Prison
Cat B
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Gartree
IMB Annual Report 2020 · Published 18 March 2021
This IMB annual report for HMP Gartree covers the period from December 2019 to November 2020, heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. Despite these challenges, the prison's management is commended for effectively handling the crisis and maintaining some services. The Board highlights significant reductions in self-harm and assaults, but expresses concerns over the detrimental long-term effects of extended lockdowns on prisoner wellbeing, the deteriorating state of the prison estate, and persistent issues regarding IPP prisoners and property management.
Positive Findings
The IMB commends the Governor and staff for effectively managing the COVID-19 crisis, containing outbreaks, and maintaining key work delivery. Positive changes include clearer communication, improved staff attendance and retention, and progress by the new NHS healthcare provider in reducing waiting times. Physical improvements like fire safety measures are underway. There has been a notable reduction in self-harm incidents, prisoner-on-prisoner assaults, and use of force incidents compared to the previous year, possibly due to lockdown restrictions. Staff-prisoner relationships are generally positive, and the key worker scheme is progressing.
Key Concerns
Other
The Board is concerned that because of restrictions on our ability to visit the prison and to be able to communicate directly with prisoners and staff, we have perhaps not been able to establish a full picture of some of the issues faced by the prisoners for a large part of this reporting period.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Most of the prisoners have had to remain locked up for a worryingly extended period. The Board is concerned about the detrimental effects that this has, and will continue to have, on the prisoners, in relation to rehabilitation, progression, and physical and mental health, and for the wellbeing of the staff.
Estate/Conditions
Repeated
Some of the wings require immediate investment and the condition of the older residential accommodation needs addressing, as recommended in the Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) scrutiny report published in October 2020.
Staffing
Our ability to recruit new Board members has been directly affected by COVID-19, and we continue to face challenges in recruiting and retaining members.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Repeated
There are still many challenging prisoners serving an indeterminate sentence for public protection (IPP) who appear locked in the system. Gartree does not appear to be the best place for these prisoners, as there are not adequate resources to deal with them.
Complaints/Property
Repeated
The Board continues to be frustrated by the apparent inability of the Prison Service generally, and Gartree more specifically, to handle prisoner property.
Safety
The Board has concerns that, as frustrations grow with continued restrictions to the regime, some of the prisoners may become less tolerant to lockdown conditions, and violence will increase again.
Mental Health
Repeated
There are still worrying numbers of prisoners listed as self-isolators or, more recently, as socially isolated prisoners, who withdraw from prison life and sometimes appear to be stuck within the system.
Education/Purposeful Activity
Repeated
We have always had some concerns about the amount of purposeful activity truly available to the prisoners at Gartree and continue to do so.
Food/Catering
Repeated
The kitchens have experienced a large number of issues with refrigeration equipment, and as expressed in our last annual report, the challenges regarding long delays before kitchen equipment is either replaced or repaired have continued.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
It was unfortunate that the prisoners’ self-catering facilities were closed in March due to concerns regarding the transmission of COVID-19, and have since remained closed. In their recent report, HMIP raised the question of whether this continued closure of the kitchens was justified after six months.
Segregation
Repeated
The Board has previously raised concerns about the poor physical conditions in the unit, both for the prisoners and staff. There is a limited regime for prisoners housed in the unit and segregated on the residential wings, and the Board has continued to raise concerns about the excessive length of time that many prisoners are kept in the SAPU/segregated on the wings.
Staffing
There have been occasions when it appears to the Board that there may be too many new and less experienced staff, with less on-the-job experience and fewer skills to be able to pre-empt trouble and difficult situations; some of the more experienced staff may be better equipped to diffuse situations.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Staff attendance and retention have improved, with a general impression among staff of greater happiness and clearer management. Prior to COVID-19, sickness levels were reducing, though pandemic-related absences increased but remained manageable. The safer custody team benefited from additional dedicated posts. The prison has experienced a loss of officers and faces challenges introducing new, less experienced staff. The key worker scheme, while impacted by the pandemic, has progressed with 173 active key workers conducting 4,430 sessions, though the compliance rate is 25%.
