HM Inspectorate of Prisons
Source: https://hmiprisons.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk
Archived: 2026-04-23 14:39
HM Inspectorate of Prisons
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Welcome to HMI Prisons.
We help to make sure that detention in the UK is humane, decent and prepares people for returning to society.
Chief Inspector: overwhelming ingress of illegal drugs is destablising prisons and preventing rehabilitation
“This has been another very difficult year for all those living and working in prisons in England and Wales. I cannot overstate my concern about the rapid and widespread ingress of illicit drugs.”
Read the report
Latest news updates
Reports published 20 April
20 April
Clarity, accessibility and impact: improving our inspection reports
17 April
Drugs, violence and poor regime remain serious threats to stability at HMP Manchester
14 April
Safety, well-being and hope: The untapped potential of family contact in prisons
Too many jails were failing to get the basics right, making it difficult for families to book visits, get to the establishment, and access financial support. When prisoners first arrived in jail it took too long for family members to find out where they were held and to be able to contact them – at a time when prisoners were often at their most vulnerable.
Read the report
A year ago, our ‘Time to care’ thematic report highlighted some inadequate support to help women cope in prison. We raised concerns, including a lack of attention to basic elements of decency and the common use of punitive responses to women in crisis.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons
Read the blog
Earlier this year we found similarly high levels of women on short, fixed-term recalls at Foston Hall and Eastwood Park. Across England and Wales, between April and June 2025, over half (57%) of women serving a recall were on a very short 14-day recall compared to 37% of recalled men (offender management statistics, June 2025).
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
Read the blog
‘Everything is after sentencing’: The experiences of remand prisoners
Prisoners awaiting trial or sentencing have poorer outcomes than those serving a sentence, according to a findings paper from HMI Prisons. Despite making up around a fifth of the prison population, too few jails have developed a strategy to manage these men and women.
Read the report
Find out more about the different areas of our work
Men’s prisons
We inspect every type of men’s prison in England and Wales, from high security to open prisons, private and public sector. Find out about
how we inspect
and
read our reports on men’s prisons
.
Women’s prisons
Women make up less than 4% of the prison population. Read our
Expectations
for the treatment of and conditions for women, and our
reports on women’s prisons
.
Children’s detention
We inspect each establishment in which children are detained every year either for a full inspection or an independent review of progress.
Read our reports on detention for children
.
Immigration detention
Read reports on our inspections of different types of immigration detention:
immigration removal centres
,
short-term holding facilities
and
escorted flights
removing people from the country.
Cookies on HM Inspectorate of Prisons
We use some essential cookies to make this service work.
We’d also like to use analytics cookies so we can understand how you use the service and make improvements.
View cookies
Skip to content
Welcome to HMI Prisons.
We help to make sure that detention in the UK is humane, decent and prepares people for returning to society.
Chief Inspector: overwhelming ingress of illegal drugs is destablising prisons and preventing rehabilitation
“This has been another very difficult year for all those living and working in prisons in England and Wales. I cannot overstate my concern about the rapid and widespread ingress of illicit drugs.”
Read the report
Latest news updates
Reports published 20 April
20 April
Clarity, accessibility and impact: improving our inspection reports
17 April
Drugs, violence and poor regime remain serious threats to stability at HMP Manchester
14 April
Safety, well-being and hope: The untapped potential of family contact in prisons
Too many jails were failing to get the basics right, making it difficult for families to book visits, get to the establishment, and access financial support. When prisoners first arrived in jail it took too long for family members to find out where they were held and to be able to contact them – at a time when prisoners were often at their most vulnerable.
Read the report
A year ago, our ‘Time to care’ thematic report highlighted some inadequate support to help women cope in prison. We raised concerns, including a lack of attention to basic elements of decency and the common use of punitive responses to women in crisis.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons
Read the blog
Earlier this year we found similarly high levels of women on short, fixed-term recalls at Foston Hall and Eastwood Park. Across England and Wales, between April and June 2025, over half (57%) of women serving a recall were on a very short 14-day recall compared to 37% of recalled men (offender management statistics, June 2025).
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
Read the blog
‘Everything is after sentencing’: The experiences of remand prisoners
Prisoners awaiting trial or sentencing have poorer outcomes than those serving a sentence, according to a findings paper from HMI Prisons. Despite making up around a fifth of the prison population, too few jails have developed a strategy to manage these men and women.
Read the report
Find out more about the different areas of our work
Men’s prisons
We inspect every type of men’s prison in England and Wales, from high security to open prisons, private and public sector. Find out about
how we inspect
and
read our reports on men’s prisons
.
Women’s prisons
Women make up less than 4% of the prison population. Read our
Expectations
for the treatment of and conditions for women, and our
reports on women’s prisons
.
Children’s detention
We inspect each establishment in which children are detained every year either for a full inspection or an independent review of progress.
Read our reports on detention for children
.
Immigration detention
Read reports on our inspections of different types of immigration detention:
immigration removal centres
,
short-term holding facilities
and
escorted flights
removing people from the country.