Prison
Cat B, C, local, YOI
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Pentonville
IMB Annual Report 2020 · Published 9 September 2020
HMP/YOI Pentonville, a category B/C local prison, faces significant challenges in providing a safe and rehabilitative environment. While staff demonstrated resilience during COVID-19, and some improvements were made in drug reduction and key working, the prison's deteriorating infrastructure, high levels of violence, and persistent issues with regime delivery severely impacted prisoner welfare and resettlement. The Board highlights a lack of investment, poor maintenance, and inadequate staffing as root causes, resulting in concerns about safety, healthcare access, and purposeful activity.
Positive Findings
Staff demonstrated heroic efforts and flexibility in response to COVID-19. The prison made good progress in tackling drug problems through a coherent strategy and increased dog finds. Key working was successfully restarted in January 2020. The Wellbeing Centre received a national award. Family activity days, support for young adults, creative arts courses, and pre-release initiatives increased. The complaints system saw positive changes with electronic logging and improved accountability. Healthcare waiting times were generally comparable to the community, with overall satisfaction in clinical services.
Key Concerns
Safety
Hand-made weapons were found on a regular basis.
Safety
Self-harm increased by 14%.
Safety
There were six deaths in custody.
Safety
Assaults on staff increased by 30%.
Safety
No firm funding for the remaining two wings for CCTV.
Safety
Body-worn video cameras (BWVCs) were not always worn by staff and the technology failed regularly. There was insufficient management grip on the use of force.
Safety
Only one dog handler turned up – and not daily.
Estate/Conditions
Pentonville is unsuitable for the incarceration of prisoners in the 21st century. But there is still no sign of the significant and urgent financial investment noted as being needed.
Estate/Conditions
Refurbished landing was ‘mothballed’ for months because of ineffective water pressure. Although £284,000 funding was agreed in September 2019 for refurbishment of showers, this work has not begun.
Estate/Conditions
Organising lift engineers, plumbers or pest control seemed to be daily challenges for GFSL.
Healthcare
Hospital appointments were sometimes cancelled at short notice because of a shortage of prison officer escorts.
Healthcare
Applications to the Board about healthcare increased by around 50%.
Mental Health
Repeated
Attendance at the wellbeing centre is not seen as a clinical priority by the prison, and during any routine lockdown the centre is empty. The Board has raised this concern repeatedly.
Resettlement/Release
Many prisoners have complex and multiple needs that a local prison serving the local courts is ill equipped to address.
Resettlement/Release
Despite planned improvements in provision and an effective provider, homelessness remains a problem.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Constructive use of prisoners’ time is negatively affected by what seem to be persistent problems in delivering them to education and work – the 56% average attendance figure is dismal.
Resettlement/Release
Rehabilitation, as a means of progression towards successful resettlement, takes a back seat.
Estate/Conditions
Work to replace insecure cell windows and grilles, identified in 2016, had still not been completed by end of reporting year, allowing contraband entry.
Estate/Conditions
Physical condition and layout of the reception area remain poorly suited for its purpose, with a large central holding room raising safety concerns.
Safety
Interviewing booths offer little privacy for sensitive cell sharing risk assessments and safety questions.
Safety
Person escort records are frequently incomplete or inaccurate, leading to officer numbers in reception being poorly matched and late cell allocations.
Safety
Installation of the planned airport-style body scanner has been delayed.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Induction sessions are not always delivered to every prisoner; vulnerable prisoners sent to the vulnerable prisoner unit often receive no induction or basic kit.
Safety
Only 10 trained Listeners for over 1,000 prisoners, described as an ‘all-time low’.
Safety
The Challenge, Support, and Intervention Plan (CSIP) scheme only started to be implemented in January 2020, despite being mandatory since February 2019.
Safety
Catch 22’s contract for gang analysis ended in March 2020, leaving a need for a robust solution to gang conflict issues.
Safety
Risks remained for vulnerable prisoners mixing with the wider population when accessing medication, visits or work, despite reserved clinic times.
