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North Sea Camp

AI-generated report summary HMP North Sea Camp is an open Category D male resettlement prison. This report covers the period from March 2021 to February 2022, during which the prison managed a return to a more normal regime following Covid-19 restrictions, demonstrating strong rehabilitative efforts and good healthcare provision. Key concerns persist regarding end-of-life care, inadequate accommodation and accessibility for disabled prisoners, delays in offender management, and issues with contracted maintenance and property transfers.

Year: 2022 Published: 7 Aug 2022 Type: Prison · Cat D Population: 264 Recommendations: 7 Key concerns Positive findings
Original IMB report page ↗ Ministerial response · 7 Dec 2022 ↗

Safety statistics

Incidents during reporting year
IndicatorThis yearPrevious
Deaths in custody2—
Self-harm incidents1—
ACCT cases opened227
Prisoner assaults0—
Assaults on staff1—
Use of force2—

Positive findings

AI-generated summary
The rehabilitative culture at HMP North Sea Camp continues to work well, fostering a polite and calm atmosphere with very few violent incidents. Staff are commended for creating an inclusive environment for all prisoners, and the recycling activity provides valuable employment opportunities and qualifications for release. Healthcare provision remains good, with resumed clinics and acceptable waiting lists. The Governor and his team are praised for efficiently opening the regime post-pandemic and increasing outside employment. The catering facilities are of a high standard with a 5-star food hygiene rating, and staff-prisoner relationships are generally positive. The Offender Management Unit is now efficient and makes effective use of ROTL to support rehabilitation and family ties.

Key concerns

6 items
Healthcare HMP North Sea Camp has, at the time of reporting, an aging population. Inevitably, many of them suffer from a range of medical conditions – some of them very serious. Currently, there is no facility within HMP North Sea Camp where prisoners can be suitably cared for during an end-of-life period; there are no on-site residential healthcare facilities. This means that prisoners who have chronic and other serious health issues stay on the units within the prison, surrounded by the other prisoners and the usual activities of everyday prison life. This has a very upsetting effect on those prisoners living alongside.
Estate/Conditions The older accommodation units, Harrison and Llewellin, have been decommissioned and demolition work has commenced, and there is as yet no plan to replace them. The Selby units are due to be returned at the end of the hire period.
Estate/Conditions The size of the double rooms in all the main accommodation units are not adequate in that it is often impossible to put a chair or table let alone two of each into a room. The cramped accommodation means that the accommodation listed does not comply with the Prison Service Instruction (PSI) when used by two prisoners.
Equality/Diversity 6 Prisoners who use wheelchairs can experience difficulties travelling to and getting overnight accommodation at approved premises (APs) when going on resettlement overnight release (ROR), which can delay their ROTL programme and have a significant delaying effect on their sentence plan and Parole Board hearings.
Resettlement/Release Community offender managers often take a long time to update their part of OASys and complete the paperwork to enable prisoners to sit ROTL boards. This can mean prisoners having to postpone Parole Board hearings as they have not done the required ROTLs and means prisoners may spend more time in prison than strictly necessary.
Estate/Conditions The IMB is concerned by the time taken to complete routine maintenance jobs, and the issues around the transfer of prisoners’ property. These are issues that are provided by contracted out services and the Board is concerned that contract failures do not result in penalties to encourage compliance.

Recommendations

7 items

Recommendation 1

Addressee: HMPPS

Community offender managers often take a long time to update their part of OASys and complete the paperwork to enable prisoners to sit ROTL boards. This can mean prisoners having to postpone Parole Board hearings as they have not done the required ROTLs and means prisoners may spend more time in prison than strictly necessary. Timescales for return of paperwork would be helpful.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Resettlement

Recommendation 2

Addressee: HMPPS

The quality of some of the accommodation is poor and the space allocated to prisoners sharing rooms is not ideal. It was good to see the two-storey aging accommodation units decommissioned, however the Board is concerned that, as yet, there is no plan to replace them.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Estate

Recommendation 3

Addressee: HMPPS

There are some areas of the prison inaccessible to prisoners with physical disabilities, especially those who use wheelchairs. Although improvements have been made, budget needs to be allocated so that all areas are accessible to those who use wheelchairs, especially bariatric wheelchairs.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Equality

Recommendation 4

Addressee: HMPPS

Budget needs to be allocated to convert the current dormitories to smaller rooms so that, when HMP North Sea Camp is at full capacity, no prisoners will have to share with more than one other person.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Estate

Recommendation 5

Addressee: HMPPS

The IMB is concerned by the time taken to complete routine maintenance jobs, and the issues around the transfer of prisoners’ property. These are issues that are provided by contracted out services and the Board is concerned that contract failures do not result in penalties to encourage compliance.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Estate

Recommendation 6

Addressee: Governor / Director

There are some areas of the prison inaccessible to prisoners with physical disabilities, especially those who use wheelchairs.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Equality

Recommendation 7

Addressee: Governor / Director

To ensure that work continues on the further extension of Jubilee self-catering housing.

Source text verified

Recorded status:

Topic: Resettlement

Applications to the IMB

CategoryCurrentPrevious
Accommodation (including transfers) 45 38
Adjudications 1 1
Disability 0 0
Discrimination 0 0
Early Release (ROTL/HDC) 20 12
Food 0 0
General 131 152
Grand Total 324 280
Health & Social Care 11 10
Legal 0 0
Offender Management 64 22
Property 50 45
Religion 0 0
Safeguarding (adult/child) 1 0
Staff Conduct 0 0
Substance Misuse 0 0
Wellbeing 0 0
Work/Education/Vocational Training 1 0

Related inspections & investigations

22 May 2023 HMIP · Unannounced Safety 4 · Respect 3 · Activity 3 · Release 3
27 Apr 2021 HMIP · Inspection
— PPO fatal incident Peter Dodd · Natural causes
— PPO fatal incident Robert Sneddon · Natural causes
19 Aug 2020 PPO fatal incident Judge, Darryl · Natural causes
19 Jan 2021 PPO fatal incident Individual at North Sea Camp · Natural causes
17 Apr 2021 PPO fatal incident Individual at North Sea Camp · Natural causes
18 Dec 2014 PFD John Stabler · State Custody related deaths

Other reports for North Sea Camp

2025 Published 20 Aug 2025 Population 296 · Self-harm 1 · Concerns
2024 Published 4 Oct 2024 Population 224 · Self-harm 2 · Concerns
2023 Published 13 Sep 2023 Population 224 · Self-harm 4 · Concerns
2021 Published 3 Sep 2021 Population 346 · Self-harm 8 · Concerns
2020 Published 10 Jul 2020 Population 412 · Self-harm 22 · Concerns