HMIP Inspections of Norwich Prison

The prison was given a full inspection in August/September 2022. The full reports can be read at the Ministry of Justice web site, just follow the links below. In their latest report the inspectors said:

Holding about 700 adult male prisoners, Norwich prison fulfils several functions and is spread over three adjacent sites. The main prison is a traditional reception jail, but it is complimented by a separate 1960s-built category C training site and a small open resettlement facility, known as Britannia House.

At this inspection, we found improved outcomes in our healthy prison test of respect, which we now judged to be reasonably good. The same was true of rehabilitation and release planning, reflecting leaders’ achievements in sustaining and promoting the rehabilitative purpose of the institution.

Safety outcomes were still not sufficiently good, a judgement informed to a great extent by the high number of violent and use of force incidents, and the rise in the number of segregated prisoners. Three prisoners had tragically taken their own lives since we last inspected and self-harm was higher than at comparable prisons. We did, however, find some improvements already in place to address these concerns, as well as other steps being taken to make the prison safer.

The prison was struggling to provide purposeful activity. During the working day we found nearly two-thirds of prisoners locked up, although the consistent delivery of daily routines was mitigating restrictions slightly, with most prisoners accessing between two and four hours unlocked each day. Our colleagues in Ofsted found the overall effectiveness of education, skills and work activities to be ‘inadequate’ which, when combined with our own findings, meant that we judged purposeful activity outcomes to be poor overall.

The principal cause of these difficulties seemed to be the prison’s inability to retain staff. New officers had been recruited, but the number of new arrivals was failing to keep pace with the number leaving the prison, despite interventions from leaders aimed at supporting staff more visibly on the wings. We found a functional leadership team that was committed and effective and which was particularly responsive to the issues and concerns we raised, several of which were corrected during the inspection. Despite this, there was a troubling disconnect between staff and leaders, with staff who responded to our survey, for example, raising questions about engagement and morale.

The governor spoke energetically about his priorities for the prison, and these had been communicated clearly across establishment. The findings from our inspection suggested these priorities were being delivered, although some aspects were too aspirational and did not focus sufficiently on deliverable targets. Self-assessment and future planning might also have been better informed by a more considered use of the data – which were otherwise analysed very well within the prison. This, however, should not detract from the progress made in this reasonably capable institution.

Charlie Taylor HM
Chief Inspector of Prisons
October 2022

 

The inspectors also provided a note of their significant concerns

 

What needs to improve at HMP/YOI Norwich

During this inspection we identified 13 key concerns, of which six should be treated as priorities. Priority concerns are those that are most important to improving outcomes for prisoners. They require immediate attention by leaders and managers.

Leaders should make sure that all concerns identified here are addressed and that progress is tracked through a plan which sets out how and when the concerns will be resolved. The plan should be provided to HMI Prisons.

Priority concerns

  1. A severe shortage of officers limited time unlocked for prisoners and the care they received.
  2. Levels of violence were very high and were increasing. Leaders had no overarching strategy or plan to reduce this.
  3. The number of self-harm incidents was high and was increasing. Too little was being done to address and understand the causes of self[1]harm.
  4. Time unlocked was poor for most prisoners. Access to the open air was also insufficient.
  5. Prisoners had very limited access to work or study. There was insufficient work or education provision to support the population in any meaningful way. Most spent a maximum of seven or eight hours per week at their activities. As a result, it took most prisoners too long to complete their courses.
  6. Monitoring arrangements for those with public protection concerns were not effective. Prisoners’ telephone calls were not being listened to when they should have been, posing a potential risk to the public.

Key concerns

  1. Newly arrived prisoners did not have decent conditions and spent too long locked in their cells. There was also little structured support from prisoner mentors.
  2. Access to health care appointments was limited by regime restrictions and a shortage of officers to escort patients.
  3. The library facilities were poor and had insufficient materials or activity to promote literacy and encourage reading.
  4. Prisoners received poor-quality careers information, advice and guidance.
  5. Too few prisoners attended their education courses and they often arrived late to their learning and work sessions. In a large number of cases, prisoners missed learning because they attended health care appointments that had been booked at the same time as their lessons. Teachers and trainers did not encourage those prisoners who arrived on time to their activities to start working immediately.
  6. Approximately one-third of prisoners within the category B part of the prison had not completed an induction and assessment for learning and work, which delayed their allocation to activities.
  7. Visits were too short and were not allocated equitably. Visit slots were only for an hour. Unlike for others, visitors to vulnerable prisoners had only one weekday slot and no option to visit at weekends

Return to Norwich

To read the full reports either go to the Ministry of Justice web sites or follow the links below:

  • Inspection report (861 kB), Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP/YOI Norwich by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (30–31 August and 12–16 September 2022)
  • HMP/YOI Norwich (2.11 MB), Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP/YOI Norwich (21 October–1 November 2019)
  • HMP/YOI Norwich (1.20 MB), Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP/YOI Norwich (12-23 September 2016)
  • HMP Norwich, Announced inspection of HMP Norwich (29 July–2 August, 19–23 August 2013)
  • HMP Norwich, Unannounced full follow-up inspection of HMP Norwich (11 – 20 January 2012)
  • HMP/YOI Norwich, Unannounced inspection of HMP/YOI Norwich (3-12 February 2010)

You don't always get what you are entitled to unless you ask properly!

We can introduce you to  experienced  lawyers can help you with parole,  probation,  immigration, adjudications, visits and any other complaints  and disputes you have with the Prison Service.

The solicitors are all experts on how the Prison Service/Criminal Law  system works and will be able to provide to you the necessary advice and support to ensure you or your loved ones are treated fairly. These lawyers are "small enough to care about you, but big enough to fight for you"

and remember the old saying:

" A Man Who Is His Own Lawyer Has A Fool for a Client"

Click here to go to the list of lawyers in your area