General Details,
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Inspections |
| Regimes, | Visits and getting there |
| Local News | |
Key Contact Details
| Name of Prison | HMP Ashfield |
| Address: | Shortwood Road, Pucklechurch, Bristol, BS16 9QJ |
| Other contact details: | |
| Web Site: | Click here |
| Email: | |
| Main switchboard: | 0117 303 8000 |
| At Risk hotline: | |
| Fax: | 0117 303 8001 |
| Visits booking number: | Booked by Prisoner |
| Visits booking email: | n/a |
| Visits booking web site: | n/a |
| Visits centre web site: | n/a |
| Visits centre number: | n/a |
| Type of Prison: | Male Cat C Sex Offenders |
HMP Ashfield is a Category C training prison near Pucklechurch, South Gloucestershire, dedicated to adult men convicted of sexual offences. It is run under contract by the private operator Serco, and holds a little over 400 men against an operational capacity of around 415. The prison offers an accredited sex offender treatment programme and structured offending-behaviour work alongside its education and work provision, reflecting its specialist role within the prison estate.
The most recent independent inspection, carried out by HM Inspectorate of Prisons in April 2026 and published that July, was notably positive. Ashfield was rated “Good” for safety, respect and preparation for release, with inspectors praising strong staff-prisoner relationships and noting there had been no serious recent incidents of violence. Purposeful activity was rated “not sufficiently good”, and inspectors also flagged weak complaint-handling processes, understaffed healthcare provision, insufficient careers guidance for around half the population, and delays in sentence progression for some prisoners.
Overall, the Chief Inspector noted that Ashfield had “maintained its reputation for safety, stability and a clear commitment to rehabilitation” — a more encouraging picture than at many local prisons, though families should be aware of the specific gaps inspectors identified around activity places and healthcare staffing.