Healthcare
Access to some healthcare services, including dental treatment, has been restricted due to COVID-19, though some clinics continued safely. The new NHS provider was making good progress in addressing quality and access issues, recruiting permanent staff, and reducing waiting times before the pandemic. The Board is concerned about the long-term mental health impacts of extended lockdown. While mental health professionals remained accessible, the Board seeks the COVID-19 recovery plan for services and resources for prisoners with complex mental health needs.
Regime & Daily Life
The prison implemented a full lockdown due to COVID-19, leading to prisoners being locked in their cells for over 22 hours a day since March 2020. This has severely restricted access to education, programmes, work, recreation, and wider association. Pre-COVID-19, the regime had become more predictable. The Board acknowledges positive work to manage in-cell time, with key work, essential purposeful activities, parole boards, in-cell education, in-cell telephony, and 'Purple Visits' continuing.
Recommendations (13)
Ministry of Justice: 4
HMPPS: 5
Governor / Director: 4
9 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Will the minister seek to provide a sufficient budget for HMP Gartree to create a safe living standard that would be deemed acceptable in the wider community? It continues not to be acceptable to expect staff and prisoners to live and work in buildings where the infrastructure has seriously declined over several years.
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 2
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
HMP Gartree continues to hold IPP prisoners, who are now many years over their tariff. A degree of frustration continues among these prisoners, and the COVID-19 pandemic will not have helped in any progression for these prisoners. This continues to be an issue which needs addressing urgently, and the Board looks forward to hearing from the minister about plans that will resolve this ongoing issue.
Ministry of Justice
Progression
Recommendation 3
Will the minister provide an update on resources being planned post-COVID-19 to enable the delivery of measures outlined in the National Partnership Agreement for Prison Healthcare, which acknowledges the interdependency of health and social care and the prison environment (defined as physical environment, staffing levels and regime) for the crucial improvements to the health and wellbeing of all prisoners?
Ministry of Justice
Healthcare
Recommendation 4
Will the minister share the decision-making process not to include prison officers as key workers who could access the vaccine for COVID-19 as a priority group?
Ministry of Justice
Staffing
Recommendation 5
Will the Prison Service ensure that Gartree will be sufficiently funded post-COVID-19, so that prisoners’ access to employment, purposeful activity, education and healthcare will address the impacts of COVID-19 as quickly as possible?
HMPPS
Regime
Recommendation 6
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Does the Prison Service consider that Gartree has a sufficient ongoing maintenance budget and capital funding in order both that prisoners can live, and staff can work within a safe, secure and decent environment?
HMPPS
Estate
Recommendation 7
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
As raised by other Boards, the number of applications about property remains high, although it is difficult to provide a true reflection for the whole reporting period because of the lockdown. The Board looks forward to improved ways of working that will resolve these long and unacceptable ongoing issues with prisoners’ property, which are particularly difficult to resolve when property is lost in transit or not forwarded on by a previous establishment.
HMPPS
Complaints
Recommendation 8
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board is concerned about the ongoing situation regarding the repair or replacement of equipment in the kitchens. Can the Prison Service engage with contractors to create a service level agreement which will achieve a more timely response to address such issues?
HMPPS
Food
Recommendation 9
Repeated
Will the Prison Service share the plans to deal with the prisoners located in Gartree who have complex/serious mental health issues, who need specialist help from medical professionals?
HMPPS
Mental Health
Recommendation 10
Repeated
Will the Governor take all measures necessary to reduce the levels of violence, self-harm, bullying, drug taking and drug smuggling, including adequate staffing and resource continued being allocated to the safer custody team?
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 11
Will the Governor continue to ensure that monitoring and quality assurance checks of all ACCT documents are carried out by a dedicated safer custody custodial manager, and that all documentation is of the required standard and all post-closure reviews are undertaken?
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 12
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Will the Governor keep reviewing ways to improve processes and procedures in looking after prisoners’ property, as issues with property are still being reported?
Governor / Director
Complaints
Recommendation 13
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Will the Governor continue to identify ways to improve engagement between the Board and SMT, to enable positive interaction for the benefit of all? This includes routine notifications which are outlined in the memorandum of understanding between HMPPS and the management board for the Independent Monitoring Boards, dated December 2019.
Governor / Director
Other
Other IMB Reports for Gartree
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
16 Jan 2023
Unannounced
Safety: 3
Respect: 3
Activity: 2
Release: 3
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.