HMP Lowdham Grange struggling after handover to new operator, inspectors found in 2023

HMP Lowdham Grange was struggling in the months after a new private company took it over, according to an inspection report published in August 2023.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) visited the prison near Nottingham between 15 and 26 May 2023. Inspectors found an atmosphere of uncertainty and anxiety. Staff and prisoners were keen to share their concerns and their general dissatisfaction with how they were being treated.

“Lowdham Grange was struggling,” wrote HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor. He added that this was to some extent predictable, given the change of provider.

A prison in transition

Lowdham Grange is a privately run category B training prison for adult men. Many of its prisoners had committed very serious offences. It opened in 1998, and Serco ran it for 25 years. After a competition, Sodexo took over on 16 February 2023. It was the first time that management of a prison had passed from one private provider to another.

At the time of the inspection the prison held 892 men, against an operational capacity of 908. Some 97% were serving sentences of more than four years, and about a third of those were serving indeterminate sentences.

Leaders faced many problems. Some key and specialist staff had left. Staff and prisoners did not understand new routines and expectations, and many felt communication was poor. A very experienced new director had arrived at short notice. Inspectors said he appeared to understand the scale of the challenge.

Lowdham Grange was struggling. To some extent this was predictable in the context of transition from one provider to another.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons

How inspectors graded the prison

Inspectors judge every prison against four healthy prison tests. At the time these covered safety, respect, purposeful activity and rehabilitation and release planning. Purposeful activity covers education, work and time out of cell.

Lowdham Grange scored not sufficiently good for safety, respect and rehabilitation and release planning. It scored poor, the lowest grade, for purposeful activity. The Chief Inspector of Prisons described this as a significant deterioration since the previous inspection in 2018.

Of six recommendations on key concerns from 2018, the prison had achieved one and had not achieved the other five.

Deaths, self-harm and safety

Of greatest concern were 14 prisoner deaths since the last inspection. Six were self-inflicted. Three deaths happened in March 2023, shortly after the handover. Staff and prisoners speculated that uncertainty and change had played a part. Inspectors found continuing high levels of self-harm and an indifferent approach to oversight and intervention.

The prison was not safe enough. Recorded violence was lower than in 2018 but had risen in recent months, and it remained high compared with similar prisons. Drugs were readily available. Many staff lacked experience and the confidence to supervise effectively.

Oversight of the use of force and segregation was not good enough. Leaders had not consistently investigated allegations of staff misconduct. Inspectors heard about very poor behaviour by some staff in the segregation unit. Too many prisoners spent long periods segregated without a decent regime. The inspectorate’s staff survey showed low morale and mistrust of the new leadership.

Health care suffered from significant staff shortages and weak oversight. The Care Quality Commission, which regulates health services, served the health care provider with a warning notice in June 2023.

Locked up, and what came next

“The prison was failing to fulfil its rehabilitative function,” the Chief Inspector of Prisons wrote. Unlock often happened sporadically. Spot checks found more than 40% of prisoners locked up during the working day. Men spent between three and nine hours out of cell, depending on whether they had work. Inspectors said prisoners’ frustration was palpable.

Ofsted, which inspects prison education with HMIP, judged every aspect of work and education inadequate, its lowest grade. The curriculum was too narrow, and the prison had no reading strategy. Prisoners with additional learning needs did not get the support they needed.

Many prisoners posed a high risk of harm. However, offender management, public protection and resettlement all needed to improve. The number of men leaving the prison was rising, yet it had no dedicated resettlement staff or housing support.

Some things helped. The proportion of prisoners who felt respected matched similar prisons, and living conditions were good. Inspectors found little evidence of unfair treatment of prisoners with protected characteristics.

Inspectors have reported on the prison again since, with independent reviews of progress published in February 2024 and June 2026, and a full inspection published in June 2025.