HMP Lancaster Farms had a positive, safe and respectful culture, inspectors found, and its work to prepare men for release had improved. But the prison had activity places for only about a third of its population. Nearly a quarter of men stayed locked up during the working day.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons published its report in December 2022. Inspectors completed their fieldwork in August 2022.
Lancaster Farms opened in 1993 just outside Lancaster, first as a remand centre and young offender institution. Since 2014 it has served as a category C resettlement prison for adult men. It held 544 men at the time of the inspection, against an operational capacity of 560. Almost 80% of new arrivals came by transfer from HMP Preston.
An encouraging set of grades
The inspectorate judges prisons against four healthy prison tests. At the time these were safety, respect, purposeful activity, and rehabilitation and release planning. Purposeful activity covers education, work and time out of cell.
Inspectors rated Lancaster Farms reasonably good for safety, respect, and rehabilitation and release planning. They judged purposeful activity not sufficiently good.
At the previous full inspection, published in March 2019, rehabilitation and release planning scored not sufficiently good. The other three grades stayed the same.
Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, summed up the visit plainly. “Overall, this was an encouraging inspection,” he wrote. He added that outcomes in purposeful activity needed to improve radically.
Safety, drugs and self-harm
Many safety indicators were positive. Men said staff treated them well on arrival, and each received a private, thorough interview about potential vulnerability. Violence had fallen since the last inspection. Use of segregation had more than halved, and use of force had also reduced.
Staff investigated violent incidents promptly and thoroughly. Leaders identified bullying and debt linked to vapes as the main drivers of violence. Measures to stop men building up debt lacked rigour, however.
Footage that inspectors reviewed showed good de-escalation. But staff often did not use body-worn video cameras. That made it hard for leaders to be confident every use of force was justified and proportionate.
Illicit substances remained a considerable threat. Substance misuse services were good, but inspectors called for a more joined-up response across departments. Recorded self-harm had begun to rise, although a very small number of individuals accounted for many incidents. Leaders named debt and boredom as the main drivers. Men who had been through a self-harm crisis told inspectors they received good care.
Too little to do
Inspectors set out 13 key concerns, three of them priorities. The first priority concern said there was not enough purposeful activity, and too many men spent too long locked up.
Ofsted, working alongside the inspectorate, judged education, skills and work as requires improvement. Teaching staff did not plan learning around men’s starting points and goals. They did not develop employability skills, including English and maths, well enough. Many men found themselves on courses they had not chosen. Face-to-face sessions often did not go ahead when staff were on leave.
The prison offered no work opportunities through release on temporary licence, which lets men work outside the prison before release. Men also lacked high-quality careers advice throughout their sentences.
The Chief Inspector of Prisons said building an active and challenging regime was arguably the central purpose of a resettlement prison. He called it a key priority for Lancaster Farms. Leaders hoped proposed new staffing profiles would let them target resources better as a first step.
Relationships and living conditions
Relationships between staff and prisoners were a clear strength. Inspectors saw relaxed and friendly interactions, and most men said they had a member of staff they could turn to. Key work, which aims to give men meaningful support and challenge from a named officer, was inconsistent.
The grounds were open, pleasant and very well maintained, which inspectors said boosted men’s sense of well-being. Most men lived in single cells. However, 70 men were doubled up in cells and so lived in overcrowded conditions. Some cells were shabby, flooring repairs took too long and ventilation was often poor. The prison had made welcome improvements to showers.
Health care faced problems. Too few escorts were available for hospital appointments, and staff routinely cancelled many of them. Waiting times for a dentist remained high.
Work to promote fairness and equality had not been a priority, and oversight of outcomes for minority groups was insufficient. The recent appointment of a manager responsible for equality was a necessary first step.
The Chief Inspector of Prisons judged leadership reasonably good and the staff group settled and engaged. He said the prison very much had the potential to be a high performing institution.
About this story
This story is based on HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ report on HMP Lancaster Farms, published on 2 December 2022, following an inspection that ended in August 2022. All figures and judgements are the inspectorate’s. Read the full inspection report · See the prison’s profile in our directory.
