Prison
Cat B
Key Concerns Identified
Positive Findings
Swaleside
IMB Annual Report 2024 · Published 30 August 2024
HMP Swaleside, a Category B training prison, faces significant challenges due to unprecedented staff shortages which impact regime delivery and prisoner wellbeing. Despite these difficulties, the Board commends the senior leadership and staff for efforts to improve conditions. Key concerns include a growing gang culture, drug-related debt, persistent issues with IPP prisoners, and delays in mental health transfers, alongside problems with estate maintenance and purposeful activity provision.
Positive Findings
The Board commends the senior leadership team (SLT), officers, detached duty officers, service providers, and administrative staff for their efforts to implement an improving and worthwhile regime. Blossoms, a social care provider, offers good personal care, and there have been improvements in wheelchair access. The segregation unit provides a fair and safe regime, and the Board notes the excellent work done in Education. Overall, there is little evidence of general inequality, and the prison management is committed to addressing discriminatory actions, with improved response times for Discrimination Incident Reporting Forms (DIRFs). The complaints department provides a first-class service to prisoners, and Swaleside consistently performs well in education starts and completions, with a 91% success rate. The library is very popular, and peer support prisoners contribute positively to prisoner welfare.
Key Concerns
Safety
The Board has a growing concern about the developing gang culture in the prison, which contributes to high levels of debt and fear of violence among prisoners and affects internal movement and transfers.
Safety
Instances of assaults have remained steady, averaging 36 per month with a total of 431 over the year. Serious assaults are currently 12% of the monthly total and 18% for the whole year, against 4% at the end of the previous year. A Violence Strategy document was published in June 2023, but as yet this appears to have had little effect.
Segregation
Repeated
There is concern, however, about the length of time some prisoners remain on the CSRU.
Mental Health
Repeated
The time limits for assessing and transferring prisoners to secure or specialist mental health care units are still not being met.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Repeated
The changes to the Offender Flow and Allocation system and the direction to receive short-term and younger prisoners has caused a great deal of disruption. The extra work has taken staff away from their previously accepted roles.
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
The Employability Hub is underused as prisoners’ requirements are not being met early enough in their release year.
Staffing
Work on the Offender Management Unit (OMU) has been dramatically impacted by staff shortages during the reporting period and this has had a detrimental impact on sentence progression.
Equality/Diversity
Repeated
Indeterminate sentences for Public Protection (IPPs) were abolished in 2012 with the government stating that they were “not defensible”. However, the change did not apply to prisoners who were already serving IPP sentences, and this left them in limbo with little hope of release. The Board is concerned that the Government has rejected the call from the Justice Select Committee to resentence IPP prisoners and reduce the licence period from ten to five years. This is neither decent nor humane and the Board would urge the Minister to review the department’s response to the Justice Select Committee’s report.
Safety
The incursion of drones needs to be addressed on a national basis, with a viable solution found for the whole estate.
Overcrowding
The population pressures across estate need a solution. As a Cat B trainer, Swaleside has neither the budget, nor the staffing to double as a resettlement prison, and yet is now expected to fulfil this function for 90 – 100 prisoners per annum.
Safety
Repeated
The Board shares the concerns expressed by the SLT that there have again been deaths in custody during the year, though these all appear to be of natural causes.
Food/Catering
Repeated
The continued reliance of HMP Standford Hill on the kitchen at Swaleside for the preparation of its food continues to cause major issues, as has been stated for several years.
Equality/Diversity
Repeated
The inequality of opportunity for prisoners convicted of sexual offences (PCOSO) and vulnerable prisoners still needs to be addressed, despite progress made in that direction.
Mental Health
Repeated
The Board remains concerned regarding the mental health of prisoners who have suffered long-term lockdown. This is evidenced by the number of opened Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) documents, self-harm cases and violent incidents. The first indications from the recent improvement in regime are positive. However, the necessity for increased psychology and psychiatric services still needs to be assessed.
Safety
At present, the prison only has 180 (Body Worn Cameras) BWC available, which means there are insufficient numbers to issue to all staff. This situation needs to rectified, so that all staff can be issued with cameras.
Safety
The lack of sufficient constant watch cells during times of crisis.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
The Board notes the backlog of adjudications and the excellent efforts taken by staff to alleviate this.
Staffing
Repeated
With the staffing ratio now up, due in part to the temporary closure of two wings, the Board now expects the low level of keywork to be addressed.
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
New prisoners are not receiving adequate induction and the Board is very concerned that prisoners are being released from Swaleside without proper support.
Estate/Conditions
The issue of overflowing sewage from the drains must be addressed as this is exposed to the movement of food trolleys to the residential areas, which is a Health and Safety issue.
Safety
The theft of stock from the DHL workshop must be addressed.
Estate/Conditions
The industrial clothes dryer on F wing West has been out of use awaiting replacement parts for two years, impacting prisoners and frustrating staff.
