Prison
Cat reception, remand, C
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Wandsworth
IMB Annual Report 2025 · Published 10 October 2025
HMP Wandsworth has shown encouraging recovery under new leadership, with notable improvements in safety metrics like reduced assaults and self-harm incidents. However, the prison continues to face significant challenges including unacceptable staff absence levels, inhumane living conditions with widespread cell sharing, and persistent issues with its healthcare infrastructure, particularly the inadequacy of mental health units and the functional shortcomings of the new Nightingale unit. Regime delivery remains inconsistent due to staff shortages, frequently limiting prisoners' time out of cell and access to purposeful activity.
Positive Findings
This IMB annual report highlights encouraging progress, but significant issues remain. HMP Wandsworth has started to recover due to positive new leadership and strategic direction. HM Inspectorate of Prisons noted significant improvement and praised the Governor and officers. Violence levels are falling, with a marked reversal of a trend since 2017. The Board welcomed the reduction in Use of Force incidents and increased use of body-worn video cameras. Security has seen significant improvements, leading to reduced illicit items and high-profile arrests. Trinity wing has improved significantly under new leadership, and Prison Council Meetings are now more effective. Major improvements in communication with foreign national prisoners were made using AI-powered translation tools. The Board was pleased to note decreases in applications related to equality, diversity, transfers, and healthcare.
Key Concerns
Staffing
Staff absence and inexperience remain unacceptable, hindering regime delivery and care.
Safety
Despite improvements, the prison is not safe, with violence levels still too high and basic operational errors noted.
Estate/Conditions
Living conditions are inhumane due to cell sharing, failing infrastructure, inadequate heating/hot water, and vermin/mould issues.
Healthcare
The new healthcare unit has design faults and no residential capacity, leaving inadequate mental health units in use and causing long waiting times for clinics.
Equality/Diversity
Inadequate support for foreign national prisoners, who comprise nearly half the population, persists.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Prisoners are frequently denied sufficient time out of cells, impacting access to exercise, showers, education, and other activities.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Significant issues with lost or mislaid prisoner property continue to cause distress.
Board Commentary
Staffing
Staffing is the most urgent issue, with an unacceptable average of one-third of staff absent daily, making a consistent regime difficult. The lack of available, experienced, and motivated staff hampers care and regime provision. Recruitment is centrally managed, leading to poor quality and inadequate training, with new officers often ill-prepared for the role. Although the prison is fully staffed, high absence levels persist, creating a daily juggling act for experienced staff and limiting support for newcomers. Vacancies exist in chaplaincy due to budget constraints, relying heavily on volunteers.
Healthcare
The new Nightingale healthcare unit finally opened three years late in May 2025, but poor design and inadequate project management caused delays and ongoing issues, such as a dental chair not fitting. The unit lacks accommodation, forcing vulnerable inpatients to remain in the inadequate 12-bed Addison mental health unit and six-bed Jones unit, which are unhygienic, unsafe, and often short of beds due to overrunning repairs. Clinic appointments face 24-day waiting times, and non-attendance remains a concern due to clashing activities and lack of prioritisation.
Regime & Daily Life
The shortage of staff frequently denies prisoners sufficient time out of cells, impacting exercise, showers, kiosk access, and attendance at education/activities. Food is often served at cell doors, and an ‘up-down’ regime restricts men to exercise or social time, but not both. Unemployed prisoners spend only two hours out of their cells daily. While exercise was allowed on alternate days to provide certainty, overall, too many men lack access to purposeful activity and remain in cells for much of the day, with low attendance at education and library hampered by staff shortages.
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) | 163 | 167 | |
| Activities | 81 | 55 | |
| Equality and Diversity | 12 | 15 | |
| Fairness | 41 | 38 | |
| Finance/Pay | 102 | 62 | |
| Food | 67 | 61 | |
| Healthcare | 58 | 72 | |
| Other | 85 | 119 | |
| Property (internal) | 149 | 100 | |
| Regime | 79 | 82 | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns | 118 | 90 | |
| Transfers | 25 | 38 |
Recommendations (24)
Ministry of Justice: 7
HMPPS: 8
Governor / Director: 9
16 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Will the new Government support the recommendations of the Urgent Notification Action Plan and the investment commitment made after the alleged escape?
