Prison
Cat A, B, high-security
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Full Sutton
IMB Annual Report 2020 · Published 7 April 2021
HMP Full Sutton's IMB report for 2020 highlights the extensive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prison's operations, with significant regime restrictions in place. Despite these challenges, the prison successfully maintained safety, experienced reductions in self-harm and assaults, and generally treated prisoners humanely. However, opportunities for purposeful activity, education, and progression were severely curtailed, and previous recommendations on these issues remain unaddressed due to the pandemic.
Positive Findings
The prison successfully managed extensive COVID-19 restrictions, maintaining a safe residential and working environment and ensuring humane treatment. Communication with prisoners was good, aiding acceptance of the restricted regime. The segregation unit provided a decent environment, and staff/prisoner relationships were maintained. The Governor improved property processing for new arrivals, and the prison secured funding for Macmillan Cancer Care for palliative care. A video-link family contact scheme proved successful and popular. Improvements in offender management IT systems were noted, and all released prisoners found places in approved premises.
Key Concerns
Education/Purposeful Activity
Repeated
There was an almost complete lack of opportunity for prisoners to progress through offending behaviour programmes, education and employment during the year due to pandemic restrictions, a concern carried forward from previous years.
Education/Purposeful Activity
Repeated
Insufficient provision of meaningful work opportunities for prisoners, which was a recommendation carried forward from 2019.
Education/Purposeful Activity
Repeated
Lack of a fuller range of educational and therapeutic activity consistently available, a recommendation carried forward from 2019.
Other
Repeated
Systems for the management and tracking of prisoners’ property between establishments remain problematic, causing frustration and anxiety, a concern expressed in previous annual reports.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Clarity needs to be re-established about the purpose of the STEP unit, its role in the Pathways to Progression programme, and the referral process, as it was not able to maintain its purpose of breaking the cycle of segregation during the year.
Other
The cost of telephone calls made by prisoners to mobile phones is unreasonably high, hindering essential family contact.
Board Commentary
Staffing
The mental health team faced staff shortages at the start of lockdown, with nurses having to isolate, stretching mental health resources. Staff shortages also led to the suspension of key worker sessions, though contact was maintained where possible. Full Sutton is under-represented in terms of BAME prison staff, despite exploring advisory groups and having a 14% BAME recruitment target.
Healthcare
Healthcare provision was significantly impacted by the pandemic, with regular clinics, dentist, and optician appointments suspended in March, though emergency cover was available. GP services were maintained, albeit at a reduced level, supplemented by a remote medical team. Dental and optician clinics resumed on a restricted basis in September. The mental health team experienced staff shortages early in lockdown, but daily checks for those on the mental health caseload continued, and vulnerable prisoners were well supported.
Regime & Daily Life
The regime became extremely restricted due to the pandemic, with time out of cell initially reduced to one hour a day, and education, workshops, gym, and normal association ceasing. While restrictions eased slightly in August, increasing time out of cell to 1 hour 40 minutes to 2 hours, they were curtailed again in October. Despite these severe limitations, the atmosphere on the wings remained calm, and prisoners generally coped well, understanding the reasons for the restrictions.
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 | 9 | 26 | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogue(s) | 5 | 6 | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, IEP, sanctions | 10 | 32 | |
| Equality | 10 | 13 | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 4 | 19 | |
| Food and kitchens | 3 | 7 | |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 26 | 56 | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection restrictions | 14 | 23 | |
| Miscellaneous, including complaints system | 16 | 44 | |
| Property during transfer or in another establishment or location | 13 | 22 | |
| Property within this establishment | 7 | 14 | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, library, regime, time out of cell | 10 | 18 | |
| Sentence management, including home detention curfew, release on temporary licence, parole, release dates, recategorization | 4 | 23 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 22 | 53 | |
| Transfers | 8 | 3 |
Recommendations (8)
Ministry of Justice: 1
HMPPS: 5
Governor / Director: 2
5 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Review the provision of work and education for prisoners, in order to improve and enhance these.
Ministry of Justice
Education
Recommendation 2
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Improve, in conjunction with the Governor, the provision of meaningful work for prisoners.
HMPPS
Purposeful Activity
Recommendation 3
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Take action to ensure, with educational providers and the Governor, that a fuller range of educational and therapeutic activity is consistently available.
HMPPS
Education
Recommendation 4
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Improve systems for the management and tracking of prisoners’ property between establishments.
HMPPS
Other
Recommendation 5
Review and clarify the purpose of the STEP unit, its role in the Pathways to Progression programme, and the referral system, to ensure that it can resume its intended role of breaking the cycle of segregation.
HMPPS
Regime
Recommendation 6
Re-examine, with the service provider, the cost of telephone calls made by prisoners to mobile phones, with a view to reducing this.
HMPPS
Other
Recommendation 7
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Improve the provision of meaningful work, and breadth of education provision, for the prisoners.
Governor / Director
Education
Recommendation 8
Review and clarify, with HMPPS, the purpose of the STEP unit, its role in the Pathways to Progression programme, and the referral system, to ensure that it can resume its intended role of breaking the cycle of segregation.
Governor / Director
Regime
Other IMB Reports for Full Sutton
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
11 Mar 2024
Unannounced
Safety: 3
Respect: 3
Activity: 2
Release: 3
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.