Woodhill

Response
It is regrettable that transferring prisoners to secure mental health facilities continues to be a concern. As the Board will appreciate, this is a national problem and NHS England Health and Justice Commissioners continue to work closely with the relevant bodies to ensure that people with mental health problems are moved to a more appropriate setting in as timely a manner as possible. NHS England also monitors the timescales for people requiring transfer to hospital and escalates concerns to Specialised Commissioners should there be delays in transfer and associated risks to the prisoner’s health requiring transfer. Delays in transfers are always monitored during contract review meetings, and discussed with all partners during partnership boards, in an effort to reduce and minimise delays.

Response
The amount spent on prisoner meals is determined locally by the Governor and relevant staff. There is no central allocation and menus should be decided by the catering manager and Senior Management Team reflecting the population needs and Government guidelines. In the event establishments find it difficult to manage their catering arrangements, Regional Catering Managers are able to advise on how best to plan meal provision. My officials advise me that HMP Woodhill meets the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables within their current menu, and additional fruit is also available.

Response
The Long Term High Security Estate (LTHSE) is not currently funded to develop new units to support progression from segregation which also requires additional operational and clinical resource and is operating its current units as an unfunded pressure. HMPPS is trying to address this through the forthcoming Spending Review. As the Board will appreciate, the global pandemic and the necessary restrictions on regimes in prisons has impacted the ability of sites to develop progressive work and deliver interventions aimed at building motivation with prisoners. As regime recovery continues, a positive impact is beginning to be seen on long term segregation. During the pandemic work has also been undertaken by the LTHSE Programmes facilitators to develop intervention packages targeting the key themes of segregation which are available to sites to deliver from their facilitator resource, something the LTHSE submission to the Spending Review is seeking to strengthen. Pending the outcome of the Spending Review, a new service is being developed at HMP Woodhill in liaison with Health and Justice Commissioners to work with complex prisoners on a day centre basis and it is likely that this will have an impact with long term cases. There is current discussions between service providers and the central LTHSE team regarding the extent to which this service can work with men held in segregation, and it is possible that the small unit above the Healthcare Centre may be of benefit as a residential function for men accessing the day centre who struggle on normal location but are not in segregation. The LTHSE has also sought to attract additional health funding to provide embedded mental health services in the segregation unit and a pilot of revised mental health provision is in development in a number of prisons of varying types as a result of their submission to Health and Justice Commissioners. This will not directly impact HMP Woodhill in the pilot phase.

Response
The Board may be aware there was a pause in the development of the new Prisoners’ Property policy framework due to Covid-19. Following the pause, a meeting with IMB representatives took place in August 2020. Feedback from all stakeholders was then considered and HMPPS has now circulated the draft framework with all internal and external stakeholders, including the IMB Secretariat and the IMB representatives previously consulted. The large number of comments received is being considered and consequently the framework is now expected to be published early next year. The framework will provide greater direction and standardisation on a national basis and has been designed with procedural justice at its core. It strengthens guidance on known problem areas such as volumetric control and seeks to ensure prisoners’ property is managed efficiently, effectively, consistently and with care and respect.

Response
HMPPS believes the searching of prisoners is fundamental to ensure the safety of both prisoners and staff and to prevent contraband entering our prisons. HMPPS Searching of the Person policy states that on transferring to another prison and all other discharges apart from on final discharge and discharge for Release on Temporary Licence, all male prisoners must be full-searched by officers at the sending prison. The policy framework remains under review and will ensure the conducting of searches on transfer is reiterated within the framework

Response
Further to last year’s response, the showers in house unit 2 have been fully refurbished to the latest approved shower specification (Wandsworth’ specification), however, there have been some issues with one of the new shower floors fitted. Work to resolve this was delayed due to Covid-19 and supplies. This is now in the process of being rectified and the wing should have full access to the new shower facilities this autumn. An Estates Investment Proposal (EIP) bid was submitted at the end of August this year for the full refurbishment of the remaining showers at a cost of £1.5 million. A recently conducted full prison maintenance survey estimated £2 million will be required in terms of upkeep and maintenance. HMPPS will continue to use the bidding process to seek major maintenance and capital routes for funding. Government Facility Services Limited will continue to maintain these units following approval from Prison Maintenance Group (PMG) for anything that falls out of the agreed contract specification until funds for refurbishment is approved and work commences.