Ministry of Justice
Safety
Response
The Government is immediately addressing HMIP’s concerns by deploying extra specialist staff and redirecting £100m from across the Prison Service that will be spent over five years to deliver urgent improvements. The IMB has formed a committee to monitor how this investment is applied.
Recommendation 2
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Will the Remand project continue to be funded? Are there any other initiatives in place to assist the rehabilitation of remand prisoners?
Ministry of Justice
Resettlement
Response
The Remand project recommenced at the end of July and will continue until March 2025. The Remand project did not restart until October 2024. In the seven months to the period end, the team dealt with over 1,000 individual cases and over 950 were closed. New funding has allowed the project to continue beyond March, albeit at a reduced service level.
Recommendation 3
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The basic conditions for prisoners at Wandsworth remain inadequate, both in terms of the infrastructure of the buildings (showers not operative, inconsistent heating, damaged cells, etc.) and the provision of kit (including clothing and bedding). What support will be provided to the prison to help rectify this?
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Response
There is no doubt that there are many issues to address at HMP Wandsworth and we are hopeful that the measures already taken and planned will improve the situation at the prison. HMPPS is exploring a new inventory system that will facilitate better provision of supplies and kit for prisoners. Many problems still exist in the delivery of basic conditions for prisoners. The very poor state of the showers and heating has not changed, while there has been some improvement in the provision of kit.
Recommendation 4
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
In October 2023, you wrote that the new healthcare centre would “open soon”. This has not happened. We repeat our question: why the delay and when will it open?
HMPPS
Healthcare
Response
The new healthcare building has been handed over to the establishment. The outstanding project work… is in progress. There will be some disruption… whilst this work is being completed but limited to no more than two weeks. Administration services moved into the new healthcare building in January. The building became partially operational for clinic use in May, despite having been signed off to the prison in October 2021.
Recommendation 5
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
There has been no satisfactory answer to any of the questions asked of the Prison Service in our previous annual report. Please could you answer the questions?
HMPPS
Complaints
Response
No response. Questions from the 2022-2023 annual report remain unanswered.
Recommendation 6
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Officer recruitment has been poor, leading to a high turnover of often unsuitable staff. Recruitment is handled centrally. Will the Prison Service consider allowing the prison to become involved in the process so that applicants receive a realistic impression of the role?
HMPPS
Staffing
Response
HMP Berwyn has been piloting a local delivery model of the recruitment process, with the purpose of testing the hypothesis that increased engagement locally will deliver better results. HMPPS will draw on lessons and strategies from the project to inform future strategies. No change. Newly recruited staff were ill-prepared for work on the wings, as most training was in the classroom or online.
Recommendation 7
Repeated
Prev. addressed
When will adequate funding be provided for much-needed courses and training to allow better employment prospects for prisoners on release?
HMPPS
Education
Response
The prison will be converting some of their full-time industries spaces to part-time positions, which will increase availability of spaces by approximately 70. The prison has received an increase in funding, which supported the introduction of two new workshops, creating 24 additional purposeful activity spaces in construction and barista engineering, both of which will lead to employment-based qualifications. A new head of education was appointed from outside the Prison Service and was working to improve the education offering.
Recommendation 8
Repeated
In the light of the UN issued to the prison and the subsequent recommendations made under the Action Plan, what are your priorities as the newly appointed Governor?
Governor / Director
Safety
Response
My priorities are safety, security, regime and decency. There are many competing priorities, all of which, of course, cannot be achieved within the first year. These include concerns around staff confidence, capability, absenteeism and recruitment. Offering a consistent and meaningful regime to prisoners that address needs. HMIP carried out a review of progress from 30 March to 2 April and, while there was still much work to be done, the inspectors noted improvements in many areas, albeit from a low base. A separate security audit also delivered an improved result.
Recommendation 9
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board is very concerned about the inadequacy of the support provided to foreign national prisoner, who comprise around 50% of the prisoners. What are your plans to address this?
Governor / Director
Equality
Response
I share the concerns that you raise. Staff do not understand the needs of this cohort and we provide little in the way of translated materials and information. It is important that we are able to communicate in different languages, not only so that this cohort understands, but also that I am assured we are meeting needs and reducing anxieties. Nothing to add: the problems remain.
