• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Good Book of Prisons

What's good in prisons across England & Wales

The Butler Trust
  • The Introduction
  • The Overall Findings
  • The Individual Prisons
  • The Media
  • The Book

Onley

Location: Northamptonshire
Date of visit: 8 November 2018
Visit number: 59
Prison type: Category C
Capacity: 734
Opened: 1968
Operator: HMPS

MANAGERS

The Managers described a safe jail with good staff-prisoner relationships, ‘excellent’ staff camaraderie, and a visible and supportive Governor. They rated the daily full staff briefings, and the monthly full staff meetings, training shut downs, staff newsletters, and consultation meetings with Officers, as well as the regular ‘lunch with the Gov’ meetings. They valued the staff recognition scheme (with presentations at the monthly staff meetings) and the staff mess; likewise, the Prisoner Council, which met monthly with the No. 1 & senior managers, the ‘very active’ wing forums, and monthly prisoner newsletter. They thought vocational training and local employer links good, and local CRC links, dedicated resettlement wing, and resettlement support ‘excellent’ (with high levels of accommodation and employment on release). A ‘Change Request’ scheme where prisoners and staff share ideas for improvement was ‘very popular’ and ‘effective’.

PRISONERS

The prisoners thought the staff ‘very good’ (‘many go the extra mile’) and said staff-prisoner relations were ‘good’, too, with staff praising and encouraging those trying to change. They also rated prisoner consultation, including monthly wing forums and Prisoner Council meetings. Reception and its staff were ‘excellent’ and ‘welcoming’ (‘sets the tone of the jail’) and gym staff were ‘amazing’ and ‘very supportive’ of prisoners, including those who would not be natural gym goers. Family visits were good: the Inside Out charity doing ‘an excellent job’ on visits across the board.

OFFICERS

Officers said the jail was ‘safe’ compared to others, relations with prisoners were ‘good’, and between staff were ‘especially good’. For staff, they rated a daily briefing sheet, regular full staff briefings and training, formal staff recognition, and a culture of ‘thanks’ for jobs well done. The mess, rest rooms and staff cooking facilities were also valued. Local employer/training links for prisoners were positives too.

Share this:

  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Category: Category C

Primary Sidebar

The Prisons

The Prisons

  • Altcourse
  • Ashfield
  • Aylesbury
  • Bedford
  • Belmarsh
  • Berwyn
  • Birmingham
  • Brinsford
  • Bristol
  • Brixton
  • Bronzefield
  • Buckley Hall
  • Bullingdon
  • Bure
  • Cardiff
  • Channings Wood
  • Chelmsford
  • Coldingley
  • Dartmoor
  • Deerbolt
  • Doncaster
  • Dovegate
  • Downview
  • Drake Hall
  • Durham
  • Eastwood Park
  • Elmley
  • Erlestoke
  • Exeter
  • Featherstone
  • Feltham B
  • Forest Bank
  • Foston Hall
  • Frankland
  • Full Sutton
  • Garth
  • Gartree
  • Grendon
  • Guys Marsh
  • Haverigg
  • Hewell
  • High Down
  • Highpoint
  • Hindley
  • Holme House
  • Hull
  • Humber
  • Huntercombe
  • Isis
  • Isle of Wight
  • Lancaster Farms
  • Leeds
  • Leicester
  • Lewes
  • Lincoln
  • Lindholme
  • Littlehey
  • Liverpool
  • Long Lartin
  • Low Newton
  • Lowdham Grange
  • Maidstone
  • Manchester
  • Moorland
  • New Hall
  • Northumberland
  • Norwich
  • Nottingham
  • Oakwood
  • Onley
  • Parc
  • Pentonville
  • Peterborough
  • Portland
  • Preston
  • Ranby
  • Risley
  • Rochester
  • Rye Hill
  • Send
  • Stafford
  • Stocken
  • Stoke Heath
  • Styal
  • Swaleside
  • Swansea
  • Swinfen Hall
  • Thameside
  • The Mount
  • The Verne
  • Usk
  • Wakefield
  • Wandsworth
  • Warren Hill
  • Wayland
  • Wealstun
  • Whatton
  • Whitemoor
  • Winchester
  • Woodhill
  • Wormwood Scrubs
  • Wymott

Footer

Author

Simon Shepherd has been Director of the Butler Trust since 2008 and has worked in and around prisons for the last three decades.

Butler Trust

The Butler TrustThe Butler Trust is an independent charity set up in 1985 to recognise and promote good practice in UK correctional settings.

Contact

Butler Trust

www.butlertrust.org.uk

info@butlertrust.org.uk

020 8688 6062

Copyright © 2021 The Butler Trust (registered charity no. 1145182)

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.