Littlehey (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison Littlehey is a Category C
men's prison
, located in the village of Perry
(near Huntingdon
) in Cambridgeshire
, England
. Littlehey Prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
.
Youth Custody Centre, and was used as a borstal
for juvenile males from 1945 to 1983, when the establishment was closed and demolished. Littlehey was built in its place and opened as a Category C prison for adult males in 1988.
in April 2003 an inspection report from Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
criticised Littlehey Prison for not helping inmates integrate back into society. The report found that "prisoners needed more help with finding jobs and accommodation before their release", but noted positively that the staff had good relationships with the prisoners and were doing better managing the health care of prisoners.
Littlehey Prison provides a range of work provision for inmates including accredited vocational training courses in Forklift Trucks, carpentry
, joinery
, motor mechanics, hospitality and PICTA (Cisco IT Essentials, PNIE & BCS ECDL). Educational classes range from basic and key skills to degree level learning.
In January 2010, HMP Littlehey will open a large expansion to its current site to accommodate a population of up to 480 Young Offenders. This significant investment at the Littlehey site has allowed for the addition of four new accommodation blocks, an all weather sports pitch and state of the art Gymnasium, Adult Learning and Kitchen buildings. The regime will focus upon providing Young Offenders with a portfolio of skills and qualifications to change their futures. Employability and functional skills will be at the centre of the establishment's drive towards Reducing Re-offending adding to Littlehey's already successful and forward thinking, integrated regime.
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 village of Perry
Perry, Cambridgeshire
Perry is a small village in Cambridgeshire, England. It lies on the shore of a reservoir, Grafham Water, just a few miles from the market towns of St Neots and Huntingdon....
(near Huntingdon
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was chartered by King John in 1205. It is the traditional county town of Huntingdonshire, and is currently the seat of the Huntingdonshire district council. It is known as the birthplace in 1599 of Oliver Cromwell.-History:Huntingdon...
) in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, 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...
. Littlehey 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
The site was originally known as Gaynes HallGaynes Hall
Gaynes Hall is a Grade II* listed Georgian mansion set in of parkland in the heart of the Cambridgeshire countryside. Located in the village of Perry, Huntingdon the building was requisitioned during the Second World War and was also residence of Sir Oliver Cromwell for 21 years.Currently it is...
Youth Custody Centre, and was used as a borstal
Borstal
A borstal was a type of youth prison in the United Kingdom, run by the Prison Service and intended to reform seriously delinquent young people. The word is sometimes used loosely to apply to other kinds of youth institution or reformatory, such as Approved Schools and Detention Centres. The court...
for juvenile males from 1945 to 1983, when the establishment was closed and demolished. Littlehey was built in its place and opened as a Category C prison for adult males in 1988.
in April 2003 an inspection report from Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons is the head of HM Inspectorate of Prisons and the senior inspector of prisons, young offender institutions and immigration service detention and removal centres in England and Wales...
criticised Littlehey Prison for not helping inmates integrate back into society. The report found that "prisoners needed more help with finding jobs and accommodation before their release", but noted positively that the staff had good relationships with the prisoners and were doing better managing the health care of prisoners.
The prison today
Littlehey is a purpose-built category C prison for adult males. Accommodation at Littlehey comprisies of 8 residential units, 2 of which are 'Ready to Use' units, one added in 1997 and the second in 2003. Most cells are single occupancy but there are some shared cells.Littlehey Prison provides a range of work provision for inmates including accredited vocational training courses in Forklift Trucks, carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
, joinery
Joiner
A joiner differs from a carpenter in that joiners cut and fit joints in wood that do not use nails. Joiners usually work in a workshop since the formation of various joints generally requires non-portable machinery. A carpenter normally works on site...
, motor mechanics, hospitality and PICTA (Cisco IT Essentials, PNIE & BCS ECDL). Educational classes range from basic and key skills to degree level learning.
In January 2010, HMP Littlehey will open a large expansion to its current site to accommodate a population of up to 480 Young Offenders. This significant investment at the Littlehey site has allowed for the addition of four new accommodation blocks, an all weather sports pitch and state of the art Gymnasium, Adult Learning and Kitchen buildings. The regime will focus upon providing Young Offenders with a portfolio of skills and qualifications to change their futures. Employability and functional skills will be at the centre of the establishment's drive towards Reducing Re-offending adding to Littlehey's already successful and forward thinking, integrated regime.
Former inmates
- Stephen DowningStephen DowningThe Stephen Downing case involved the conviction and imprisonment in 1974 of a 17-year-old council worker, Stephen Downing, for the murder of a 32 year old legal secretary, Wendy Sewell, in the town of Bakewell in the Peak District. Following a campaign by a local newspaper, his conviction was...
- Lord BrockettCharles Nall-Cain, 3rd Baron BrocketCharles Ronald George Nall-Cain, 3rd Baron Brocket , also known as Charlie Brocket, is a peer, former prisoner and television presenter in the United Kingdom....
- Roger TookRoger TookRoger F. Took is an art historian, museum curator, author and convicted child sex offender who has lived in London, Ireland, and Russia. In the course of his career, he ran several museums in England, was a fellow of the Royal Geographic Society, and a former director of the Barbican Art Gallery....