IMB Annual Reports
768 annual reports from Independent Monitoring Boards covering 171 establishments. IMBs provide independent oversight of prisons, immigration removal centres, and secure training centres. Source: imb.org.uk.
768
Reports
171
Establishments
757
With Key Concerns
Establishment Type
Reports by Year
Key Findings
99% of IMB reports flag key concerns.
Independent monitors cover 171 establishments
across prisons, immigration removal centres and secure training centres.
Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 254
Assaults: 77
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.
Key concerns identified
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Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 353
HMP Aylesbury, a Category C prison, completed its transformation from a YOI this year, adapting to an older population with improved but still sub-standard regime delivery. Significant efforts were made to enhance safety, reduce gang violence, and manage illicit items, though their incursion remains a serious problem. While staffing levels improved, staff inexperience and a lack of purposeful activity remain key challenges impacting prisoner wellbeing, progression, and resettlement, as evidenced by long waiting times for healthcare and inadequate release preparation.
Key concerns identified
- The persistent incursion of illicit items, including dangerous drugs, leading to debt, bullying, and health issues.
- Insufficient and uninspiring purposeful activity that falls below Category C standards and does not prepare prisoners for release.
- Inadequate preparation for release for prisoners leaving directly from Aylesbury, risking reoffending and public safety.
- A deleterious imbalance between experienced and inexperienced staff, impacting induction quality, prisoner support, and potentially increasing use of force incidents.
- Long waiting times for GP (3 weeks) and dental (13 weeks) appointments, leading to prisoner complaints.
- Overstretched Offender Management Unit staff due to significant vacancies, hindering sentence planning and progression.
- Inadequate provision of secure hospital beds for prisoners with severe mental illness, placing undue pressure on prison staff.
- Disproportionate representation of Black and Muslim prisoners in adjudications, with lower rates of dismissals, suggesting potential inappropriate use of the disciplinary process.
- Frequent loss or misplacement of prisoner property, particularly during transfers.
- The age and layout of the prison building, including unreliable heating and inadequate adaptations for disabled prisoners.
- Insufficient and uninspiring purposeful activity that falls below Category C standards and does not prepare prisoners for release.
- Inadequate preparation for release for prisoners leaving directly from Aylesbury, risking reoffending and public safety.
- A deleterious imbalance between experienced and inexperienced staff, impacting induction quality, prisoner support, and potentially increasing use of force incidents.
- Long waiting times for GP (3 weeks) and dental (13 weeks) appointments, leading to prisoner complaints.
- Overstretched Offender Management Unit staff due to significant vacancies, hindering sentence planning and progression.
- Inadequate provision of secure hospital beds for prisoners with severe mental illness, placing undue pressure on prison staff.
- Disproportionate representation of Black and Muslim prisoners in adjudications, with lower rates of dismissals, suggesting potential inappropriate use of the disciplinary process.
- Frequent loss or misplacement of prisoner property, particularly during transfers.
- The age and layout of the prison building, including unreliable heating and inadequate adaptations for disabled prisoners.
Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Assaults: 152
Staff assaults: 57
HMP Aylesbury underwent a challenging transition from a Young Offender Institution to a Category C prison, which significantly impacted the regime, staffing, and healthcare provision. Staffing levels remained critically low, leading to limited purposeful activity and complaints about time spent in cells. Healthcare services experienced a chaotic start with a new, unprepared provider, though improvements were initiated by year-end. Despite a reduction in violence, concerns persisted regarding prisoner safety, drug use, and the prison's capacity to support resettlement for the 65 prisoners released directly from Aylesbury.
Key concerns identified
- Prisoners often report feeling unsafe, particularly new arrivals, due to Aylesbury's reputation and gang affiliations.
- There is an increase in drugs and trading of prescription medicines, leading to debt and threats among prisoners.
- The prison failed to quickly adapt its regime and culture for the older Category C population, affecting staff-prisoner relationships.
- Many prisoners are located far from their families, causing anxiety, especially regarding sick relatives.
- Healthcare services had a chaotic start under a new provider, with significant staff shortages and impact on delivery.
- There is insufficient high-quality purposeful activity, hindering prisoners' progression and resettlement skills.
- The Offender Management Unit (OMU) ran with only 50% staffing, affecting sentence planning and release preparation.
- Aylesbury, not being a designated resettlement prison, released 65 prisoners without proper resources or preparation, which is deemed unsafe and counterproductive.
- Staffing levels remained critically low (average 60%), impacting all daily activity and experience in managing confrontational situations.
- The transition from YOI to Category C was severely under-planned and HMPPS did not provide adequate support or resources until after the HMIP report.
- There is an increase in drugs and trading of prescription medicines, leading to debt and threats among prisoners.
- The prison failed to quickly adapt its regime and culture for the older Category C population, affecting staff-prisoner relationships.
- Many prisoners are located far from their families, causing anxiety, especially regarding sick relatives.
- Healthcare services had a chaotic start under a new provider, with significant staff shortages and impact on delivery.
- There is insufficient high-quality purposeful activity, hindering prisoners' progression and resettlement skills.
- The Offender Management Unit (OMU) ran with only 50% staffing, affecting sentence planning and release preparation.
- Aylesbury, not being a designated resettlement prison, released 65 prisoners without proper resources or preparation, which is deemed unsafe and counterproductive.
