Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Full Sutton
Complaint category:
Visits, calls & letters
Month investigation completed:
October
Year investigation completed:
2024
A prisoner complained about significant delays to the delivery of his legal mail. The IPCI investigation established that whilst the delays weren’t specifically lengthy, there had been some problems with the delivery of this prisoner's letters, including confusion around what was withheld.
Recommendations/outcome:
We recommended the prison apologise for the delays and tighten arrangements around monitoring withheld R39 mail.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Ranby
Complaint category:
Staff behaviour
Month investigation completed:
October
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that disproportionate force was used against them. During the course of the IPCI investigation, we discovered that BWVC footage was missing, and that CCTV wing footage had not been retained, we were therefore unable to fully ascertain the events that occurred.
Recommendations/outcome:
We recommended that the Use of Force committee revisit the importance of using BWVC during a Use of Force incident and cascade this to staff in a Use of Force refresher training. We also recommended that HMP Ranby take steps to retain CCTV footage wherein an incident has been recorded for a period of 12 months. The recommendations were accepted by HMP Ranby.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP The Mount
Complaint category:
Property
Month investigation completed:
October
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that HMP The Mount destroyed his liquid toiletries which arrived in his follow-on property. The prison said that this was their policy and was for security reasons.
Recommendations/outcome:
We upheld the complaint on the grounds that the prison should not be uniformly destroying property. We recommended that HMP The Mount offered the complainant compensation for the destroyed toiletries, and that the prison changes its policy so that prisoners who transfer in are given the opportunity to post toiletries out or hand them out on a visit.
Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Long Lartin
Complaint category:
Adjudication & IEP
Month investigation completed:
October
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that he had been denied legal representation for an adjudication. The IPCI investigation found paperwork to confirm he had requested this. In addition, there was nothing on the record of hearing to show the adjudicator properly considered this request.
Recommendations/outcome:
We found that the finding was unsafe and asked that the adjudication be quashed. We feel this complaint could have been resolved without referral to IPCI.
Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Dovegate
Complaint category:
Adjudication & IEP
Month investigation completed:
October
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about an adjudication process where he had not been given the opportunity to seek legal advice.
The IPCI investigation found that the paperwork was unclear and did not show that he was given the opportunity to seek legal advice. In addition, several text boxes during the preliminary stage of the adjudication were not completed.
Recommendations/outcome:
We found that the finding was unsafe and asked that the adjudication be quashed. We feel this complaint could have been resolved without referral to IPCI.
Upheld complaint against the Governor at HMP Wakefield
Complaint category:
Adjudication & IEP
Month investigation completed:
September
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained that the prison had not followed policy when issuing him with a behaviour warning and that the punishment he received was disproportionate. The prison acknowledged that the relevant paperwork had gone astray, but that procedures had been changed to address this, and the warning was rescinded.
Recommendations/outcome:
We made no recommendations in this case because the prison had addressed the issue of the IEP paperwork and rescinded the warning. However, we did point out that the matter could have been dealt with by the prison rather than coming to IPCI. We feel this complaint could have been resolved without referral to IPCI.
Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Five Wells
Complaint category:
Accommodation, food, education & other facilities
Month investigation completed:
September
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about the quantity of food being served at HMP Five Wells. Both HMIP and the IMB had highlighted concerns about the quality and quantity of food being served. It appeared that although the kitchen was providing the specified quantities of food to the wing, the servery workers were not allocating it equally. However, following the IPCI investigation serveries were more closely supervised by a senior manager at the prison.
Recommendations/outcome:
No formal recommendations were required as the prison was already making improvements to the process.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Styal
Complaint category:
Administration
Month investigation completed:
September
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner’s representatives complained about the conduct of a Level 2 search, and that they were not provided with the search paperwork that they had requested.
Recommendations/outcome:
The IPCI investigation found that the decision to carry out a Level 2 search was not unreasonable, and that the search was conducted in accordance with the policy. However, the investigation found that an intelligence report was not submitted after the incident, and that HMP Styal either did not complete or retain the search paperwork as they were unable to provide this to the investigator. We recommended that the Governor demonstrated the processes for ensuring that searches were recorded in line with policy and that intelligence reports were submitted as required.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Ranby
Complaint category:
Administration
Month investigation completed:
September
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about incorrect information recorded in a NOMIS entry about him appearing to be under the influence of a substance.
Recommendations/outcome:
After the IPCI investigation into this matter, we recommended that the Governor of HMP Ranby should arrange for the NOMIS entry to be removed or amended to reflect that the prisoner’s appearance could have been related to a known medical condition, rather than the prisoner being under the influence.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Nottingham
Complaint category:
Property
Month investigation completed:
September
Year investigation completed:
2024
The prisoner complained about missing bank statements which had been kept in his stored property at HMP Nottingham.
Recommendations/outcome:
The bank statements could not be located so the complaint was upheld, but as they could not be retrieved by IPCI, we advised the prisoner to contact his bank for replacement statements. We also suggested reporting the loss of personal information to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
