Prison
Cat C
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Aylesbury
IMB Annual Report 2025 · Published 24 April 2026
In the Board’s view HMP Aylesbury showed overall improvement as a category C training prison over the reporting year. Strong interdepartmental working underlies HMP Aylesbury prison’s commitment to ensuring prisoner safety. Aylesbury is a training prison but it is not resourced to prepare prisoners for release.
Positive Findings
Strong interdepartmental working underlies HMP Aylesbury prison’s commitment to ensuring prisoner safety. An improvement in staff numbers at all levels helped to ensure a more regular and predictable regime. Noticeable improvements were made to reception and induction during the reporting, year helping prisoners make a better start in their time in HMP Aylesbury. With more permanent staff on the health team, prisoners were more likely to receive consistent care.
Key Concerns
bullet TO THE MINISTER
bullet TO THE PRISON SERVICE
bullet TO THE GOVERNOR
bullet TO THE PRISON SERVICE
bullet TO THE GOVERNOR
Board Commentary
Staffing
Full occupancy is 402 prisoners. Target staffing levels remained the same through this period. Actual staff numbers were close to target and there was improved stability in staffing across all grades. The senior management team remained relatively stable through the year.
Healthcare
The healthcare provider at Aylesbury is Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWLFT) with a five year contract, which began on 1 October 2022. The biggest challenges to the team during the reporting year were: the lack of senior staff in post; ongoing recruitment, with associated training for new staff, many of whom had never worked in a prison environment before; and the high volume of ‘spice’ being used by prisoners. Staffing was, however, in a better place than the previous year with permanent staff at over 73%.
Regime & Daily Life
Improvement in the predictability of the regime, more time out of cell, the availability of some more activity slots and wing doors open onto exercise yards during the light summer evenings, all contributed to a better sense of well-being for prisoners this year. Aylesbury is a training prison. It is not resourced to prepare prisoners for release. Despite this, 114 prisoners left from the gate with inadequate preparation.
Other IMB Reports for Aylesbury
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
2 Feb 2026
Unannounced
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.