Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Wakefield
Complaint category:
Property
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2026
The prisoner complained about damaged paperwork when his cell flooded because the sink leaked. He had been storing the paperwork on the floor. The prisoner gave the paperwork to staff to destroy. The prisoner had reported the leak some time before the cell flooded. We found no evidence that staff logged the reported leak with the works department, so no one attended to fix it.
Recommendations/outcome:
The complaint was upheld but IPCI did not make recommendations as we could not recommend a specific amount of compensation. We had no knowledge of what paperwork the prisoner had, what was destroyed, the condition of the paperwork and if it could be saved if dried.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Wealstun
Complaint category:
Visits, calls & letters
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2026
IPCI investigated a complaint about the length of time it had taken to distribute a prisoner’s Rule 39 mail. The investigation established that there were delays or inconsistent approaches to Custodial Managers collecting mail for distribution across the wings.
Recommendations/outcome:
During the investigation, the prison demonstrated they had put in place new assurance checks to monitor whether mail had been collected, and that any shortcomings would be immediately highlighted at the daily briefing. IPCI did not need to make any formal recommendations.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Stocken
Complaint category:
Property
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2026
A prisoner complained that his vapes were confiscated and destroyed.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI concluded that the decision to confiscate and test the vapes due to concerns around drugs was reasonable. We were also satisfied that the decision to destroy the vapes was reasonable. After the vapes tested negative for drugs, there was insufficient evidence for Stocken to destroy them on the basis they were linked to drug misuse, as is required by policy. However, there were legitimate grounds they could be destroyed under the unattributable items rule. It seems unlikely the vapes were retained for 3 months before being destroyed to allow for ownership claims, as per the required policy and we highlighted this to the Governor, but no formal recommendations were needed.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Berwyn
Complaint category:
Administration
Month investigation completed:
May
Year investigation completed:
2026
A prisoner complained about the delay in processing his application for Early Release on Compassionate Grounds. The policy framework has an expectation these are processed within two weeks, however the investigation established it took at least five weeks to process the application and forward to the Public Protection Casework Section for a decision. There was no explanation for the delay.
Recommendations/outcome:
While IPCI upheld the complaint, by the time we concluded the case the application had been refused so there were no meaningful recommendations we could make. We hold the view that this complaint should have been resolved by the prison without reference to IPCI.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Frankland
Complaint category:
Categorisation, progression & release preparation
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
A prisoner complained that he was not receiving regular keywork sessions in breach of national policy.
The investigation found that both national and local policy stipulate a minimum number of keyworker sessions that should be delivered to prisoners across a defined period. Frankland accepted they were not delivering this, but staffing levels meant they were unable to safely deliver this part of the regime. They had in place a regime management plan to ensure the delivery of key aspects of the regime, and a plan to safely return to a full regime when resources allowed. This plan was endorsed by the Prison Group Director.
Recommendations/outcome:
We upheld this complaint on the basis that the prison was not delivering key national policy. However, we did not make recommendations as the issue is known to senior staff inside and outside the prison who have a plan in place to manage it.
Upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Garth
Complaint category:
Medical
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
A prisoner complained that he suffered a confirmed heart attack, and that there was an undue delay in dispatching him to the hospital, he was left alone in a locked cell, and that he was double cuffed with the cuffs only being removed at the insistence of the Consultant when he finally arrived at hospital.
The Investigation found that there was a long delay between the prisoner being diagnosed with a heart attack and departing prison, and that on arrival at the hospital he was subject to an immediate procedure. There had been no investigation into any of this despite the prisoner raising a formal complaint.
Recommendations/outcome:
We recommended an apology to the prisoner, and that the prison conduct a local investigation, focussing on the delay in dispatch and why he was left alone. We also recommended the prison review staff awareness of the emergency first aid policy, and that the healthcare department are aware of their responsibilities to contribute to reviews of healthcare emergencies.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Swaleside
Complaint category:
Work, pay & money
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
A prisoner complained that staff at HMP Swaleside inappropriately downgraded him to basic IEP and removed him from his wing carer role after powder was found in his cell in November 2025. He said no wrongdoing had been established and alleged discriminatory treatment.
IPCI found that the IEP downgrade was procedurally flawed, as it occurred before testing and could not be shown to have been authorised in line with policy. IPCI also found that the prisoner’s initial removal from the wing carer role was not procedurally fair, as it relied on the flawed downgrade and was not properly recorded. These elements of the complaint were upheld.
Recommendations/outcome:
The Governor should ensure that IEP downgrades, particularly from enhanced to basic, are properly authorised, clearly recorded, and supported by a retained rationale. Decisions to remove prisoners from positions of trust or work roles should also be clearly documented, including the basis for the decision and its relationship to IEP status or adjudication outcomes. Staff should be reminded to distinguish between suspicion, investigation and established findings, and to apply the Incentives Policy Framework consistently and fairly.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP/YOI Aylesbury
Complaint category:
Categorisation, progression & release preparation
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
The prisoner complained that he was refused Category D conditions after his recategorisation review wrongly recorded that he had been found guilty of the offences that led to his recall.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI found that the prisoner’s reports had not been updated ahead of his recategorisation review to reflect him being found not guilty of recall offences, although it was updated for the next review. IPCI was satisfied that the decision to refuse Category D was not unreasonable and further risk reduction work was needed. However, we were concerned he had not been given the opportunity to submit representations for his review and was not informed of the result until a few weeks later, contrary to the Security Categorisation Framework Policy. Whilst we were satisfied that Aylesbury had subsequently put measures in place to ensure prisoners were able to submit representations for their reviews, we reminded them of the need to ensure review decisions were communicated to prisoners as soon as possible.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Haverigg
Complaint category:
Administration
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
The complainant was alleged to have made homophobic comments which he denied. IPCI concluded Haverigg had conducted a thorough investigation into the incident but there was insufficient detail in local policies to be able to conclude whether the sanctions taken against the complainant (loss of job and move of accommodation) were fair and proportionate.
Recommendations/outcome:
IPCI recommended that Haverigg review their local policy and ensure it is in line with the national Incentives Policy Framework. We also recommended that Haverigg review their local process for removal from employment and activities, and develop a local policy so this is communicated clearly to prisoners.
Partially upheld complaint against the Governor of HMP Wymott
Complaint category:
Accommodation, food, education & other facilities
Month investigation completed:
April
Year investigation completed:
2026
The prisoner complained that his sink and bed were faulty. He said the sink was repaired immediately but his bed was not. It was eventually repaired nearly 12 months later.
Recommendations/outcome:
There had been some issues with the reporting and logging of the complaint which led to the delays. We recommended the prison apologise to the prisoner for the delay in repairing his bed and review the process for logging such repairs, ensuring they are carried out in a timely manner.
