HMP/YOI Hindley

What we found

Hindley is a large category C prison holding many prisoners with links to organised crime. Many prisoners continued to live in poor, overcrowded accommodation. While levels of violence had reduced since the last inspection, there had been a worrying rise in self-harm. Illicit drug use remained a very serious problem, with 59% of prisoners testing positive for illicit substances in the six months before the review and in one month, April 2024, as many as 77% of random tests were positive.

Points to note: An increased number of supervising officers were providing good, visible leadership on the wings to support inexperienced staff resulting in noticeably better relationships between staff and prisoners.