Estate/Conditions
Repeated
The conditions of some of the wing showers, especially on Golf and Echo wings, remains a concern.
Complaints/Property
The IMB receives many complaints from prisoners concerning property, during internal wing transfers, and during transfers from other establishments. The paperwork concerning prisoners’ property is often incomplete or wrong, and there are regular issues with the storage of items once received from outside prisons, and the incorrect cell clearance paperwork.
Healthcare
Healthcare is a very busy department under pressure. Staffing levels remain an issue with Oxleas, especially at weekends, with the use of agency staff most days.
Healthcare
Lack of cabs continue to cause delays/cancellations and there remains to be no vehicle that can take wheelchair users to clinics. The condition, and long-standing problem with the lifts continues, and they are constantly out of use, making access to Healthcare very difficult for some and impossible for others.
Healthcare
Lack of prison escorts to accompany prisoners to hospital appointments and attend with injuries has been a problem leading to appointments being cancelled.
Estate/Conditions
A lack of space to expand clinics is a major issue as well as a poor lack of office space for staff. There is a shortage of disabled cells.
Estate/Conditions
The main kitchen in the gym has been only partly accessible for the past year due to sewage overflow and flies.
Substance Misuse
Approximately 262 prisoners are receiving assistance but only five case workers are available to deal with them, making the case load far too high for each case worker.
Education/Purposeful Activity
Attendance at Education remains variable. There does seem to be a trend of not turning up for classes. The Education Department are currently investigating the reasons behind this apathy and taking positive steps to encourage attendance. This is not helped by other issues on the wings, not associated with Education, causing prisoners to be delayed (e.g. waiting for working shower; delays in provision of medications; food delays etc.).
Staffing
Currently, there is a shortage of four instructors, despite two being newly appointed. However, another has resigned, there are two on maternity leave and one is suspended.
Equality/Diversity
There is a disproportionately high level of Muslim prisoners (32.7%) relative to the Muslim population in the community.
Equality/Diversity
Swaleside now houses five transgender prisoners. There is still the issue of the CMS system either only recognising the birth name or the first name registered for each of these prisoners.
Equality/Diversity
There are a number of Forces veterans (24 declared, but believed to be more, perhaps as high as 80) who no longer have a separate platform to express their views.
Equality/Diversity
In-cell technology is only in English.
Equality/Diversity
Laptops are inappropriate for visually impaired prisoners.
Estate/Conditions
The lift is very often not working.
Equality/Diversity
Kitchen menus are only in English.
Equality/Diversity
There is no Pagan or Rastafarian Chaplain.
Staffing
A third imam was offered a post at Swaleside in February 2023 but has not yet been MoJ vetted, this causes many problems with the excessive workload not being run efficiently.
Board Commentary
Staffing
HMP Swaleside is experiencing an unprecedented period of staff shortage, directly impacting the regime and the wellbeing of both prisoners and staff. The agreed complement of Band 3 uniformed staff is 258, but levels averaged 170 to 190. The prison faces continuous losses of experienced staff to other Government departments, particularly the Border Agency. About 50% of uniformed staff have less than two years’ experience, which affects positive and constructive relationships with prisoners.
Healthcare
Healthcare services are under significant pressure due to persistent staffing shortages, especially with Oxleas at weekends and a reliance on agency staff. While mental health and dental access have seen improvements, time limits for assessing and transferring prisoners to secure or specialist mental health units are often exceeded. Issues such as a lack of escorts for external appointments, an uncooperative lift, and limited space for clinics further hinder effective healthcare provision.
Regime & Daily Life
The prison's regime has gradually improved, progressing from Core Stage 3 to Core Stage 4 in June 2023, which increased time out of cell from one to two hours daily. Core Day 5 is planned for September 2024. However, maintaining this improved regime is challenging due to inadequate staffing levels, sometimes requiring a 50/50 regime at weekends. Purposeful activity, including work, education, and religious observance, helps to increase time out of cell, but opportunities are often constrained 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) | 45 | 38 | |
| Discrimination | 85 | 101 | |
| Finance and earnings | 3 | 2 | |
| Food | 12 | 14 | |
| Healthcare | 102 | 108 | |
| Legal | 4 | 2 | |
| Other | 49 | 34 | |
| Personal Welfare | 38 | 33 | |
| Property | 59 | 56 | |
| Staff | 18 | 22 | |
| Time out of cell/regime | 13 | 19 | |
| Total | 441 | 445 | |
| Work and Education | 13 | 16 |
Recommendations (18)
Other: 3
HMPPS: 9
Governor / Director: 6
11 repeated
Recommendation 1
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board reiterates the same point that it made last year. Indeterminate sentences for Public Protection (IPPs) were abolished in 2012 with the government stating that they were “not defensible”. However, the change did not apply to prisoners who were already serving IPP sentences, and this left them in limbo with little hope of release. The Board is concerned that the Government has rejected the call from the Justice Select Committee to resentence IPP prisoners and reduce the licence period from ten to five years. This is neither decent nor humane and the Board would urge the Minister to review the department’s response to the Justice Select Committee’s report.
