The prison was given an inspection in June/July 2022 and the full report can be read at the Ministry of Justice web site, just follow the links below. In their latest report the inspectors said:
HMP Guys Marsh is a category C training prison located in rural Dorset. Mainly built in the 1960’s the campus-style prison has a mix of accommodation and held just under 460 men at the time of our visit. We have criticised Guys Marsh heavily in the recent past, and on this inspection outcomes for prisoners were still not good enough in safety and purposeful activity and had deteriorated in resettlement since we last inspected. Despite these disappointing assessments, there was enough evidence to indicate that improvement was taking place which in time ought to lead to better outcomes.
The governor had a strong and commendable focus on getting the prisoners back into work and education after the restrictions of the pandemic, and managers and staff were supportive of this priority. A plan had been made in advance and was launched quickly when restrictions lifted. At the time of the inspection nearly 60% of prisoners were in work or education and spent at least nine hours out of their cells, which is much better than we normally see. Some three quarters of prisoners were already allocated to work and there were clear and credible plans to keep driving up these numbers in the coming months. This prioritisation of regime aligned with the central purpose of the establishment and was to be commended, although gaps remained, such as in education, which Ofsted judged as ‘requires improvement.’
Our evidence spoke to a safer prison than at our last visit but continuing high levels of violence and a very significant drug problem, especially when compared with other category C prisons, could not be ignored. There was a lot of work with individual prisoners, and cross-departmental working was a real strength, but investigation and data analysis concerning violence were major gaps. Use of force had increased since the last inspection and more also needed to be done properly to support those in self-harm crisis. Reducing the supply of drugs, mainly coming in over the prison’s long, rural perimeter, remained an underlying priority despite the commitment by the prison in seeking to stem the problem.
A residential refurbishment programme linked to fire improvements had recently been completed, and the ageing and slightly crumbling residential units were now in an acceptable condition and reasonably clean. The general external environment, however, was neglected and somewhat depressing.
Staff prisoner relationships were a strength, and consultation was good, although this did not always result in much action, while the management of applications and complaints were surprisingly lacklustre. There were signs that the promotion of equality was being reinvigorated, although again this newfound energy had yet to translate into better outcomes.
There was some decent work to support family ties, including good development of family days in what was termed ‘wellbeing visits’, but more was needed. Offender management was well led, and staff worked hard, but a lack of case administration staff was undermining delivery. Prisoners did not have enough contact with their offender manager, and there were frustrations about lack of progression and difficulty in moving eligible prisoners to category D jails.
As elsewhere, probation unification in mid-2021 meant the resettlement team was now virtually non-existent, but prison managers had made real efforts to plug the resulting gaps in release planning.
Overall, we judged the prison to be making slow but steady progress. Good leadership and a supportive staff were causes for optimism. We had confidence that if this sense of initiative in the prison could be maintained measurable improvement to outcomes will eventually be realised.
Charlie Taylor
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
August 2022
The inspectors also provided a note of their key concerns
What needs to improve at HMP Guys Marsh
During this inspection we identified 14 key concerns, of which three should be treated as priorities. Priority concerns are those that are most important to improving outcomes for prisoners. They require immediate attention by leaders and managers.
Leaders should make sure that all concerns identified here are addressed and that progress is tracked through a plan which sets out how and when the concerns will be resolved. The plan should be provided to HMI Prisons.
Priority concerns
- The number of violent incidents was high. They were not investigated or analysed in sufficient depth to understand better the causes fully.
- High levels of illicit drugs were coming into the prison. Although security measures had been improved, not enough had been done to reduce supply.
- The support for prisoners with a learning difficulty or disability was not effective or consistent. Those with complex support needs did not complete an in-depth screening of their needs until after they had started their courses.
Key concerns
- Too little was being done to understand and address the drivers of self-harm. Serious incidents were not routinely investigated and the analysis of data was too limited.
- Too much of the living environment was shabby and substandard. There were vermin on some wings, and outside areas were littered.
- The applications and complaints systems were not fully effective.
- Diversity and inclusion were not given sufficient priority. The focus on areas of potential discrimination was not consistent across all areas of the prison’s life.
- Prisoners needing a transfer under the Mental Health Act were waiting beyond the 28-day target, which delayed treatment.
- The delivery of some areas of the pharmacy service were not effective. There were no pharmacist clinics, there were delays in the arrival of medicines, stock levels were not recorded and night medicines were given too early.
- Tutors did not teach curriculums that were ambitious enough for all of the prisoners that they taught. In English and mathematics classes, tutors did not make effective enough use of diagnostic assessments to plan learning that challenged all prisoners. In the kitchen, instructors did not encourage all prisoners to develop the full range of skills and knowledge that they could within the setting.
- Attendance and punctuality at work and education sessions was not good enough. Too many prisoners arrived late, finished early or missed classes because of gym sessions. Attendance in workshops was particularly low.
- Leaders had not ensured that there was enough focus on developing prisoners’ English and mathematical knowledge. There were too few spaces in English and mathematics classes. Prisoners had to wait too long to study these subjects. Only a small number of prisoners accessed outreach English and mathematics classes, which took place in workshops.
- Not enough was being done to support prisoners to progress in their sentence. Offender management and key work lacked focus and frequency; there were delays in progressive transfers and treatment programme allocation disadvantaged those who were not due for imminent release.
- Resettlement planning arrangements were inconsistent. This was having a negative impact on too many prisoners, who were insufficiently prepared and supported prior to their release
To read the full reports, go to the Ministry of Justice site or follow the links below:
- Inspection report (3 MB), Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Guys Marsh by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (21 June and 4–8 July 2022)
- HMP Guys Marsh (1.28 MB), Report on an announced inspection of HMP Guys Marsh (17, 18 December 2018, 7-11 January 2019)
- HMP Guys Marsh (601.56 kB), Report on an announced inspection of HMP Guys Marsh (5-9 December 2016)
- HMP Guys Marsh, Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP Guys Marsh (10 – 21 November 2014)
- HMP Guys Marsh, Unannounced short follow-up inspection of HMP Guys Marsh (25–27 February 2013)
- HMP Guys Marsh, Announced inspection of HMP Guys Marsh (4–8 January 2010)
- HMP/YOI Guys Marsh, Unannounced short follow-up inspection of HMP and YOI Guys Marsh (21-23 January 2008)