Prison
Cat A/B
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Full Sutton
IMB Annual Report 2025 · Published 12 May 2026
HMP Full Sutton is a high-security dispersal prison accommodating male prisoners in category A and category B. As of 31 December 2025, the number of prisoners held was 580. The Board’s observations reflected those of the previous report, with HMP Full Sutton continuing to be a safe and generally calm prison.
Positive Findings
HMP Full Sutton continuing to be a safe and generally calm prison. Governors and staff also continued to approach security, safety and prisoner welfare proportionately. The healthcare contracts, which had significantly affected prisoners’ access to healthcare services for an unacceptable period during 2024, showed marked improvement during the reporting year, with additional services becoming available to prisoners. Prisoners’ continued to have access to employment, education, the gym and corporate worship was maintained, despite the restricted regimes.
Key Concerns
Mental Health
the continued lack of funding from commissioners under the mental health services contract for a dedicated mental health practitioner to have a regular presence in the segregation unit.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Throughout 2025, continuing daily shortages of staff as a result of unfilled vacancies, illness, restricted duties and resignations played a major part in the prison regularly not being able to deliver the desired regime levels. Communication about the changes as they occurred were led by the Governor through the monthly prisoner council meetings with prisoner representatives, and supported by clear notices setting out core day timings. Focus on equalities has been hampered during the year by a high turnover of custodial managers (CMs) responsible for equalities.
Healthcare
The healthcare contracts, which had significantly affected prisoners’ access to healthcare services for an unacceptable period during 2024, showed marked improvement during the reporting year, with additional services becoming available to prisoners. The Board is concerned about the healthcare providers’ difficulties in recruiting sufficient healthcare professionals. At the end of the year there was still no seven-day service provision from the mental health services provider, some 18 months after the contract began.
Regime & Daily Life
This regularly required the introduction of curtailed or restricted regimes in order to maintain safety for staff and prisoners, while providing predictability for prisoners. Regime curtailments were further extended in July to remove evening duty domestics and association periods in the evenings and at the weekend (Friday to Sunday) for the separation centre and main residential wings on a rotational basis. At this time, the close supervision centre (CSC) and the STEP unit were locked up on all weekday evenings and Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
Recommendations (14)
Ministry of Justice: 6
HMPPS: 3
Governor / Director: 5
Recommendation 1
What actions and timescales will the Minister commit to in order to ensure that the Building Choices suite of treatment programmes is rolled out more widely, enabling PCoSOs to access accredited treatment at Full Sutton and beyond? (3.1)
Ministry of Justice
Resettlement
Recommendation 2
When will the Minister approve a restorative justice course to replace the Sycamore Tree scheme, which was withdrawn in 2025 without any alternative? We understand that the scheme is still approved in Scotland (5.5).
Ministry of Justice
Resettlement
Recommendation 3
When will the Minister allocate funding for a long-term solution to the poor state of the workshop complex roof, given the ongoing issues of water leaks and the associated and risks to machinery, particularly in the newly commissioned Woodmill workshops? (5.1)
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 4
When will the Minister commit to a dedicated funding programme to repair, upgrade or replace cell windows, which are the original windows from the time of construction of the prison? Many have deteriorated over time and become largely opaque, significantly reducing natural light entering cells (5.1).
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 5
When, in 2026, will the Minister allocate funding to install trace heating, or similar measures, on the approaches to B wing and other wings, following the successful trial on the approach to C wing, to prevent ongoing mould growth? (5.1).
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 6
When, in 2026, will the Minister provide funding, and how will it be rolled out, to carry out shower recess refurbishments on other wings, following the refurbishment completed on D wing’s landing? (5.1)
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 7
When will HMPPS review the healthcare contracts introduced in 2024 with NHS England? In particular, when will this review consider additional funding to enable dedicated mental health provision for the segregation unit, given that this opportunity was missed when the new contracts were introduced in June 2024?( 6.1)
HMPPS
Healthcare
Recommendation 8
The repair and maintenance contracts are due to be re-let. Will HMPPS review the reactive maintenance contract conditions? The current arrangements allow a backlog of repairs to build up without any contractual measure to reduce it. ( 5.1)
HMPPS
Estate
Recommendation 9
When will HMPPS take urgent steps to address the deficiencies in the IT system used in education, which is now in place since it took over the supply of IT services from the nominated education services provider at the contract changeover in October 2025? There are multiple daily connection failures and outages, as well as data input hurdles, which waste staff time and reduce access to the system for prisoners. ( 7.1)
HMPPS
Education
Recommendation 10
In view of the rising incidences of prisoners under the influence of suspected illicit substances and reduced drugs testing activity, apart from KPI-driven random testing, will the Governor consider other methods to ensure that drug testing teams are available more widely than currently via the MDT team? ( 4.6)
Governor / Director
Substance Misuse
Recommendation 11
Will the Governor consider ways to re-start Narcotics Anonymous in order to offer exit strategies for prisoners wishing to reduce or cease their dependence on drugs in prison? (6.6)
Governor / Director
Substance Misuse
Recommendation 12
A review of the former healthcare provider’s ‘over the counter’ product list of healthcare-related items that prisoners could purchase was promised in 2024 and repeated to prisoners at prisoner council meetings in 2025, but has not yet been finalised. Will the Governor undertake to conclude this review and determine what additional items could be added to the local DHL canteen list so that prisoners can purchase these items?
Governor / Director
Healthcare
Recommendation 13
Will the Governor ensure that, despite the reduced budget, there is a clear plan for the provision of educational access in the CSC, STEP unit and separation centre, where there is currently no structured support?
Governor / Director
Education
Recommendation 14
Will the Governor consider the disproportionate number of evening lockdowns that the CSC and STEP units have endured and work towards a more equitable arrangement for these units?
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.