| General Details | Inspections |
| Regimes | Visits and getting there |
| Local News | |
General Information
| Name of Prison | HMP Maidstone |
| Address: | 36 County Road Maidstone Kent ME14 1UZ |
| Other contact details: | |
| Web Site: | |
| Email: | |
| Main switchboard: | 01622 775 300 |
| At Risk hotline: | |
| Fax: | 01622 775 301 |
| Visits booking number: | 01622 775619 |
| Visits booking email: | socialvisits.maidstone@hmps.gsi.gov.uk |
| Visits booking web site: | www.gov.uk/prison-visits |
| Type of Prison: | Male Cat C and Foreign Nationals |
The prison is run as part of the Kent & Sussex region by HMPS. It has a capacity of 600 and the #1 governor is Dawn Mauldon, who has been in charge since April 2022
HMP Maidstone is one of the oldest prisons still in use in England, with roots as a county jail dating back to the 1740s and major reconstruction between 1811 and 1819 using local Kentish ragstone. It now operates as a Category C training prison with a specialist role holding foreign national men, and has a capacity of around 600. The prison has a long history, having served as Kent’s site of execution from 1831 until the last hanging there in 1930.
HM Inspectorate of Prisons visited in December 2025 and found a settled atmosphere with strong staff-prisoner relationships, alongside improving education and good support for neurodiverse prisoners. Inspectors did flag limited CCTV coverage and ongoing drug availability as areas needing attention. The most significant concern was around Home Office decisions on deportation and release: officials aim to give prisoners 30 days’ notice of detention or release decisions, but only around a third received that much warning, with many given as little as seven days, making it very difficult for men to prepare properly for release or removal.
For families of foreign national prisoners at Maidstone, it may be worth factoring in that release and removal timelines can change with little notice — the contact details above are the best way to stay in touch and get up-to-date information directly from the prison.