HMP Fosse Way makes a commendable start but violence too high, first inspection finds

HMP Fosse Way, one of the UK’s newest prisons, had made a commendable start but needed to get violence under control, according to the inspectorate’s first report on the jail, published in June 2025.

Inspectors visited the category C resettlement prison near Leicester in March 2025. Serco runs the prison, which opened in May 2023 on the site of the former Glen Parva jail. It has space for more than 1,700 men.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said opening and commissioning the prison seemed to have gone very well. He wrote that leaders and staff “should be congratulated on what they had achieved so far”.

Three reasonably good grades

Fosse Way scored reasonably good for respect, for purposeful activity and for preparation for release. Purposeful activity covers education, work and time out of cell. Preparation for release looks at resettlement work before men leave.

Safety was the exception, rated not sufficiently good. As this was the first inspection, inspectors had no earlier concerns against which to measure progress.

At the time of the visit the prison held 1,705 men, against an operational capacity of 1,715. It took in 2,211 new prisoners a year. Work on a further house block was under way.

Leaders and staff should be congratulated on what they had achieved so far and encouraged to maintain the momentum they have created.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons

Violence, drugs and force

Violence was too high and rising, and many prisoners told inspectors they felt unsafe. A prisoner had recently lost his life in a serious incident. Leaders had introduced several useful initiatives, but evidence of their impact remained limited.

Drugs were widely available. The rate of positive mandatory drug tests over the previous 12 months ranked among the highest of all category C prisons. Leaders had focused on cutting supply but had done too little to reduce demand.

Inspectors also noted the number of deaths since the prison opened, two of them self-inflicted. The Chief Inspector of Prisons said leaders were not passive in their response, but their initiatives needed time to develop.

The overall use of force was similar to other category C prisons. However, staff turned too readily to batons, PAVA incapacitant spray and unfurnished cells. Some did not do enough to calm incidents down first. The Chief Inspector of Prisons suggested this may have reflected their inexperience.

The Listener scheme, in which trained prisoners offer confidential support to others in crisis, was underused. Reception interviews did not always explore risk factors. On a more positive note, the segregation unit was a good facility and reasonably well run.

Strong conditions, inexperienced staff

Fosse Way offered some of the best living conditions of any prison in England and Wales. Inspectors also found good amenities and reasonable systems for requests and complaints. The prison worked hard on inclusion and fair treatment, with staff from the Zahid Mubarek Trust on site to support that work.

Staff inexperience was a recurring theme. Some 80% of prison custody officers had less than two years in the job. Relationships with prisoners were, at best, benign, according to the Chief Inspector of Prisons. Men grew frustrated that staff lacked knowledge and could not run a consistent daily routine.

Leaders had a robust recruitment strategy and invested in staff development. Inspectors said middle managers needed to spend more time on the wings to support newer officers.

Health care outcomes were satisfactory and improving. Yet a lack of escort staff often delayed hospital appointments, and transfers to secure hospital beds under the Mental Health Act took too long.

Work, education and release

Time out of cell beat what inspectors usually see. Almost 1,000 men worked full time and spent about nine hours a day unlocked. Even so, checks during the working day found about 28% of men locked in their cells.

Ofsted, which inspects prison education, rated the overall effectiveness of education, skills and work as good. Attendance at classes still fell short, and pass rates in English and maths were too low.

Public protection work was good, and the prison encouraged family contact. High caseloads, however, limited meaningful contact between prisoners and their prison offender managers.

Inspectors found five examples of notable positive practice. These included a ‘departure lounge’ that helped men on the day of release, and a full-time bereavement officer in the chaplaincy. Prisoners also ran a support initiative called Gravity and a telephone advice line for fellow prisoners.

Inspectors raised 13 key concerns, four of them priorities. The Chief Inspector of Prisons encouraged leaders to keep up the momentum they had created.