Other
(minister)
Resettlement
Response
This situation has not changed, though it is hoped that the population pressures will result in a review of this whole area.
Recommendation 2
The incursion of drones needs to be addressed on a national basis, with a viable solution found for the whole estate.
Other
(minister)
Safety
Recommendation 3
The population pressures across estate need a solution. As a Cat B trainer, Swaleside has neither the budget, nor the staffing to double as a resettlement prison, and yet is now expected to fulfil this function for 90 – 100 prisoners per annum.
Other
(minister)
Overcrowding
Recommendation 4
Repeated
Prev. addressed
The Board shares the concerns expressed by the SLT that there have again been deaths in custody during the year, though these all appear to be of natural causes.
HMPPS
Safety
Response
The prison became a “cluster death site” which allowed special measures to be implemented to address this sad situation. The Board is pleased to note the decrease in the number of deaths in custody this year, and that they are all believed to be natural causes.
Recommendation 5
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The length of time spent in the CSRU by a number of prisoners remains far too long and far exceeds normal recommendations. An effective means of reducing this time should be sought as a matter of urgency.
HMPPS
Segregation
Response
The process has improved, but is severely hampered by the overall population pressures in the estate.
Recommendation 6
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board remains concerned about the impact of the Offender Flow and Allocation system. Swaleside is a category B trainer in the Long-Term High Security Estate (LTHSE) but is now receiving younger prisoners with shorter sentences. This is detrimental to the stability of the prison and the wellbeing of older, longer sentenced prisoners, and creates resettlement problems at release.
HMPPS
Regime
Response
This situation has not changed and adds pressure, both staffing and budget wise to various areas of the Prison and Probation Service.
Recommendation 7
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The continued reliance of HMP Standford Hill on the kitchen at Swaleside for the preparation of its food continues to cause major issues, as has been stated for several years.
HMPPS
Food
Response
The plans for the Standford Hill kitchen are approved. It should be a straightforward proposition to press the button on work.
Recommendation 8
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The inequality of opportunity for prisoners convicted of sexual offences (PCOSO) and vulnerable prisoners still needs to be addressed, despite progress made in that direction.
HMPPS
Equality
Response
The Board still holds this view, but also understands the difficult logistics of having two different vulnerable units.
Recommendation 9
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board remains concerned regarding the mental health of prisoners who have suffered long-term lockdown. This is evidenced by the number of opened Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) documents, self-harm cases and violent incidents. The first indications from the recent improvement in regime are positive. However, the necessity for increased psychology and psychiatric services still needs to be assessed.
HMPPS
Mental Health
Response
The Board still has concerns, though the SLT has taken a direct approach and there have been advances made in addressing these issues.
Recommendation 10
The Board has concerns over the growing gang culture within the prison and its effect on the more vulnerable prisoners. It also affects movement of prisoners, both internally and transfers.
HMPPS
Safety
Recommendation 11
At present, the prison only has 180 (Body Worn Cameras) BWC available, which means there are insufficient numbers to issue to all staff. This situation needs to rectified, so that all staff can be issued with cameras.
HMPPS
Safety
Recommendation 12
The lack of sufficient constant watch cells during times of crisis.
HMPPS
Safety
Recommendation 13
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
With the staffing ratio now up, due in part to the temporary closure of two wings, the Board now expects the low level of keywork to be addressed.
Governor / Director
Staffing
Response
Given the move to Core Day 4 this situation has improved, but still remains below acceptable levels.
Recommendation 14
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
As the regime gradually improves with the roll-out of the Core Day programme, the Board would urge the Governor to ensure that more prisoners are provided with meaningful vocational work and/or education in line with their sentence plans.
Governor / Director
Regime
Response
This is beginning to have a beneficial effect.
Recommendation 15
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
The Board remains very concerned at the situation of IPP prisoners. Courses and programmes should be made available to them so that they can have the opportunity to demonstrate that they are no longer a danger to the public.
Governor / Director
Resettlement
Response
Still a concern.
Recommendation 16
Repeated
Prev. unaddressed
New prisoners are not receiving adequate induction and the Board is very concerned that prisoners are being released from Swaleside without proper support.
Governor / Director
Resettlement
Response
Still a concern.
Recommendation 17
The issue of overflowing sewage from the drains must be addressed as this is exposed to the movement of food trolleys to the residential areas, which is a Health and Safety issue.
Governor / Director
Estate
Recommendation 18
The theft of stock from the DHL workshop must be addressed.
Governor / Director
Safety
Other IMB Reports for Swaleside
HMIP Inspections
Recent inspections by HM Inspectorate of Prisons for this establishment.
15 Dec 2025
Urgent Notification
11 Sep 2023
Announced
Safety: 2
Respect: 2
Activity: 2
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.