Most prisoners at HMP Durham spent 22 or more hours a day behind their cell doors, prison inspectors found. The regime was barely less restricted than at the previous inspection, which came soon after the pandemic.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons published its report in August 2024. The inspection ended in May 2024.
“The most worrying aspect of this inspection was the limited regime,” wrote the Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor. Men often had to choose between using the electronic kiosk, showering, collecting medication or getting fresh air.
The restrictions persisted even though the prison had a full complement of officers and lower sickness levels.
Durham is a reception and resettlement prison for adult and young adult men, serving courts across large parts of the north of England. It held 985 men, its full operational capacity.
Grades fall in two areas
Inspectors judge every prison against four healthy prison tests: safety, respect, purposeful activity and preparation for release. Purposeful activity covers education, work and time out of cell.
Durham scored not sufficiently good for safety, down from reasonably good at the previous inspection. Purposeful activity fell from not sufficiently good to poor, the lowest grade.
Respect stayed at not sufficiently good. Preparation for release improved from not sufficiently good to reasonably good.
Inspectors raised 12 key concerns, six of them priorities. Of 14 key recommendations from 2021, leaders had achieved four, partly achieved two and not achieved seven.
The most worrying aspect of this inspection was the limited regime; it was barely less restricted than at our last visit which came soon after the pandemic.
Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
Drugs, violence and early days
Taylor said a thriving illicit drugs market was unsurprising in a prison where men spent so long locked up. Easy access to drugs left prisoners in debt. Violence between prisoners had increased significantly.
Staff used PAVA incapacitant spray more than at any other reception prison. Footage showed some staff using it when they had other options. Inspectors said its use was not always defensible.
Arrangements for new arrivals had worsened since the inspectorate criticised them in 2022. More men came through a reception area that was too small, often in large groups in the evening. Too few staff were on duty to carry out safety interviews or health screening.
That left men at risk of self-harm, or with drug or alcohol dependency, without proper checks. Self-harm was increasing. Inspectors found that some men harmed themselves out of basic frustrations, such as unanswered requests and boredom.
Transfers to hospital under the Mental Health Act took too long. Only three of 20 transfers in the previous year met national guidelines.
Crowded cells and too few classes
Overcrowding affected almost every man. Some 86% lived two to a cell designed for one. The prison’s certified normal accommodation, the number it can hold without crowding, stood at 561.
A wing had seen some refurbishment. Elsewhere, many cells and communal areas were dilapidated.
The prison lacked enough activity places for its population. Attendance at education was also poor. The local pay policy rewarded wing cleaning over learning, and leaders offered too few classes in basic English and maths.
Relationships between staff and prisoners were a strength. Unusually, inspectors received very few complaints from men about how staff treated them. Officers said the restricted regime stopped them getting to know the men in their care.
The segregation unit, a concern in 2022, had improved under better leadership. It had a capable staff team who knew their prisoners well.
Release, leadership and follow-up
Staff coped well with the changing timescales of the early release scheme. Even so, nearly a third of men left without anywhere to go, and many returned on recall within days.
Inspectors praised a hub that offered clothing, food and links to probation on the day of release. They also highlighted weekly father-and-child visits and an impressive scheme for care leavers. A family worker trained relatives at visits to use Naloxone, a drug that reverses opiate overdose, and offered kits to take home.
The population moved quickly. The prison received 5,724 new prisoners in the previous year, and 89% of men were on remand or unsentenced.
Since 2022, Durham had seen three governors in quick succession, which slowed progress and unsettled staff. A new governor and deputy had since brought stability. “I left with some optimism about the future,” Taylor wrote.
Durham opened in 1819 and became a reception and resettlement prison in May 2017.
The inspectorate later carried out an independent review of progress at Durham, published in February 2025. That visit assessed progress against the key concerns from this inspection.
About this story
This story is based on HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ report on HMP Durham, published on 19 August 2024, following an inspection that ended in May 2024. All figures and judgements are the inspectorate’s. Read the full inspection report · See the prison’s profile in our directory.
