| General Details | Inspections |
| Regimes | Visits and getting there |
| Local News | |
Key Contact Details
| Name of Prison | HMP & YOI Thorn Cross |
| Address: | Arley Road Appleton Thorn Warrington Cheshire WA4 4RL |
| Other contact details: | |
| Web Site: | |
| Email: | |
| Main switchboard: | 01925 805100 |
| At Risk hotline: | |
| Fax: | 01925 805101 |
| Visits booking number: | 01925 805018 |
| Visits booking email: | thorncross@hmps.gsi.gov.uk |
| Visits booking web site: | www.gov.uk/prison-visits |
| Type of Prison: | Male Open Prison |
The prison is run by HMPS as part of the North West Region. It has a capacity of 430 and the #1 governor is Richard Suttle, who has been in charge since August 2021
HMP&YOI Thorn Cross opened in 1985 on the site of a former Royal Navy airfield near Warrington, and in 1996 became the UK’s first “boot camp” institution for young offenders, using a military-style High Intensity Training programme that inspectors praised as inspirational when it began. It is now a Category D open prison for adult men nearing the end of determinate sentences, with an operational capacity of around 429.
The Independent Monitoring Board’s 2024–25 annual report described Thorn Cross as a safe establishment with low violence and no self-harm incidents recorded, alongside excellent healthcare and a genuinely rehabilitative culture. Community work placements more than doubled during the year, from 80 to 200 men. The main concerns raised were continued smuggling of illicit items, particularly steroids, inadequate kitchen facilities for the prison’s size, and a rise in adjudications, mostly relating to phones and drugs. The Board also noted two cases where prisoners were mistakenly released, which had significant consequences for those involved.
As an open prison focused on resettlement, Thorn Cross often allows day releases and more flexible contact than closed establishments — the contact details above are the best starting point for confirming current visiting arrangements.