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Comprehensive failures creating chaos, violence and fear at HMP Pentonville

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An inspection report on HMP Pentonville is published today, outlining the appalling treatment and conditions which led the Chief Inspector of Prisons to issue an Urgent Notification for improvement to the Secretary of State.

Inspectors found that 44% of prisoners in the jail felt unsafe at the time of the inspection, with the ingress of drugs driving high levels of violence. New arrivals at the prison received shockingly little support despite often high levels of risk and need; some were locked in induction cells without bedding, pillows or cutlery, and others were scattered across the jail with staff unable to locate or identify them. Poor relationships between prisoners and staff were affecting the rest of the population; there was a noticeable lack of empathy and care, and 50% reported that they had been bullied or victimised by staff. There was a lack of support for those who self-harmed, and inspectors found staff reading, asleep or entirely absent while they were meant to be supervising very vulnerable men. Tragically three prisoners had killed themselves at the jail this year alone.

Wings were dirty, noisy and chaotic, with a pervasive smell of cannabis and infestations of mice and cockroaches. Most prisoners spent more than 22 hours a day locked in poorly ventilated, overcrowded cells, with little chance of getting to work or education. Many of those who did have an activity space failed to turn up, and the low numbers in work after release attested to the fact that little was being done to help prepare them for employment.

The chaos in the prison extended to the failure to calculate accurately prisoners’ release dates, which meant some were being held unlawfully for at least one day past their sentence end, and possibly longer.

Pockets of positive work, including a good health service, a better-than-usual substance-free living unit to help tackle addictions, and a well-regarded ‘Time for Change’ programme to support younger men did little to offset the multiple problems in the London prison.

Pentonville is never an easy jail to run, with overcrowded cells, crumbling infrastructure and a fast-changing population that includes many prisoners who are mentally ill, addicted to drugs and homeless, or who are involved with criminal gangs. However, we found comprehensive failures by leaders to make sure that there was effective oversight and management of some of the basic operations of a reception prison. It will take support and investment from the prison service to turn round this this troubled jail.
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor

Notes to editors

  1. This inspection took place between 30 June and 11 July 2025.
  2. A copy of the full report, published on 12 August 2025, can be found on the HM Inspectorate of Prisons website at: https://hmiprisons.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk
  3. The letter announcing the Urgent Notification at HMP Pentonville and the debriefing paper were sent to the Secretary of State on 16 July 2025: https://hmiprisons.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmipris_reports/hmp-pentonville-urgent-notification/
  4. Pentonville is the tenth prison to be issued with an Urgent Notification since November 2022. The other prisons are Exeter, Cookham Wood YOI, Bristol, Woodhill, Bedford, Wandsworth, Rochester, Manchester and Winchester. Find out more about Urgent Notifications: Urgent Notifications and IRPs – HM Inspectorate of Prisons
  5. HM Inspectorate of Prisons is an independent inspectorate, inspecting places of detention to report on conditions and treatment and promote positive outcomes for those detained and the public.
  6. Please email media@hmiprisons.gov.uk if you would like more information.