The prison was given a full inspection in January 2026, the full report can be read on the HM Inspectorate of Prisons website, just follow the links below. In their latest report the inspectors said:
HMP & YOI Norwich is a reception and resettlement prison holding category B, C and D prisoners, run by HM Prison and Probation Service, holding 746 men against a population that was 46% unsentenced or remand. Inspectors rated safety reasonably good, an improvement from not sufficiently good, and purposeful activity not sufficiently good, an improvement from Poor, while respect and preparation for release both remained reasonably good, unchanged. Leaders had addressed or partly addressed 11 of the 13 concerns raised at the previous inspection.
Violence between prisoners was down 13% since the last inspection and assaults on staff down 31%, with the self-harm rate falling to 656 per 1,000 prisoners in 2025, down from 1,152 the year before. Officer retention had improved considerably, and use of force was more measured, with 70% of incidents not involving a full restraint and incapacitant spray used only three times all year. Seventy-nine per cent of prisoners said visitors were treated respectfully, and support for foreign nationals, including interpreting and ESOL provision, was rated good.
Inspectors nonetheless found drugs remained too available, with a 24% positive rate on random mandatory testing and 43% of prisoners saying drugs were easy to get, up from 27% previously. Over a third of prisoners were held two to a cell designed for one, and time out of cell was too limited, with those not allocated to work or education getting only two to three hours a day unlocked. Vocational training on the category C site had been cut by nearly half, and 22% of prisoners were released without settled housing, with a further 45% going into accommodation described as unsustainable.
Charlie Taylor
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons
March 2026
To read the full reports, go to the HM Inspectorate of Prisons website or follow the links below:
| Inspection report, Report on an unannounced inspection of HMP & YOI Norwich by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (19–29 January 2026, published 20 April 2026) | Easy read summary of the 2026 inspection report |
| Action plan, HM Prison and Probation Service action plan in response to the 2026 inspection of HMP & YOI Norwich | |