The contractor delivering the additional 360 Category D places at HMP Ford is Bovis Construction.

This Government has already delivered c.3,100 new places, as part of the biggest prison expansion programme since the Victorian era.

We are no longer delivering at HMP Leyhill under the Category D Expansion Programme. Around 100 additional places are currently in construction at HMP Leyhill under the Rapid Deployment Cells Programme.

At HMPs Ford, Standford Hill, Birmingham, Liverpool and Prescoed, work remains ongoing following ISG’s administration in September 2024. Pre-construction work is either underway or complete at these sites, and all have a new contractor. The scope of the project at HMP Ford is 360 Category D additional places and at HMP Standford Hill, 240 Category D additional places.

At HMP Erlestoke, 66 Rapid Deployment Cells which were contracted to ISG have been delivered. Separate to this, 180 places are being delivered by the Small Secure Houseblocks Programme. This project was not impacted by ISG entering administration, as it is being delivered by Wates Construction and is now in main works.

Accounting for the impact of ISG’s administration, we remain on track to deliver the 14,000 additional prison places by 2031.

This Government has already delivered c.3,100 new places, as part of the biggest prison expansion programme since the Victorian era.

We are no longer delivering at HMP Leyhill under the Category D Expansion Programme. Around 100 additional places are currently in construction at HMP Leyhill under the Rapid Deployment Cells Programme.

At HMPs Ford, Standford Hill, Birmingham, Liverpool and Prescoed, work remains ongoing following ISG’s administration in September 2024. Pre-construction work is either underway or complete at these sites, and all have a new contractor. The scope of the project at HMP Ford is 360 Category D additional places and at HMP Standford Hill, 240 Category D additional places.

At HMP Erlestoke, 66 Rapid Deployment Cells which were contracted to ISG have been delivered. Separate to this, 180 places are being delivered by the Small Secure Houseblocks Programme. This project was not impacted by ISG entering administration, as it is being delivered by Wates Construction and is now in main works.

Accounting for the impact of ISG’s administration, we remain on track to deliver the 14,000 additional prison places by 2031.

This Government has already delivered c.3,100 new places, as part of the biggest prison expansion programme since the Victorian era.

We are no longer delivering at HMP Leyhill under the Category D Expansion Programme. Around 100 additional places are currently in construction at HMP Leyhill under the Rapid Deployment Cells Programme.

At HMPs Ford, Standford Hill, Birmingham, Liverpool and Prescoed, work remains ongoing following ISG’s administration in September 2024. Pre-construction work is either underway or complete at these sites, and all have a new contractor. The scope of the project at HMP Ford is 360 Category D additional places and at HMP Standford Hill, 240 Category D additional places.

At HMP Erlestoke, 66 Rapid Deployment Cells which were contracted to ISG have been delivered. Separate to this, 180 places are being delivered by the Small Secure Houseblocks Programme. This project was not impacted by ISG entering administration, as it is being delivered by Wates Construction and is now in main works.

Accounting for the impact of ISG’s administration, we remain on track to deliver the 14,000 additional prison places by 2031.

ISG Construction Limited ceased work on all Ministry of Justice sites on the date of their administration, 20 September 2024. This included the expansion at HMP Erlestoke.

Although the sites at HMP Leyhill, HMP Ford and HMP Standford Hill were due to be completed by ISG, the projects were still in their design stage at this time and on-site works had not yet started before the company went into administration.

An investigation was commissioned into the case of Alexander Denny in July 2015. It reported in July 2015 and all recommendations were accepted. Mr Denny is now in closed conditions. Legal proceedings against Mr Denny are ongoing.

Lee Fudge transferred to HMP Ford on 26^th May 2015. He absconded on 2^nd July and was recaptured on 6^th July. An investigation was commissioned into the circumstances of the abscond including the decision to move Mr Fudge to open conditions. It recently reported and the recommendations are being considered. No concerns were found around the decision to transfer Mr Fudge to open conditions. Mr Fudge received an 8 month sentence for absconding.

