HMP Rochester

General Information

The prison is run by HMPS as part of the Kent & Sussex region. It has a capacity of 695 and the #1 governor is Dean Gardiner who has been in post since October 2018

HMP Rochester opened in 1874 as a convict prison supplying labour for the fortifications defending Chatham Dockyard, and holds a special place in prison history: in 1902 it became home to the country’s first Borstal, an experimental reform institution for young offenders that shaped youth justice for decades afterwards. Since the Borstal system was abolished in the 1980s, the site has gone through several roles, becoming a mixed Category C training and resettlement prison for adult and young adult men by 2011, with a capacity of around 695.

A full inspection in August 2024 was followed by an independent review of progress in June 2025, which found real improvement in six of nine priority areas, including a significant reduction in both self-harm and violence, cleaner cells and communal areas, and a marked drop in vermin. New reading and enrichment programmes were also introduced. Three concerns still needed further work: equalities support, healthcare governance and medicine administration, and the prison’s drug strategy, particularly around its substance-free living wing. Officials overseeing the review acknowledged progress was being made but that there was still more work to do.

For families staying in touch with someone at Rochester, the contact details above remain the best way to arrange a visit and check on their wellbeing.