A PRISON near Rugby has ‘shown what is possible when rehabilitation is placed at the heart of prison life’, according to a new report.
In its 2024–25 annual report, the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) for HMP Rye Hill found that the prison, privately-run by G4S, was ‘delivering exceptional safety outcomes’ and ‘developing successful prisoner-led initiatives and a sense of pride in the prison community’.
The prison, near Willoughby, successfully transitioned from category B to the lower-security category C in March with few transfers to other prisons – an achievement which the report says reflects ‘careful management, stability, and a strong rehabilitative ethos’.
The IMB praised the prison for reducing the number of self-harm incidents from 343 to 235, despite a population increase.
It found drug use to be ‘exceptionally low’ and levels of violence reduced, with prisoners generally reporting feeling safe.
The report also singled out positive staff-prisoner relationships, prisoner-led initiatives, and key worker sessions for praise.
IMB Rye Hill Chair, Pete Griffiths, said: “This is a largely exceptional prison.
“During the reporting year the operational capacity increased from 664 to 840 and the prison transitioned from a category B to a category C prison.
“Maintaining a stable regime throughout the transition has taken commitment, professionalism, compassion and a lot of hard work.”
He added that Rye Hill’s prisoner-led initiatives had been developed over a number of years.
An HMP Rye Hill spokesperson said: “We are pleased that the IMB recognises the dedication of our staff and our commitment to rehabilitate prisoners.”
The report also raised national concerns about those serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences, whose mental health ‘continues to be negatively impacted’.
It added: “Despite commendable individual work being completed with IPP prisoners at Rye Hill, many feel stuck or unclear about how to progress. The compassionate release process is still unnecessarily difficult, and three out of four applications this year were not completed before the prisoner died – raising concerns about delays in decision-making and the requirement for a narrow medical prognosis window.”
Campbell Robb, Chief Executive of social justice charity Nacro, said: “The poor mental health of people serving IPP sentences and the difficult process for compassionate release is extremely worrying and something that is common across the prison estate.
“The indefinite nature of IPP sentences is cruel and leaves families devastated, which is why we continue to call for them to be reviewed, and for better support for those affected by them.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “It is absolutely right that the IPP sentence was abolished, and we have significantly improved support for those still in custody, with greater access to rehabilitation and mental health support.
“There is more work to do as we reduce the number of IPP offenders in custody but we will only do so in a way that protects the public.”