Mr Chatfield arrived at HMP Ford on 30 April 2015 and absconded on 2 July 2015. He was due for release in March 2016 and had served approximately a year of his sentence, including remand time. The circumstances of Mr Chatfield’s move to open conditions have been reviewed. He was transferred following a re-categorisation review board and there are no concerns with the process followed. Mr Chatfield was recaptured and returned to closed conditions. He received an additional 12 week sentence for absconding.

The following table shows the number of releases on temporary licence and failures to return recorded at HMP Ford since 2008. Data on failures to return is unavailable before 2009 and centrally held data on temporary releases is unavailable for 2009 and 2010 when a new prison database system was introduced.

Data on temporary release failures for 2013 will be published later this year:

Failures on ROTL remain very rare, consistently accounting for less that one tenth of 1% of all releases, but they are taken seriously. In March, we announced a range of measures to strengthen the existing temporary release provisions to ensure that the right balance is always struck between facilitating resettlement and protecting the public. Under our plans, there will be a more consistent, tougher approach to dealing with ROTL failures and, in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill, we are seeking to increase the maximum penalty for failing to return from ROTL from six months’ to two years’ imprisonment.

The number of absconds from HMP Ford during 2012-13 were the lowest on record. Abscond figures for 2013-14 are due to be published on 31 July 2014 as part of the Prison Performance Digest.

Figures for the number of absconds, by prison, since 1995 are provided in the Prison Digest contained in the prison and probation trusts performance statistics. This can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225234/prison-performance-digest-12-13.xls

Mr Flint is an indeterminate sentence prisoner (ISP). The decision to transfer ISPs to open conditions is a categorisation decision which is a matter for the Secretary of State, taken by officials under agreed delegated authority from him. The Secretary of State may take this decision after seeking advice from the Parole Board or executively where a prisoner has demonstrated exceptional progress.

In Mr Flint's case, the Parole Board was satisfied that his risk of serious harm to others was not so high as to require his confinement in a closed prison establishment for the protection of the public and that a period in less secure conditions would provide a staged progression back into the community. Thus, the Parole Board recommended that Mr Flint be transferred to open conditions, and the Secretary of State accepted that recommendation.

Determinate sentenced prisoners are categorised and allocated to HMP Ford following an established risk assessment process. Prisoners may be assessed as suitable for open conditions if they present a low risk of harm to the public, are considered to be trustworthy not to abscond from low security conditions and, for those serving a lengthy prison sentence, are in general within two years of their earliest release date. Prisoners who do not meet these criteria are not moved to open conditions. Those who are later considered to have increased risk whilst in open conditions are moved back to closed conditions. For the majority of prisoners transferred to HMP Ford, this risk assessment process works well. In 2012-13, abscond levels from HMP Ford were the lowest ever recorded.

The number of absconds from HMP Ford is published annually by financial year on the gov.uk website. Details of the number of absconds from 1995/96 to 2012/13 (the most recent period for which data are available) can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225234/prison-performance-digest-12-13.xls

HMP Ford is increasing drug supply reduction measures with a zero tolerance for those prisoners found in possession of synthetic cannabinoids and has developed a new local strategy to address the issue. In addition they have introduced the indicative test for ‘Spice’ to be used as part of their Compact based testing programme.

NOMS has a comprehensive range of measures to tackle drugs. These include drug detection dogs, procedures to tackle visitors who seek to smuggle drugs and phones

into prisons, and mobile phone detection technology. NOMS is also increasing the number of drug free wings in prisons, rolling out a networked IT intelligence system and providing prisons with short range mobile phone blockers which will help prisons prevent prisoners using mobile phones, which is often associated with drug supply.

NOMS is working closely with the Department of Health and service providers to create integrated, recovery orientated and outcome focused substance misuse services.

I will be sending a full written response to the Chair of the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) at Ford, addressing the concerns raised in the Board's Annual Report, as soon as the issues have been fully considered. I will forward you a copy of my reply in due course.