Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Coldingley
Complaint category:
Property
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he was not allowed a jacket in possession. The prison said that it was not allowed because of its dark colour, and this decision was in line with the local facilities list.
Recommendations/outcome:
We found that the prison was acting within its own policy when not allowing the jacket in possession. However, the prisoner complained about way his DIRF was handled, and we upheld this aspect of his complaint as we found procedural issues with the way it had been responded to, we raised this with the Governor.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Nottingham
Complaint category:
Categorisation, progression & release preparation
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he was being refused Category C status and that he was not provided with a copy of the categorisation assessment within three days of the request. IPCI found that the outcome of the categorisation assessment was proportionate to the risks identified and therefore did not uphold this part of the complaint. However, we found no evidence that a copy of the assessment was provided to the prisoner within 3 days (as per Paragraph 4.1.3 of The Security Categorisation Framework) and therefore upheld this part of the complaint.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI suggested the prisoner resubmit the request for a copy of the assessment so staff can process in line with policy. The outcome letter was also sent to the Governor of HMP Nottingham so he was aware that we have made this point in relation to the provision of the categorisation assessment.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Warren Hill
Complaint category:
Work, pay & money
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he was being underpaid for his role as a GFSL painter at HMP Warren Hill. IPCI found that he had been paid correctly and therefore did not uphold that part of the complaint. IPCI found that both stages of the internal complaints were answered by the same staff member at the prison. This is not in line with the Prisoner Complaints Policy Framework.
Recommendations/outcome:
Partial uphold with letter sent to Governor of HMP Warren Hill to highlight the importance of following the correct procedures in regard to responding to complaints. We hold the view that this complaint should clearly have been resolved by the prison without reference to IPCI.
Partially Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Oakwood
Complaint category:
Categorisation, progression & release preparation
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that staff had failed to consider an update to security categorisation policy in April and therefore unfairly retained him at Cat C at his last review. IPCI established that the prisoner was not eligible for a downgrade to open conditions. However, we found that staff failed to notify the prisoner about the review decision and respond to his complaint in a reasonable timeframe.
Recommendations/outcome:
HMP Oakwood were advised to consider their processes for notifying prisoners of review decisions and responding to prisoner complaints in a timely fashion. They were also advised to consider the training procedures for staff. We hold the view that this complaint should clearly have been resolved by the prison without reference to IPCI.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Aylesbury
Complaint category:
Security
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner initially complained about being made to squat during a search, in front of three officers and queried the intelligence which led to the search being conducted. As the prisoner had already received an apology for the search taking place in front of three members of staff, IPCI considered that this element of the complaint had been dealt with appropriately by HMP Aylesbury.
We were satisfied that HMP Aylesbury had sufficient ground and reasonable suspicion to conduct the search and therefore did not uphold this part of the complaint. However, our investigation found that the F78 searching record had not been completed in full as it failed to record that the prisoner had been asked to squat during the search, and for this reason the complaint was partially upheld.
Recommendations/outcome:
A copy of our report was sent to the Governor of HMP Aylesbury to make them aware of our findings and to ensure future documentation Is completed in line with policy requirements.
Partially upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Five Wells
Complaint category:
Staff behaviour
Month investigation completed:
August
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he was assaulted by an officer at HMP Five Wells in March 2025. IPCI found no evidence that an assault took place. However, IPCI found that staff failed to follow the mandatory procedures regarding complaint investigation in the alleged circumstances and failed to offer support to the complainant regarding the alleged assault.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI recommended a personal remedy in the form of the prison apologising to the prisoner for the mishandling of his complaint, and that staff explore local support options for him in light of the allegations. IPCI also made formal recommendations that a thorough investigation of the complainant’s allegations takes place, that the Director ensures local complaint procedures are robust and that the Director assures himself that staff understand mandatory recording and retention practices for serious allegations, and consideration should be given to the suitability of trauma-informed approaches and victim support protocols. We further recommended that the Director satisfies himself of staff awareness of responsibilities during rub-down searches, and that oversight of CCTV use should be robust and appropriate.
Partially upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Northumberland
Complaint category:
Administration
Month investigation completed:
July
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained about the failure of unit staff to regularly unlock prisoners for overtime during the weekend at HMP Northumberland. IPCI found no evidence that staff failed to unlock prisoners regularly. IPCI upheld part of the complaint concerning the initial complaint responses. The response suggested that the prisoner was “wasting resources on the complaints avenue”, which is inconsistent with the Prisoner Complaints Policy which states that prisoner should not be deterred from submitting complaints.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI advised that the Director of HMP Northumberland considered whether remedial action should be pursued, taking account of the sections of the framework which deal with evidence-based practice, problem solving and sufficient quality assurance of replies.
Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Fosse Way
Complaint category:
Staff behaviour
Month investigation completed:
July
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he experienced a Use of Force because he refused to use the body scanner after transferring to a new prison. IPCI found that HMP Fosse Way were requiring all new receptions to use the X-Ray Body Scanner without justification. As the direct order to go on the body scanner was unreasonable, we deemed the UoF to be unreasonable and unnecessary.
Recommendations/outcome:
This case was linked to other complaints about the associated direct order to use the body scanner, and the following adjudication. We made recommendations in one of those cases which applied to all of these issues. We therefore did not feel it necessary to repeat those in this case. We asked the Director to apologised for the action taken in this case.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Bure
Complaint category:
Adjudication & IEP
Month investigation completed:
July
Year investigation completed:
2025
The prisoner complained that he had been assaulted by another prisoner and that the adjudicator failed to refer the other prisoner’s adjudication to an independent adjudicator (IA). IPCI established that the hearing did not sufficiently consider whether an IA was needed. We also found that the adjudicator also responded to the complaint, which contravenes policy.
Recommendations/outcome:
We asked that the Governor consider apologising to the prisoner and to assure themselves that processes are in place to ensure all eligible cases are referred to an IA appropriately. HMP Bure was also asked to review the prisoner complaints framework to ensure complaint responses are allocated appropriately.
Upheld complaint against the Director of HMP Rye Hill
Complaint category:
Adjudication & IEP
Month investigation completed:
July
Year investigation completed:
2025
Rye Hill told the investigator that they had recently relaunched the policy to staff which included refresher training. We asked that the Director consider what additional action he needs to take to reinforce the expectations of the policy to all staff at Rye Hill.
Recommendations/outcome:
The prisoner complained that an officer made a negative incentives warning which they disagreed with. IPCI found that HMP Rye Hill did not follow their local incentives policy when issuing the warning.
