IMB Annual Reports

- The prison is a less safe environment than last year for prisoners and staff, with significant increases in staff assaults and prisoner-on-prisoner violence.
- There is an increased availability of illicit drugs, particularly Spice, and consequential prisoner debt, which are major contributory factors to the increased violence.
- Equality appears to be of lower priority due to the unreplaced full-time equality manager role, impacting the timeliness of discrimination complaints.
- The prison faces considerable challenges with prisoners requiring mental health transfers to secure hospitals, highlighting a lack of sufficient beds.
- Staffing shortages and contract issues contribute to excessively long waiting times for GP and dental appointments.
- The chronic shortage of qualified probation officers persists, leading to delayed categorisations and unsustainable workloads.
- There is no robust system for identifying and assessing prisoner social care needs, especially for the increasing elderly population.
- The number of prisoners on open ACCT plans in the SARU is concerningly high, given the exceptional nature of such segregation.
- The lack of enhanced security gates at both sites facilitates the ingress of illicit items, contributing to safety issues.
- Workshops and family visit waiting facilities require urgent repair and funding.
- Many adjudications are procedurally incorrect or dismissed, indicating issues with the disciplinary process.
- Poor condition of food trolleys, issues with food temperature, portion control, and servery supervision negatively impact prisoner welfare.
- The central laundry has been out of operation since 2021, and there are ongoing problems with washing machines and dryers on wings.

- Significant increase in violent incidents and deaths in custody.
- Aging and poorly maintained infrastructure (laundry, heating, workshops, double cells).
- Chronic staffing shortages impacting key worker schemes, OMU, healthcare, and education.
- Inconsistent and restrictive regime for older prisoners.
- Issues with food distribution and quality control in the servery.
- Delays in complaint resolution and property management issues.

- Chronic staff shortages severely limiting access to regime activities, work, education, and healthcare.
- Urgent need to strengthen mental health provision and carefully consider the relocation of complex mental health patients to mainstream prisons.
- The importance of early funding decisions for essential infrastructure work and the poor condition of many buildings.
- The need for an early decision on whether the prison will continue to hold a significant number of Category C prisoners.
- Ensuring timely and full compliance with ACCTs, CSIPs, and Use of Force reviews.
- Consistently failing to meet Key Worker targets and assuring their quality.
- Lack of focus on meeting literacy targets, improving programme availability, and restoring regular library access.

- The laundry at HMP Isle of Wight urgently requires significant upgrading to make it fit for purpose, as the current system is unreliable and end-of-life, incurring substantial costs and lost working hours.
- The transfer of category C prisoners needs careful management, considering sentence length and increased distance from home for most prisoners, as the prison is a Category B training establishment.
- All prisoners should have the opportunity to participate in education, with a full range of courses, initial assessments, and personal learning plans provided, and full classroom teaching resumed as soon as regime restrictions allow.
- Ongoing faults with the fire alarm system, particularly at Parkhurst, required a full replacement which had not yet begun.
- Significant roof leaks at House Unit 18 (Parkhurst), the tailors workshop, and the chapel (Albany) remain unaddressed due to lack of funding for major repairs, leading to safety concerns in the workshop.
- Persistent unhygienic practices in meal services were observed, including untrained servery workers, inaccurate food temperature recording, and improper use of hair coverings.
- Equality and diversity forums and inclusion events were sporadic or reduced due to Covid restrictions, hindering mutual awareness and understanding.
- Recommendations from the Lammy Report, specifically auditing BAME use of force reports by BAME staff, were outstanding due to a lack of BAME discipline staff.
- The mental health department was understaffed and lacked a head of department, negatively impacting the provision of full and timely services.
- Safeguarding in healthcare was identified as an area needing development, with healthcare seeking external agency support.
- Probation officer staffing levels were at a critical 46% of requirements, resulting in many prisoners missing crucial one-to-one interventions and making little progress with their sentence plans.
- Around 400 category C prisoners remained at HMP IOW without prospect of transfer to a resettlement establishment, causing anger and frustration and presenting challenges for the management team.

- The failure to transfer mentally ill prisoners to appropriate facilities in line with national guidance, and a lack of psychiatric assessment in courts leading to mentally unwell remand prisoners being sent to prison.
- A lack of national support from HMPPS, particularly regarding reducing overcrowding and ensuring all prisoners have overnight toilet access, hindering the prison's ability to improve basic decency standards.
- Persistent and unresolved issues with a newly refurbished wing (HU15) since August 2020, including roof leaks, missing window glass, faulty cell door locks, and problems with the heating system.
- Unrepaired leaking roofs on several wings and workshops on the Albany site, a recurring problem impacting safety and causing cell closures due to electrical issues.
- Ongoing issues with food hygiene, including hot food temperatures not being taken, staff lacking food hygiene training, and poor communication regarding menu choices.
- Concerns regarding unsuccessful searches of BAME prisoners not being monitored by ethnicity, leading to the prison preparing an action plan for review.
- The IMB's lack of a dedicated telephone system in their Albany office hinders efficient contact with prisoners.
- Insufficient differentiation and inconsistent application of the Incentives and Earned Privileges (IEP) policy, offering little incentive for prisoners to achieve enhanced status.