Safety
Repeated
Lack of a full induction for new vulnerable prisoners arriving from reception was a recurring concern.
Safety
Vulnerable prisoners with mobility problems were sometimes placed on the vulnerable prisoner unit, which was not a fit or safe location, with broken lifts, no exercise yards, and unclear fire evacuation procedures.
Safety
Governance of use of force remained poor, with increased incidents, incomplete reports, poor data collection, and Body-Worn Video Cameras rarely activated or failing.
Substance Misuse
Prevalence of drugs, especially cannabis, remains a problem.
Substance Misuse
Rapiscan technology for scanning mail for drugs was introduced but not in routine use due to training and staff deployment costs.
Estate/Conditions
Persistent plumbing issues across the prison cause frequent lack of hot/cold water, blocked toilets/showers, and leaks.
Estate/Conditions
Many cells still have inadequately screened toilets.
Estate/Conditions
Many showers are mouldy, infested with flies and in a poor state of repair; the plan to deep-clean all toilets by end of 2019 has not been completed.
Estate/Conditions
Persistent problem of vermin, especially cockroaches.
Estate/Conditions
Refurbishment of a landing was completed but remained non-operational due to plumbing issues for months.
Estate/Conditions
Several lifts were out of operation for extended periods, causing problems for prisoners (and visitors) with mobility issues.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Insufficient supplies of clothing at reception and on the wings.
Food/Catering
Complaints about small food portions, and food arriving cold on wings due to faulty heated trolleys.
Food/Catering
Recurrent equipment issues and vermin in the kitchen.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Kitchen workers lack sufficient time for telephone calls, showers and association.
Segregation
Repeated
The Segregation Unit (CSU) suffered from a vermin problem again this year, and its overall fabric is very tired and in urgent need of further renovations, with cells often out of use and broken observation panels.
Segregation
One prisoner was held on the segregation unit for five months awaiting a place in the high-security estate, highlighting unacceptable delays by the Prison Service.
Complaints/Property
The adjudication process is cumbersome and bureaucratic, with lengthy forms, procedural failures, frequent absence of 'charging officers', and non-availability of key evidence compromising it.
Staffing
Resistance of some staff to embrace change has contributed to problems, including staff suspensions and governor movements.
Equality/Diversity
No meaningful progress was made on equalities work since April 2019, with the strategy not updated and little focused work with protected groups.
Complaints/Property
Lack of effective support for the User Voice prison council led to much frustration and loss of confidence among prisoners.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
A refreshed local Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) policy is overdue and much needed, as prisoners complain they are not getting promised privileges.
Complaints/Property
Prisoner property continued to be a concern, with frequent delays in property arriving or going missing, and delays in receiving legitimate posted property, impacting morale and IEP system effectiveness.
Healthcare
Difficulties in coordination between prison and healthcare staff can have clinical consequences, compounded by the absence of a healthcare liaison governor for months.
Substance Misuse
Inadequate supervision by officers of opiate-substitute medication queues risked diversion of drugs.
Safety
Failure to provide all prisoners with photo-identity cards raises the risk of prisoner impersonation to obtain dispensed drugs illicitly.
Healthcare
Secondary health tests do not always occur within seven days when incoming prisoners are not located on the early days wing.
Healthcare
Some prisoners are deterred from attending particular healthcare facilities because of gang tensions.
Mental Health
Unpredictable unlock arrangements reduced the time available to attend mental health clinics and courses.
Mental Health
ACCT forms for prisoners are not always brought to the Wellbeing Centre by escorts.
Substance Misuse
Many prisoners likely have alcohol problems that are not being picked up at reception or later, with veterans being a group masking their needs.
Substance Misuse
From mid-March, drug rehabilitation group work and through-the-gate support stopped due to COVID-19, with local drug services often not taking new clients.
