Stephen Taylor

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Independent investigation into
the death of Mr Stephen Taylor,
on 22 December 2025, following
his release from HMP Altcourse
A report by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman
Third Floor, 10 South Colonnade Email: mail@ppo.gov.uk T l 020 7633 4100
Canary Wharf, London E14 4PU Web: www.ppo.gov.uk
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© Crown copyright, 2026
This report is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0. To view this licence,
visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3
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Summary
1. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman aims to make a significant contribution to
safer, fairer custody and community supervision. One of the most important ways in
which we work towards that aim is by carrying out independent investigations into
deaths, due to any cause, of prisoners, young people in detention, residents of
approved premises and detainees in immigration centres.
2. Since 6 September 2021, the PPO has investigated post-release deaths that occur
within 14 days of the person’s release from prison.
3. If my office is to best assist His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) in
ensuring the standard of care received by those within service remit is appropriate,
our recommendations should be focused, evidenced and viable. This is especially
the case if there is evidence of systemic failure.
4. Mr Stephen Taylor died from a pulmonary embolism and pneumonia on 22
December 2025 following his release from HMP Altcourse on 8 December. He was
59 years old. We offer our condolences to those who knew him.
5. We did not identify any significant learning relating to the pre-release planning or
post-release supervision of Mr Taylor.
6. We make no recommendations.
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The Investigation Process
7. HMPPS notified us of Mr Taylor’s death on 24 December 2025.
8. The PPO investigator obtained copies of relevant extracts from Mr Taylor’s prison
and probation records.
9. We informed HM Coroner for Liverpool and Wirral of the investigation. We have
sent the Coroner a copy of this report.
10. The Ombudsman’s office contacted Mr Taylor’s next of kin to explain the
investigation and to ask if they had any matters they wanted us to consider. They
had no questions but asked for copy of our report.
11. We shared our initial report with HMPPS. They found no factual inaccuracies.
12. We sent a copy of our initial report to Mr Taylor’s next of kin. They did not notify us
of any factual inaccuracies.
2 Prisons and Probation Ombudsman
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Background Information
HMP Altcourse
13. HMP Altcourse is a category B men's prison and Young Offender Institution. It is
managed by Sodexo.
Probation Service
14. The Probation Service works with all individuals subject to custodial and community
sentences. During a person’s imprisonment, they oversee their sentence plan to
assist in rehabilitation, prepare reports to advise the Parole Board and have links
with local partnerships to which they refer people for resettlement services, where
appropriates. Post-release, the Probation Service supervises people throughout
their licence period and post-sentence supervision.
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Key Events
Background
15. On 3 October 2024, Mr Stephen Taylor was convicted of possessing a Class A
controlled drug with intent to supply. He was sentenced to 28 months in prison.
16. On 9 September 2025, he was released from prison on licence.
17. On 11 November, Mr Taylor was recalled to prison for breaching his licence
conditions and was sent to HMP Altcourse.
18. During his reception health screen, Mr Taylor told the nurse he had several serious
health conditions including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD, lung
disease), asthma and diabetes. He said he was a drug user and regularly used
cocaine and had used heroin in the past but not for seven years. The nurse referred
him to the substance misuse team.
19. On 12 November, a substance misuse worker saw Mr Taylor. He told them he had
a history of cocaine and heroin use. He said he had used crack cocaine in the last
week. Mr Taylor said that he did not see that as problematic and did not wish to
engage with the substance misuse team. The substance misuse worker advised
him about the risk of substance misuse in prison and how to contact the team if he
needed to. Mr Taylor also confirmed he was aware of the local drug services in the
community.
20. On 14 November, a nurse carried out Mr Taylor’s secondary health screen. Mr
Taylor said he had a stent in his heart and was under the care of the Royal
Liverpool Infirmary for his physical health conditions. He did not report any current
symptoms and said he knew how to access health services in prison if needed.
21. On 20 November, Mr Taylor attended a prison healthcare clinic. He told staff he had
regular appointments at the Royal Liverpool Infirmary and was seen there around
six weeks earlier and had blood tests. He did not report any health concerns and
confirmed he had access to his medication. He declined assistance to stop
smoking.
Pre-release planning
22. On 12 and 17 November, Mr Taylor completed his basic custody screening which
includes a standardised assessment of a prisoner’s needs, and to provide support
in preparation for release. The assessment identified Mr Taylor would be homeless
on release from prison.
23. On 20 November, a community offender manager (COM) was allocated Mr Taylor’s
case.
24. On 23 November, the COM submitted an application for accommodation in the
community for Mr Taylor and he was provided temporary accommodation by the
Community Accommodation Service (CAS).
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25. On 7 December, a nurse saw Mr Taylor prior to his release. Mr Taylor said he had
no issues and was looking forward to his release. The nurse gave him a GP referral
letter and seven days medication.
Post-release management/release from HMP Altcourse
26. On 8 December, Mr Taylor was released from Altcourse. He attended the probation
office as required, where he was compliant and engaged. He completed his
induction but refused permission for the Probation Service to contact his GP. He
later arrived at his accommodation. He was due to attend his next probation
appointment on 17 December.
Circumstances of Mr Taylor’s death
27. On 13 December, Mr Taylor was admitted to Arrowe Park Hospital with shortness of
breath and was moved to the Critical Care Unit on 15 December. He died in
hospital on 22 December.
Cause of death
28. The Coroner accepted the cause of death provided by a hospital doctor and no
post-mortem examination was carried out. The doctor gave Mr Taylor’s cause of
death as multiple organ system failure caused by a pulmonary embolism (when a
blood clot blocks a blood vessel in the lungs) and pneumonia (lung infection).
29. At the inquest, held on 31 December 2025, the Coroner concluded that Mr Taylor
died of natural causes against a backdrop of opiate dependency.
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Findings
30. Mr Taylor had multiple physical health conditions when he arrived at Altcourse,
including COPD and heart issues. He was at Altcourse for less than a month and
reported no physical health issues during that time. A nurse saw him before his
release and gave him a GP referral letter and seven days’ medication. We are
satisfied that appropriate continuity of care was in place. Mr Taylor’s COM also
arranged accommodation for Mr Taylor so he was not homeless on release.
31. We are satisfied that Mr Taylor had appropriate pre-release planning and post-
release supervision. We make no recommendations.
Adrian Usher
Prisons and Probation Ombudsman June 2026
6 Prisons and Probation Ombudsman
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Third Floor, 10 South Colonnade Email: mail@ppo.gov.uk T l 020 7633 4100
Canary Wharf, London E14 4PU Web: www.ppo.gov.uk
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