Response
HMP Woodhill is located in a prosperous part of the country with a highly competitive labour market, which creates significant challenges in attracting and retaining the right people to work as prison officers. A local market supplement is in place to increase levels of pay and is at a level that is comparative with similar roles in the area. Recruitment challenges are only part of the problem and recruitment is unable, at present, to keep pace with the very high levels of officer departures. The rate of departure at HMP Woodhill is currently over 20% per annum which cannot be sustained. The difficulties the prison faces in retaining staff is significant. It is only by addressing this that the consequences of high levels of inexperience can be overcome. The reasons for staff attrition at this level are complex and although competitive rates of pay are likely to be a factor there will be other reasons why people choose not to stay. Ministry of Justice Human Resources Team continues to work with managers to identify reasons for departure and address the key elements that play a part in rates of staff attrition. HMP Woodhill is actively recruiting officers and a large number of new officers are due to arrive in one month alone. The impact of a large cohort of new officers has the knock-on effect of teams operating on wings with all new officers and a new Supervising Officer. A bid for a specialist Standards Coaching team from HMPPS headquarters to be placed at HMP Woodhill is ongoing. In the meantime, a ‘confidence and competence’ survey is due be completed in an effort to establish what learning is needed by individual officers. The Governor is also exploring the feasibility of a weekly morning shut down across the site to facilitate staff training together with scheduled ‘StayDays’ (as opposed to ‘away days’) for senior managers to discuss and establish ways of helping and supporting colleagues to alleviate staff attrition.

Response
The on-site IT Support Manager for HMP Woodhill advised that they did not receive any out-of-the-ordinary communications in respect of slow IT, however HMPPS acknowledges many establishments across the estate have experienced slowness issues, freezing, lagging and systems crashing. Although attempts have been made to try and improve the service, there are limitations on how much the provider can do to the existing IT system known as Quantum which is very outdated and coming to the end of life. The Prison Technology Transition Programme, known as PTTP, has started to roll out across the estate. This project will be updating the networks, systems, and hardware which will provide a better IT service. The roll out is underway and HMP Woodhill will be upgraded later in 2022.

Response
The Long Term High Security Estate (LTHSE) is not currently funded to develop new units to support progression from segregation which also requires additional operational and clinical resource and is operating its current units as an unfunded pressure. HMPPS is trying to address this through the forthcoming Spending Review. As the Board will appreciate, the global pandemic and the necessary restrictions on regimes in prisons has impacted the ability of sites to develop progressive work and deliver interventions aimed at building motivation with prisoners. As regime recovery continues, a positive impact is beginning to be seen on long term segregation. During the pandemic work has also been undertaken by the LTHSE Programmes facilitators to develop intervention packages targeting the key themes of segregation which are available to sites to deliver from their facilitator resource, something the LTHSE submission to the Spending Review is seeking to strengthen. Pending the outcome of the Spending Review, a new service is being developed at HMP Woodhill in liaison with Health and Justice Commissioners to work with complex prisoners on a day centre basis and it is likely that this will have an impact with long term cases. There is current discussions between service providers and the central LTHSE team regarding the extent to which this service can work with men held in segregation, and it is possible that the small unit above the Healthcare Centre may be of benefit as a residential function for men accessing the day centre who struggle on normal location but are not in segregation. The LTHSE has also sought to attract additional health funding to provide embedded mental health services in the segregation unit and a pilot of revised mental health provision is in development in a number of prisons of varying types as a result of their submission to Health and Justice Commissioners. This will not directly impact HMP Woodhill in the pilot phase.

Response
The on-site IT Support Manager for HMP Woodhill advised that they did not receive any out-of-the-ordinary communications in respect of slow IT, however HMPPS acknowledges many establishments across the estate have experienced slowness issues, freezing, lagging and systems crashing. Although attempts have been made to try and improve the service, there are limitations on how much the provider can do to the existing IT system known as Quantum which is very outdated and coming to the end of life. The Prison Technology Transition Programme, known as PTTP, has started to roll out across the estate. This project will be updating the networks, systems, and hardware which will provide a better IT service. The roll out is underway and HMP Woodhill will be upgraded later in 2022.