Education/Purposeful Activity
Low education attendance rate of 56% due to issues with the prison’s organisation and problems delivering prisoners to education.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Staff showed heroic efforts during COVID-19, working flexibly to cover absences and support prisoners. The key worker scheme was successfully restarted in January 2020 but was halted in mid-March due to COVID-19, having previously been paused in summer 2019 due to staffing pressures. Staffing of the safer custody team fluctuated, and officer numbers in reception were often poorly matched to demand. Some staff culture issues obstructed positive engagement with prisoners, and the number of Listeners was at an 'all-time low' requiring addressing.
Healthcare
Pentonville's healthcare centre provides primary care, mental health, and drug treatment, with waiting times generally comparable to the community (GP 2 weeks, dental 6 weeks). The 22-bed inpatient unit is well-managed, but the prison holds a disproportionately high number of prisoners with severe mental illness due to national transfer policies. Concerns include increased healthcare applications, cancellations of hospital appointments due to escort shortages, inadequate supervision of opiate-substitute medication queues risking diversion, and poor maintenance of facilities. The award-winning Wellbeing Centre is underutilised due to regime lockdowns.
Regime & Daily Life
The daily regime was severely restricted during COVID-19 lockdown, with prisoners allowed out in small groups once daily for showers or exercise, and vulnerable/shielded prisoners having even less. Prior to lockdown, prisoners were frequently locked in their cells for 23 hours a day. Persistent issues with delivering prisoners to education and work led to a dismal 56% attendance rate. Vulnerable prisoners had limited access to education, exercise, and meaningful activity, compounded by frequently broken lifts. Unpredictable unlock arrangements consistently reduced access to clinics and courses.
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 | 38 | |
| Complaints and adjudications | 32 | 28 | |
| Diet | 2 | 4 | |
| Discrimination | 3 | 0 | |
| Health related | 56 | 36 | |
| Other | 4 | 4 | — |
| Property | 30 | 25 | |
| Race equality | 0 | 0 | |
| Release and resettlement | 5 | 4 | |
| Religious | 1 | 0 | |
| Safety and wellbeing | 16 | 11 | |
| Staff conduct | 13 | 8 | |
| Visits | 10 | 12 | |
| Work and education | 12 | 11 |
Recommendations (12)
Other: 4
HMPPS: 3
Governor / Director: 5
Recommendation 1
Will you take steps to reduce the population in Pentonville and invest in the fabric of the prison to provide a safe and rehabilitative environment?
Other
(minister)
Overcrowding
Recommendation 2
Will you commit to giving Pentonville the funding it needs to install CCTV on those wings which still do not have it?
Other
(minister)
Safety
Recommendation 3
Will you commit to funding the repair or replacement of all remaining insecure cell windows and grilles, which were identified four years ago as needing urgent attention?
Other
(minister)
Safety
Recommendation 4
Will the investment in technology made during the lockdown be sustained going forward – for example, more video links for those having legal visits?
Other
(minister)
Regime
Recommendation 5
Will the Prison Service deliver essential refurbishment for decency, such as toilets and showers?
HMPPS
Estate
Recommendation 6
Regional allocation of dogs is not working; will you commit to basing dogs permanently at Pentonville, to tackle contraband?
HMPPS
Substance Misuse
Recommendation 7
Will the Prison Service increase the capacity of offending behaviour programmes, so that there is a better chance of Pentonville prisoners transferring and benefitting?
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 8
Will you tackle the conundrum of allocation lists and attendance at courses and workshops provided by the education department as the regime starts to ease up after lockdown?
Governor / Director
Education
Recommendation 9
What will you do to improve the quality assurance of assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) processes, as highlighted in the HMIP IRP report, and ensure that all relevant participants are included in reviews?
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 10
Will the recording and scrutiny of use of force incidents be prioritised?
Governor / Director
Safety
Recommendation 11
Will you refresh the local incentives and earned privileges policy and give enhanced prisoners meaningful privileges that will incentivise sustained good behaviour?
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 12
Will you commit to updating and progressing the equalities action plan?
Governor / Director
Equality
Other IMB Reports for Pentonville
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
16 Mar 2026
IRP
16 Jul 2025
Urgent Notification
30 Jun 2025
Unannounced
11 Apr 2023
IRP
11 Jul 2022
Unannounced
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.