Estate/Conditions
Repeated
The poor and dilapidated condition of Richmond and Plymouth houses, which has been a concern since 1999, remains unresolved and the facilities are considered unfit for human habitation.
Source wording under review
Safety
A significant increase in self-harm incidents, particularly involving a small number of women who put themselves at serious risk, and an increase in overall acts of violence.
Source wording under review
Safety
The continuing arrival of many women with complex needs and challenging behaviour, which is difficult to manage in a relatively open environment with limited cellular accommodation.
Overcrowding
Population pressures and rapid turnover have the potential to destabilise the prison and the number of women who arrive serving short sentences or with only limited time to serve can challenge the rehabilitative ethos of the establishment.
Other
Repeated
Property delayed or lost on transfer remains a significant problem and causes unnecessary distress to women. As noted in previous reports, it is a systemic issue that requires action across the Prison Service.
Healthcare
The population of women now present at Drake Hall demonstrates an increasing level of need, and the health needs’ analysis undertaken in 2019 is currently out of date. The healthcare needs of the women now coming to Drake Hall are increasingly complex, multi-faceted and unstable, as they have often only recently come to prison. The high level of need impacts the level of service that can be provided and the available resources are often stretched, particularly in relation to medical appointments and prescribing. It is becoming increasingly clear to the Board that the available resource is outstripped by demand.
Regime/Time Out of Cell
Problems in completing the roll call have impacted healthcare provision, leading to delays in commencing the regime and cancellation of appointments.
Estate/Conditions
Plans for a major capital programme to increase the prison’s operational capacity and expand its function to include remand, resettlement, and open facilities have been put on hold, despite current pressures within the women's estate.
Resettlement/Release
Repeated
Due to population pressures, increasing numbers of women are transferred shortly before their release date. This makes it impossible to undertake work to prepare such women for release.
Staffing
Concerns regarding inconsistent application of prison rules, inappropriate language and behaviour by some staff, and the infrequent delivery of key work sessions due to operational pressures, impacting prisoner wellbeing and trust.
Source wording under review
Substance Misuse
Repeated
In the IMB’s last annual report, the Board called for prescription medicines to be ‘better controlled through risk assessments and medication reviews’, yet this still remains a problem.
Equality/Diversity
The management of equality and diversity lacks the necessary resources to provide the strategic and operational focus required for this vital area of prison work.