Magilligan Prison remained a stable and safe place with very little violence, but inspectors found that prisoners had too much access to illicit drugs. The joint inspection report, published in February 2022, also found that the regime stayed restricted as the prison emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Four bodies carried out the unannounced inspection between 21 May and 10 June 2021. They were Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland, HM Inspectorate of Prisons, the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority and the Education and Training Inspectorate. Their report described the drug finding as a concerning exception to an otherwise positive picture of safety.
Magilligan sits on the coast near Limavady. It is one of four prisons on three sites in Northern Ireland. At the time, it held medium security, sentenced adult men, usually on transfer from Maghaberry Prison. The report gave an operational capacity of 510, and about 405 men lived there during the inspection.
How inspectors graded the prison
Inspectors judge every prison against four healthy prison tests. They grade each one as good, reasonably good, not sufficiently good or poor.
Magilligan scored reasonably good for safety. It also scored reasonably good for respect, which covers how staff treat prisoners and the conditions they live in. Rehabilitation and release planning, which looks at how the prison prepares men for life outside, also reached reasonably good.
Purposeful activity fell short. This test covers education, work and time out of cell, and inspectors rated it not sufficiently good.
The Chief Inspectors’ foreword said the overall assessment showed some deterioration since the previous inspection in 2017. It added that this “largely reflected the limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic”. Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons in England and Wales, signed the foreword. So did Jacqui Durkin, Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice in Northern Ireland.
COVID-19 security measures seemed thorough with a commendable feature of Magilligan’s response being the early and brave decision to keep prisoners unlocked during much of the day while managing the pandemic.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons report
Keeping men unlocked through the pandemic
Inspectors gave staff great credit for protecting prisoners and colleagues over the preceding 18 months. They described the COVID-19 security measures as thorough.
One decision stood out. The report praised “the early and brave decision to keep prisoners unlocked during much of the day while managing the pandemic”. Inspectors contrasted this with England and Wales, where most prisoners had spent long periods locked in their cells.
The report said the Magilligan approach supported prisoner wellbeing. Prisoners had, to a great extent, respected it in return.
Inspectors also found very little violence. They said the prison’s approach to safeguarding vulnerable men enabled good oversight and co-ordination of personalised care. At the time, 40 individuals were on the safer custody caseload, which tracks men thought to be at risk.
Drugs, medication and the regime
Drugs formed the main safety concern. The report pointed to access to illicit substances and high rates of positive drug tests. It recorded that 228 individuals received support for substance use during the inspection.
Inspectors also raised medication held by prisoners in their own cells. They said monitoring needed attention so that each medicine helped the patient it was meant for, rather than passing to someone else.
Access to the regime remained restricted. Inspectors said the prison had not realised the benefits of learning and skills work with individuals or small groups in a safe setting. They wanted more ambition. In their words, “The prison needed to show greater ambition in its approach to recovery”.
The foreword urged leaders to rethink how they managed risk so they could open up the regime faster. It also called for more encouragement to partners, service providers and other stakeholders to return to the prison and take part again.
The environment needed renewal too. Much of the accommodation required refurbishment, and inspectors felt cleanliness should have been better. Prisoners, however, took good care of their own cells, and this offset some of the shortcomings.
Staff, leadership and what came next
Inspectors described Magilligan as a respectful institution with some very impressive staff. They observed good relationships between staff and prisoners. The prison also continued to deliver some reasonable resettlement outcomes, which cover support for men preparing for release.
The inspection came at a time of change. A senior governor had recently returned and had quickly begun to set a new agenda with energy and ideas. This included a review of complaint procedures, and attention to how the prison handled complaints about staff.
Leaders had a high profile around the prison. A new vision focused on training and resettlement was at an early stage, and inspectors said the whole team needed to know, understand and support it. The foreword concluded that there was every reason to be optimistic about the future of Magilligan.
The population profile showed that 18% of men were aged over 55, and 13 were foreign nationals. The prison ran several low supervision units focused on resettlement, plus one working-out unit outside the main site.
Inspectors have reported on Magilligan again since, with an independent review of progress published in February 2024 and a full inspection published in March 2026.
About this story
This story is based on HM Inspectorate of Prisons’ report on Magilligan Prison, published on 28 February 2022, following an inspection that ended in June 2021. It covers an earlier inspection: the prison’s profile has the latest findings. All figures and judgements are the inspectorate’s. Read the full inspection report · See the prison’s profile in our directory.