Recommendation 10
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
If the operational capacity of the prison is reduced, what specific improvements in regime will occur and how will education and activities be improved?
Governor / Director
Regime
Response
The greatest opportunity this will present is the ability to provide greater focused training for staff, without the need to reduce regime time further. The reduction will allow for increased opportunity to gain employment places, as there will be reduced competing numbers. Equally, we should be able to provide greater regime opportunity, as the staffing numbers are not spread as far. But, of course, this is intrinsically linked to reducing the absenteeism rates. The quality of the HMPPS recruitment process remains unsatisfactory.
Recommendation 11
Repeated
Prev. addressed
In the past year, the IMB was not always informed of major incidents, particularly deaths in custody. Can you assure us that you will put a process in place to rectify this?
Governor / Director
Transparency
Response
I will ensure that the daily briefing is copied to the IMB and that, where appropriate, the Duty Governor ensures that the IMB is notified on the day of any significant incidents. More widely, I am committed to having more regular informal/formal meetings with the Board to discuss ongoing matters. Good progress and improved communication with the IMB.
Recommendation 12
Repeated
Prev. addressed
In light of the adverse publicity the prison has received, do you intend to address the question of staff morale and raise the profile of the prison in the community?
Governor / Director
Staffing
Response
It is important in driving performance and improvements that reputation is a key part and can influence the process, particularly with local canvassing groups, local MPs, local Government, the media and the wider community. I will continue to praise staff and remind them that this is our prison and that we can inspire and influence positive change when opportunity presents. I will always celebrate the good news stories and reward progress. The Board welcomed the considerable efforts made by the Governor to reach out to the community.
Recommendation 13
Following the UN, you advised that the Government was redirecting £100m from across the Prison Service, which will be spent over five years to deliver urgent improvements. How much has actually been spent and on what?
Ministry of Justice
Estate
Recommendation 14
Repeated
Around half the men in HMP Wandsworth are foreign national prisoners, yet they received inadequate support. What can be done by the Ministry of Justice to improve services available to these men?
Ministry of Justice
Equality
Recommendation 15
Repeated
The quality of new staff recruited centrally was often poor and training was inadequate. What steps are being taken to improve training and reject unsuitable candidates?
Ministry of Justice
Staffing
Recommendation 16
In your letter of 5 December 2024, responding to our annual report, you wrote that HMP Berwyn has been piloting a local delivery model of the recruitment process, with the purpose of testing the hypothesis that increased engagement locally will deliver better results. What was the result of the pilot?
Ministry of Justice
Staffing
Recommendation 17
Are you satisfied with the progress HMP Wandsworth has made following the UN and subsequent IRP?
HMPPS
Safety
Recommendation 18
What is being done to identify ways of making sure prisoners’ property is dealt with more efficiently and not delayed, mislaid or lost in transit?
HMPPS
Regime
Recommendation 19
Support to prisoners from service providers has been adversely affected by delays in tendering and length and quality of contracts. What is being done to rectify this serious issue?
HMPPS
Other
Recommendation 20
The number of ACCTs opened increased by over 20% during the reporting period, reflecting the severity of the mental health crisis and inadequacy of support. How is the Prison Service addressing this major issue?
HMPPS
Mental Health
Recommendation 21
Repeated
Although the prison was fully staffed, every day around one-third of staff were not available. What is being done to address this chronic issue and the impact it has on the regime?
Governor / Director
Staffing
Recommendation 22
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
Foreign national prisoner comprised close to half the population at HMP Wandsworth, yet their support remained worryingly inadequate. How can this be improved?
Governor / Director
Equality
Recommendation 23
On most days, no prisoners were brought to the library. What is being done to improve this?
Governor / Director
Education
Recommendation 24
What new initiatives are planned to improve rehabilitation?
Governor / Director
Resettlement
Other IMB Reports for Wandsworth
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
31 Mar 2025
IRP
8 May 2024
Urgent Notification
22 Apr 2024
Unannounced
Safety: 1
Respect: 1
Activity: 1
Release: 2
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.