPs, are there any plans for HMPPS to increase further, beyond current strategies, the number of OBP places to address the problem?
HMPPS
Regime
Recommendation 1
Can consideration be given to identifying ethnicity when reviewing incentive warnings?
Governor / Director
Equality
Recommendation 2
Does HMPPS have plans to create further category D places for prisoners convicted of sex offences in the south of the country or the Midlands?
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 2
Can action be taken to improve the DEAT meetings?
Governor / Director
Equality
Other IMB Reports for Ashfield
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
9 Oct 2023
Unannounced
Safety: 4
Respect: 4
Activity: 1
Release: 4
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.