Prison
Cat long-term high-security
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Wakefield
IMB Annual Report 2020 · Published 8 March 2021
HMP Wakefield largely maintains a just, consistent, and inclusive regime, deemed safe and orderly despite a challenging population. While physical health needs are generally met, the Board has significant concerns regarding inadequate mental health support, prolonged Rule 45 segregation, and delays in mental health transfers. The prison's focus remains on progression within the high-security estate rather than direct community resettlement.
Positive Findings
HMP Wakefield generally provides a safe, orderly, and humane high-security regime, described as just, consistent, and inclusive. The Board commends staff for successful reintegration of challenging prisoners, high-quality palliative care, and empathy shown in segregation. Healthcare provision is good, with improvements in pharmacy staffing and an effective COVID-19 response resulting in low positive cases. Education and workshop provisions are also recognised for their quality and positive relationships.
Key Concerns
Safety
Delays by West Yorkshire Police in progressing investigations into violent incidents.
Segregation
Prisoners are held for unacceptably long periods under Prison Rule 45, exacerbated by a lack of appropriate mental health support and a 'merry-go-round' of seg-to-seg transfers for prisoners with personality disorders without a long-term plan.
Mental Health
Repeated
The detrimental impact of prolonged segregation on mental health, particularly for those not on the mental health caseload, and significant delays in transferring prisoners with serious acute mental health conditions to appropriate accommodation within the target time of 14 days.
Estate/Conditions
Repeated
The impact of an aged and unfit-for-purpose physical environment on prisoners, including inadequate ventilation in residential spaces (hot in summer, cold in winter) and unsuitable inpatient healthcare facilities.
Equality/Diversity
Repeated
The Board remains seriously under-strength and has been unable to monitor the work of the prisoner equality action group (PEAG) for the second consecutive year.
Mental Health
Repeated
Persistent issues for IPP prisoners experiencing mental health distress due to a failure to provide them with a degree of certainty in relation to their sentence planning.
Staffing
Repeated
Some officers reported feeling ‘undervalued’ as civil servants due to worn furniture in landing offices, poor ventilation, and low starting salaries (£23,529).
Safety
An increase in self-harm incidents compared to the previous year (from 268 to 364), and concerns among older prisoners regarding bullying and harassment due to an influx of younger people.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Repeated
A continued lack of sufficient high-quality, active and purposeful work, coupled with no extension of the Prison Service ‘internal market’.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The lack of in-cell telephony, preventing prisoners from easier contact with family and external support.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Prison officers reported feeling undervalued due to worn furniture, poor ventilation, and low starting salaries (£23,529). Healthcare services experienced variable staffing and recruitment delays, with seven vacancies at year-end, including mental health nurses and a psychologist. The availability of qualified staff also hampered the delivery of Offender Behaviour Programmes.
Healthcare
Physical health needs are largely met, though some healthcare complaint responses lack proper documentation. Mental health support is deemed inadequate for some, particularly those in long-term Rule 45 segregation not on the mental health caseload. Palliative care is commendable, but the inpatient healthcare building is unfit for purpose. A recovery team supports addiction, pharmacy staffing improved, and the COVID-19 response was effective.
Regime & Daily Life
HMP Wakefield generally offers a just, consistent, and inclusive regime, with prisoners feeling safe and engaged. However, the segregation unit's regime can be challenging due to high occupancy. The last two months of the reporting period saw a severe COVID-19 lockdown, restricting prisoners to cells for most of the day. There is a persistent need for more high-quality, purposeful activity and work, and the absence of in-cell telephony remains a concern.
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 | 5 | 4 | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogue(s) | 4 | 2 | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, IEP, sanctions | 11 | 10 | |
| Equality | 9 | 6 | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 4 | 3 | |
| Food and kitchens | 3 | 3 | — |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 19 | 12 | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection restrictions | 4 | 14 | |
| Miscellaneous, including complaints system | 9 | 16 | |
| Property during transfer or in another establishment or location | 8 | 6 | |
| Property within this establishment | 8 | 10 | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, library, regime, time out of cell | 8 | 18 | |
| Sentence management, including home detention curfew, release on temporary licence, parole, release dates, recategorisation | 5 | 3 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 15 | 27 | |
| Transfers | 0 | 2 |
Recommendations (4)
Ministry of Justice: 2
Governor / Director: 1
HMPPS: 1
2 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Ministry of Justice should work with the Department of Health to ensure that – following repeated recommendations and concerns expressed by this Inspectorate and others, including the Public Accounts Committee – effective action is taken to complete transfers under the Mental Health Act within the target time of 14 days. (S37)
Ministry of Justice
Mental Health
Recommendation 2
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board would, again, like to draw ministers’ attention to the requirement for additional central support on the recruitment and retention of all qualified vacancies throughout the Prison Service.
Ministry of Justice
Staffing
Recommendation 3
we encourage the Governor to consider a review of how psychologically informed regimes at Wakefield may, or may not, be efficacious.
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 4
We have yet to receive further information on the new framework, and would request clarification from HMPPS on the status of its implementation.
HMPPS
Property
Other IMB Reports for Wakefield
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.