Buckley Hall (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison
Buckley Hall is a Category C
men's prison
, located in the Buckley
district of Rochdale
in Greater Manchester
, England
. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
.
. After World War II
the old mansion was demolished and Buckley Hall Young Offenders Institution was built in its place, The site acted as a prison for young males until 1989. After that date the hall was used by the Prison Service as a venue to Control & Restraint training (C & R).
In 1994 the majority of the old prison was demolished, and a new Category C prison for adult males was constructed in its place. The new Buckley Hall prison was initially operated by Group 4 Prison Services, and was the fourth private prison
to be run in the UK. However, after a tendering process in June 2000 the establishment reverted to Prison Service
control. Buckley Hall therefore has the distinction of being the only currently operating prison in the UK to be taken back into the public sector
. However, management of the prison was due to be re-tendered in 2010. However, the change of Government delayed the process and the preferred bidder for the contract is due to be announched at the end of March 2011.
In November 2001 the Prison Service announced that Buckley Hall would be converted to take female inmates after increased demand for women's places in prison. The first female prisoners arrived in April 2002, but the prison was back in the news a year later after the Prison Reform Trust
criticised Buckley Hall for being dangerously overcrowded. In 2004 the prison was criticised again for not being adequately prepared after it was converted from a men's prison.
Buckley Hall did not remain as a women's prison for long. In 2005 (as a result of population pressures in prisons for men) it was announced that Buckley Hall would be converted back to a Category C male prison. Male prisoners began arriving at Buckley Hall on December 5, 2005.
Since its conversion back to a Male Category C establishment, the Prison has consistently performed well against the Prison Service's Key Performance Targets (KPT's). It is viewed as a progressive, modern thinking establishment which offers prisoners a variety of opportunities to better themselves prior to their release.
The announcement concerning the future managership of the establishment was made on 31 March 2011 and coincided with announcements for three other prison contracts. HM Prison Buckley Hall was the only one to remain within the Prison Service management, which is testament to the quality of work undertaken by all the staff employed there.
area. Transferred inmates from other prisons must be within nine months of their Parole Eligibility Date.
Accommodation at the prison is split into three units, with an additional Care and Separation Unit for vulnerable prisoners. Due to the residential units at Buckley Hall being on a 1:15 incline, the prison is unable to accept prisoners with mobility or heart problems. All cells have full integral sanitation and in-cell TV.
Education and training at the prison is contracted out to The Manchester College
. Courses and workshops include Adult Basic Education, Open Learning, Information Technology
, Art and Design, Key Skills, Life & Social Skills. Barbering, Industrial Cleaning, Painting and Decorating and Construction
. The prison also has a library.
Other facilities at Buckley Hall include tables for pool
, table football
and table tennis
, as well as board games and a video library. There is also a gym
and sports pitches, as well as a full-time prison chaplaincy. There is also a health centre for prisoners on site.
The capacity of the establishment will increase in March 2011, with the introduction of a new accommodation unit built within the grounds. The newly built unit will house an additional 60 men which will increase capacity to 445.
Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of the Government of the United Kingdom tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales...
Buckley Hall is a Category C
Prison security categories in the United Kingdom
There are four prisoner security categories in the United Kingdom used to classify every adult prisoner for the purposes of assigning them to a prison. The categories are based upon the severity of the crime and the risk posed should the person escape....
men's prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
, located in the Buckley
Buckley, Greater Manchester
Buckley is a suburban area within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies at the northern fringe of Rochdale, along the course of Buckley Brook, "upon an eminence of ground" by the South Pennines. It is south-southwest of the village of Wardle and ...
district of Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of the Government of the United Kingdom tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales...
.
History
Buckley Hall takes its name from a historic house which previously occupied the site, by the name of Buckley HallBuckley Hall
Buckley Hall was a historic house in the hamlet of Buckley, in the Wardleworth township of the Parish of Rochdale, Lancashire - what is now a district of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England....
. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the old mansion was demolished and Buckley Hall Young Offenders Institution was built in its place, The site acted as a prison for young males until 1989. After that date the hall was used by the Prison Service as a venue to Control & Restraint training (C & R).
In 1994 the majority of the old prison was demolished, and a new Category C prison for adult males was constructed in its place. The new Buckley Hall prison was initially operated by Group 4 Prison Services, and was the fourth private prison
Private prison
A private prison, jail, or detention center is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned by a third party that is contracted by a government agency...
to be run in the UK. However, after a tendering process in June 2000 the establishment reverted to Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of the Government of the United Kingdom tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales...
control. Buckley Hall therefore has the distinction of being the only currently operating prison in the UK to be taken back into the public sector
Public sector
The public sector, sometimes referred to as the state sector, is a part of the state that deals with either the production, delivery and allocation of goods and services by and for the government or its citizens, whether national, regional or local/municipal.Examples of public sector activity range...
. However, management of the prison was due to be re-tendered in 2010. However, the change of Government delayed the process and the preferred bidder for the contract is due to be announched at the end of March 2011.
In November 2001 the Prison Service announced that Buckley Hall would be converted to take female inmates after increased demand for women's places in prison. The first female prisoners arrived in April 2002, but the prison was back in the news a year later after the Prison Reform Trust
Prison Reform Trust
The Prison Reform Trust was founded in 1981 in London, England by a small group of prison reform campaigners who were unhappy with the direction in which the Howard League for Penal Reform was heading, concentrating more on community punishments than on traditional prison reform issues...
criticised Buckley Hall for being dangerously overcrowded. In 2004 the prison was criticised again for not being adequately prepared after it was converted from a men's prison.
Buckley Hall did not remain as a women's prison for long. In 2005 (as a result of population pressures in prisons for men) it was announced that Buckley Hall would be converted back to a Category C male prison. Male prisoners began arriving at Buckley Hall on December 5, 2005.
Since its conversion back to a Male Category C establishment, the Prison has consistently performed well against the Prison Service's Key Performance Targets (KPT's). It is viewed as a progressive, modern thinking establishment which offers prisoners a variety of opportunities to better themselves prior to their release.
The announcement concerning the future managership of the establishment was made on 31 March 2011 and coincided with announcements for three other prison contracts. HM Prison Buckley Hall was the only one to remain within the Prison Service management, which is testament to the quality of work undertaken by all the staff employed there.
The prison today
Buckley Hall Prison houses sentenced male Category C prisoners, primarily from the ManchesterManchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
area. Transferred inmates from other prisons must be within nine months of their Parole Eligibility Date.
Accommodation at the prison is split into three units, with an additional Care and Separation Unit for vulnerable prisoners. Due to the residential units at Buckley Hall being on a 1:15 incline, the prison is unable to accept prisoners with mobility or heart problems. All cells have full integral sanitation and in-cell TV.
Education and training at the prison is contracted out to The Manchester College
The Manchester College
The Manchester College is a further education college in Manchester, England. It opened on 1 August 2008 as the result of a merger between City College Manchester and Manchester College of Arts and Technology to form a 'supercollege'...
. Courses and workshops include Adult Basic Education, Open Learning, Information Technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
, Art and Design, Key Skills, Life & Social Skills. Barbering, Industrial Cleaning, Painting and Decorating and Construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
. The prison also has a library.
Other facilities at Buckley Hall include tables for pool
Pocket billiards
Pool, also more formally known as pocket billiards or pool billiards , is the family of cue sports and games played on a pool table having six receptacles called pockets along the , into which balls are deposited as the main goal of play. Popular versions include eight-ball and nine-ball...
, table football
Table football
Table football, also known as gitoni or foosball, is a table-top game and sport that is loosely based on association football.-Names:...
and table tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
, as well as board games and a video library. There is also a gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
and sports pitches, as well as a full-time prison chaplaincy. There is also a health centre for prisoners on site.
The capacity of the establishment will increase in March 2011, with the introduction of a new accommodation unit built within the grounds. The newly built unit will house an additional 60 men which will increase capacity to 445.