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Complaint investigation summaries

Read summaries of upheld and partially upheld investigations into complaints on this page. We keep information brief to protect the identities of people involved and we may decide not to publish a summary if the person making the complaint might be identified from it. Please visit our archive site to view complaint summaries published before February 2024.

Every month we publish statistics about the number of investigations we have completed and our decision for each one.

Use the search box below to search complaints by prison name or location.

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91 complaints summaries

Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Birmingham

Complaint category:
Property
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that some of their property had been lost by HMP Birmingham on transfer. The IPCI investigation established although a PER had been completed, it had no detail of any bags transferred or the seal numbers, therefore it was impossible to establish what had been transferred or what had been lost.
Recommendations/outcome:
We recommended that the prisoner receive compensation based on what he reasonably had in possession prior to the transfer and which was not subsequently listed as arriving at the new establishment.

Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP North Sea Camp

Complaint category:
Categorisation, progression & release preparation
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about the delays to the completion of his application for ROTL. The investigation established that the community offender manager had not completed the required contribution within the four-week window, and this was because the case had been reallocated and overlooked.
Recommendations/outcome:
The relevant community manager accepted responsibility for staff failings, and to address the issue with the relevant member of staff. During the course of the investigation a successful ROTL application was completed.

Partially Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Whatton

Complaint category:
Administration
Status:
Partially upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about a delay to a response relating to published servery times. Our investigation established that during the period of his complaint the complaints clerk had left the service which had resulted in some disruptions to complaint handling.
Recommendations/outcome:
We are satisfied that following changes to staffing, there are now robust complaints handling processes in place.

Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Lincoln

Complaint category:
Property
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that his property had been lost by HMP Lincoln. During the course of the IPCI investigation the prison accepted they had not completed the correct cell clearance process and offered compensation for the items the prisoner lost.
Recommendations/outcome:
We agreed that the compensation offered accurately reflected a reasonable cost for replacement of the items.

Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Featherstone

Complaint category:
Property
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that his property had been lost by HMP Featherstone on transfer to Stoke Heath. The IPCI investigation established that his property was not listed on the PER, and instead been sent on to his new establishment by courier. There was no evidence of what had been sent on or any other way to establish what had been sent or arrived.
Recommendations/outcome:
We recommended that the prisoner receive compensation based on what he reasonably had in possession prior to the transfer and which was not subsequently listed as arriving at the new establishment.

Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Swaleside

Complaint category:
Accommodation, food, education & other facilities
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that they did not receive the meals they ordered from the menu.
Recommendations/outcome:
The prison discussed the prisoners dietary requirements with the kitchen staff to ensure that he received meals that met his requirements and confirmed they would monitor the situation going forward.

Partially upheld complaint against the Governor at HMP Lewes

Complaint category:
Staff behaviour
Status:
Partially upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained he had been bullied, harassed and victimised by a member of staff and that his cell bell was not answered within the correct timeframe. While there was no evidence to support allegations of bullying, harassment and victimisation, the investigation found grounds to uphold the complaint in relation to the cell bell not being answered.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI had made recommendations to resolve the issue with cell bells at HMP Lewes in another case report, issued in parallel to this case report.

Partially upheld complaint against the Governor at HMP Lewes

Complaint category:
Administration
Status:
Partially upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained he had not had access to a GP while in the Care & Separation Unit (CSU) in line with the requirements of HMPPS policy.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI partially upheld the complaint but did not make recommendations because the prison had since accepted its failings and taken steps to rectify the situation.

Upheld complaint against the Governor at HMP Wakefield

Complaint category:
Visits, calls & letters
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that his mail had gone missing and that this constituted a data breach. The prison was not able to provide any evidence as to whether the mail had been received or not, as they did not have a system in place for prisoners to sign to confirm receipt of their mail.
Recommendations/outcome:
The complaint was upheld because of the lack of evidence provided by the prison. However, the prison has since amended its procedures to avoid this issue happening again in future.

Upheld complaint against the Governor at HMP Wakefield

Complaint category:
Visits, calls & letters
Status:
Upheld
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that he had not received his mail on several occasions. The prison was not able to provide any evidence as to whether the mail had been received by the prisoner or not, as they did not have a system in place for prisoners to sign to confirm receipt of their mail.
Recommendations/outcome:
The complaint was upheld because of the lack of evidence provided by the prison. However, the prison has since amended its procedures to avoid this issue happening again in future.