| General Details | Inspections |
| Regimes | Visits and getting there |
| Work and Education | Local News |
General Information
| Name or Prison | HMP Ford |
| Address: | Arundel West Sussex BN18 0BX |
| Other contact details: | |
| Web Site: | |
| Email: | |
| Main switchboard: | 01903 663000 |
| At Risk hotline: | |
| Fax: | 01903 663001 |
| Visits booking web site: | www.gov.uk/prison-visits. |
| Visits booking email: | ford@hmps.gsi.gov.uk. |
| Visits booking txt number: | |
| Type of Prison: | Male Cat D |
HMP Ford is a Cat D open prison run by HMPS as part of the Kent and Sussex region. It has a capacity of 389 and the #1 governor is called Graham Spencer, who has been in charge since April 2022.
Ford, near Arundel in West Sussex, is a Category D open prison on the site of a former Royal Flying Corps and later Fleet Air Arm airfield, converted to a prison in 1960. It made national headlines in January 2011 when a New Year’s Eve disturbance saw buildings set alight after reports that alcohol had been confiscated, and has historically faced criticism over lax security and absconding.
More recently the picture has improved considerably: the 2023 HMIP inspection rated Ford at the highest level for its rehabilitation work, and the Independent Monitoring Board’s latest annual report, to October 2025, described a generally safe environment with minimal violence, illicit finds down 44% thanks to better searching, and all 294 men released that year found to have accommodation arranged — the second year running Ford achieved this. The board did raise serious concerns about ageing infrastructure, including boiler, electrical and drainage failures leaving some blocks without reliable hot water, a sharp 65% rise in the number of higher-risk prisoners straining resettlement staff, cuts of up to 40% to discretionary education funding that ended several courses, and just one phone available per residential landing.
Given Ford’s open conditions, families may want to ask about a prisoner’s access to work outside the prison and their release planning, alongside using the practical visiting and contact details above.