- Staffing levels remained critically low (average 60%), impacting all daily activity and experience in managing confrontational situations.
- The transition from YOI to Category C was severely under-planned and HMPPS did not provide adequate support or resources until after the HMIP report.
Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 175
Assaults: 132
Staff assaults: 56
HMP/YOI Aylesbury faced a challenging year due to Covid-19 restrictions and severe staff shortages, which impacted the regime, purposeful activity, and staff-prisoner relationships. Despite these difficulties, the prison completed significant refurbishment projects and effectively contained Covid infections. Key concerns included persistent gang culture, high use of force, inadequate education and resettlement support, and issues with staffing levels and property management.
Key concerns identified
- Significant staff shortages negatively impacting the regime and purposeful activity.
- Persistent issues with gang culture and violence, contributing to the prison's reputation.
- Suboptimal education provision throughout the year and inadequate resettlement support for released prisoners.
- High use of PAVA and the ineffectiveness of the CSIP programme in managing violent tendencies.
- Outdated property management system leading to frequent complaints, and issues with family parcels.
- Insufficient support for foreign national and less literate prisoners, including underutilisation of translation services.
- Persistent issues with gang culture and violence, contributing to the prison's reputation.
- Suboptimal education provision throughout the year and inadequate resettlement support for released prisoners.
- High use of PAVA and the ineffectiveness of the CSIP programme in managing violent tendencies.
- Outdated property management system leading to frequent complaints, and issues with family parcels.
- Insufficient support for foreign national and less literate prisoners, including underutilisation of translation services.
Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 115
Assaults: 108
Staff assaults: 34
This report covers a year dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic at Aylesbury YOI, which saw a reduced prisoner population of around 209. Despite a severely curtailed regime and poor education provision, the prison maintained stability, low infection rates among prisoners, and provided daily showers and exercise. Key concerns include the lack of mental health beds, the weakening of the key worker scheme, and the risk that post-pandemic priorities will shift from prisoner outcomes to risk management as population numbers increase.
Key concerns identified
- The lack of a stronger national commitment to young adult prisoner rehabilitation, supported by research and sufficient resourcing, is a key strategic concern.
- An urgent need for more emergency mental health beds for prisoners, to prevent seriously mentally ill individuals from being inappropriately held in prison, particularly in segregation.
- HMPPS's post-pandemic rebalancing of priorities risks diminishing focus on prisoner outcomes in favour of risk management as prisoner numbers rise.
- Education and training provision has been poor and lacked clear national targets and business-like contract management for third-party providers.
- The impact of gang culture, exacerbated by a lack of professional mediation training, severely curtails opportunities for prisoners to engage in out-of-cell activities.
- Persistent issues with property management, including loss during transfers and restrictions on family parcels.
- An urgent need for more emergency mental health beds for prisoners, to prevent seriously mentally ill individuals from being inappropriately held in prison, particularly in segregation.
- HMPPS's post-pandemic rebalancing of priorities risks diminishing focus on prisoner outcomes in favour of risk management as prisoner numbers rise.
- Education and training provision has been poor and lacked clear national targets and business-like contract management for third-party providers.
- The impact of gang culture, exacerbated by a lack of professional mediation training, severely curtails opportunities for prisoners to engage in out-of-cell activities.
- Persistent issues with property management, including loss during transfers and restrictions on family parcels.
Aylesbury
PRISON
Concerns
Self-harm: 197
Assaults: 278
Staff assaults: 4
Aylesbury YOI, operating with a reduced population of 209 due to special measures, successfully improved its safety and operational performance, leading to the withdrawal of its special measures status. Despite positive developments like improved staff-prisoner relationships and infrastructure upgrades, significant concerns persist regarding the amount of time prisoners spend locked in cells, the quality of purposeful activity, and ongoing staffing and estate issues. The report also highlights challenges in addressing equality and diversity, and the impact of long segregation stays on young prisoners' wellbeing.
Key concerns identified
- Many young offenders remain locked in cells daily, with only 64% out of cell on weekdays, and work/education options are unexciting and poorly accredited.
- A significant number of prisoners report feeling unsafe, particularly on their first night, and gang culture drives violence.
- Prisoners, especially those awaiting transfer, spend unacceptably long periods (up to three months) in segregation, impacting their wellbeing.
- Staff recruitment and retention remain problematic due to local housing costs, low wages, lengthy clearance processes, and high dropout rates.
- Equality and diversity work was noted as being in disarray by HMIP, with disproportionate use of force and segregation for Black and Muslim prisoners, and a lack of ESOL tuition for foreign nationals.
- Refurbishment of vacant wings was significantly delayed, and estate deficiencies, such as unserviceable kitchen equipment and inadequate exercise yards, persist.
- A significant number of prisoners report feeling unsafe, particularly on their first night, and gang culture drives violence.
- Prisoners, especially those awaiting transfer, spend unacceptably long periods (up to three months) in segregation, impacting their wellbeing.
- Staff recruitment and retention remain problematic due to local housing costs, low wages, lengthy clearance processes, and high dropout rates.
- Equality and diversity work was noted as being in disarray by HMIP, with disproportionate use of force and segregation for Black and Muslim prisoners, and a lack of ESOL tuition for foreign nationals.
- Refurbishment of vacant wings was significantly delayed, and estate deficiencies, such as unserviceable kitchen equipment and inadequate exercise yards, persist.