HMP Kirkham

Key Contact Details

Name of Prison HMP Kirkham
Address: Freckleton Road
Kirkham
Preston
Lancs PR4 2RN
Other contact details:
Web Site:
Email:
Main switchboard: 01772 675 400
At Risk hotline:
Fax: 01772 675 401
Visits booking number: Booked by the prisoner
Woodworking shop: 01772 675462
Visits centre: 01772 675 456
Visits centre web site: http://www.partnersofprisoners.co.uk/hmp-kirkham/
Type of Prison: Male Cat D

The prison is run by HMPS as part of the North West Region and has a capacity of 630. The #1 governor is Dan Cooper.

HMP Kirkham is a Category D open prison for men near Preston, Lancashire, originally built as an RAF training station in 1939 before being converted into a prison in 1962. It now has an operational capacity of around 699, spread across a large campus of residential units, and holds men who are assessed as low risk and are nearing release, often on day-release licences for work or training in the community as part of their resettlement.

The Independent Monitoring Board’s 2024–25 annual report noted that Kirkham took in an unusually high number of prisoners transferred from closed conditions under the government’s early-release recategorisation scheme — 640 in the first seven months of 2025 alone, compared with 335 across the whole of 2024 — which put considerable strain on staff and resettlement services. Assaults fell over the reporting period and healthcare access improved following a change of provider, but drug misuse remained a persistent problem, with roughly 40% of tests coming back positive, and the board raised concerns that education budget cuts and a lack of in-cell telephones were undermining rehabilitation and encouraging mobile phone smuggling. On a more positive note, the prison opened a new recovery-focused living unit and expanded its gym and enrichment activities during the period.

For anyone visiting a family member or friend at Kirkham, the open nature of the prison generally means a more relaxed visiting environment than at closed establishments, though it is still worth checking current booking arrangements using the details set out above before you travel.