Written question asked by Nick Timothy (Conservative) on Wednesday, 17 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 22 June 2026. It was answered by Jake Richards (Labour) on Friday, 26 June 2026 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

HMP Millsike

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what design features of HMP Millsike are intended to support or address, a) biodiversity, b) social value, c) climate change, and d) the natural environment.

Answer

HMP Millsike opened in Spring 2025 as part of our commitment to deliver an additional 14,000 prisons places, aiming to do so by 2031.

It is the UK’s first all-electric prison with over 1,800 roof-mounted solar PV panels and 130 Air Source Heat Pumps. HMP Millsike uses 67% less energy from the power grid, cutting carbon emissions by around 75%, compared to previous prison designs. The design also considered resilience to climate change including summertime overheating.

Construction delivered 10% biodiversity net gain, with over 6,000 trees planted consisting of 21 native species.

HMP Millsike added significant social value with over £150 million spent within 50 miles of the site. 799 construction jobs were created and now operational, the prison provides c.600 permanent jobs.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 11070
Session: 2026-27
Subjects: Climate change Biodiversity Design Nature conservation HMP Millsike
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk

HMP Millsike

Secondary information

Librarians' tools