Prison
Cat B
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Doncaster
IMB Annual Report 2024 · Published 19 February 2025
The Independent Monitoring Board at HMP Doncaster reports a generally fair and humane treatment of prisoners, with good staff-prisoner relationships and improved education attendance. However, the prison faces significant challenges, primarily due to severe overcrowding and population pressures, leading to inhumane double occupancy of cells and restricted regimes. Key concerns include extended waits for mental health transfers, a problematic reception and induction process, and insufficient community support for released prisoners.
Positive Findings
The Board finds prisoners are generally treated fairly and with respect, with positive emphasis on humane treatment and ongoing refurbishment efforts. Staff work hard to maintain safety, and the management team is commended for handling deaths in custody and addressing violence. Staffing levels are good, and the key worker programme is well-managed. The equality team is proactive, chaplaincy provides invaluable support, and healthcare access to urgent services is good. Education attendance has significantly improved, and the refurbished library offers a wide range of activities.
Key Concerns
Overcrowding
The effects ‘population pressures’ are having on HMP Doncaster, particularly in its role as a reception prison, resulting in a less than satisfactory experience for the prisoner and issues with the induction process.
Overcrowding
The disappointing number of prisoners doubled up in single-cell accommodation.
Mental Health
Repeated
Pressures on mental health services have increased and prisoners requiring secure mental health care waited too long for a transfer, often held in the CSU for long periods.
Resettlement/Release
It has become more difficult to accommodate the increasingly large numbers of prisoners who live out of the area and who have no accommodation, resulting in too many prisoners being released as ‘no fixed abode’.
Overcrowding
Repeated
The continued overcrowding within the prison and the inhumane double occupancy of single cells.
Resettlement/Release
The continued imprisonment of prisoners serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences leaves them feeling stuck in the system, with little hope of release and insufficient preparation for parole hearings.
Resettlement/Release
The lack of adequate probation and community support for prisoners being released into the community is negatively impacting on prisoners who, without the necessary accommodation and support, are at a greatly increased chance of them returning to prison.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Cell bells are not being answered quickly enough on a significant number of occasions.
Board Commentary
Staffing
HMP Doncaster has a full complement of officers, but a significant proportion are inexperienced. External pressures, particularly a rising number of bed watches, frequently impact staffing levels, leading to restricted regimes. Consistency in the key worker scheme is also affected by frequent changes in key workers, hindering meaningful progression plans.
Healthcare
Healthcare services, provided by Practice Plus Group, generally cater to prisoner needs with a purpose-built unit and 24-hour cover. However, initial health assessments and medication access are impacted by population pressures. Mental health services face increased demand, with significant delays for secure hospital transfers, often leading to vulnerable prisoners being held in the CSU for extended periods. Prisoner feedback indicates dissatisfaction, despite good access to urgent dental and optical services.
Regime & Daily Life
The regime at HMP Doncaster is severely impacted by overcrowding, leading to many prisoners being doubled up in single cells, often for 21-22 hours a day, with inadequate privacy and poor ventilation. Cell bells are not answered quickly enough. Induction wings, meant for short stays, are holding prisoners longer due to population pressures, restricting access to laundry, canteen, and in-cell technology. The CSU offers a very limited regime, with no in-cell technology or television, and only a shower and 30 minutes of exercise daily.
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 | 15 | — | |
| Canteen, facility list, catalogues | 2 | — | |
| Discipline, including adjudications, incentives schemes, sanctions | 4 | — | |
| Equality | 22 | — | |
| Finance, including pay, private monies, spends | 21 | — | |
| Food and kitchens | 9 | — | |
| Health, including physical, mental, social care | 59 | — | |
| Letters, visits, telephones, public protection, restrictions | 21 | — | |
| Miscellaneous | 1 | — | |
| Property during transfer or in another facility | 17 | — | |
| Property within the establishment | 26 | — | |
| Purposeful activity, including education, work, training, time out of cell | 30 | — | |
| Sentence management, including HDC (home detention curfew), ROTL (release on temporary licence), parole, release dates, recategorisation. | 15 | — | |
| Staff/prisoner concerns, including bullying | 38 | — | |
| Transfers | 3 | — |
Recommendations (6)
Ministry of Justice: 2
HMPPS: 2
Governor / Director: 2
2 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
The Board remains extremely concerned about the length of time it takes for a mentally ill patients to be transferred to a secure hospital. All too often, prison managers have few options open to them during this ‘waiting’ period and prisoners are invariably held in the CSU, resulting in a further deterioration of their mental health. When and how will the Minister address this serious issue?
Ministry of Justice
Mental Health
Recommendation 2
Repeated
The continued overcrowding within the prison and the inhumane double occupancy of single cells generally remains a great concern for the Board. Can the Minister please explain what measures are in place to reduce the prison population and the double occupancy of single cells?
Ministry of Justice
Overcrowding
Recommendation 3
The continued imprisonment of prisoners serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences leaves them feeling stuck in the system, with little hope of release. The Board acknowledges recent steps taken by the Prison Service, but we feel that more should and could be done to improve their preparation for parole hearings and, potentially, their release.
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 4
The lack of adequate probation and community support for prisoners being released into the community is negatively impacting on prisoners who, without the necessary accommodation and support, are at a greatly increased chance of them returning to prison. The Board requests that resources, necessary within the community to ensure that those released have the opportunity to rehabilitate into society and help reduce reoffending, are made a priority.
HMPPS
Resettlement
Recommendation 5
The Board has identified, on a significant number of occasions, cell bells not being answered. Whilst we welcome the continued scrutiny of cell bell data and attempts by the management team to improve answering times, this issue remains a grave concern for the Board.
Governor / Director
Regime
Recommendation 6
Due to the increased pressures on the induction process, the Board requests that a review of the system is instigated to ensure that all prisoners, whichever area they come from, can access basic amenities and are treated fairly.
Governor / Director
Regime
Other IMB Reports for Doncaster
2023
Published 17 Jul 2025
PPO Fatal Incidents
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman fatal incident investigations for this establishment.