Purposeful prisons: time out of cell
Purposeful prisons: time out of cell - report (PDF, 416.0 KB)
In this key findings paper, we look at how much time prisoners spend out of their cells and the impact of this across the closed prison estate.
In his introduction to this paper, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, says:
‘Purposeful activity has consistently been the worst performing of our four healthy prison assessments, but it has never been as bad as it has in the years since the pandemic. The last year was no exception. Of the 38 adult prisons we visited in 2023–24, just one establishment’s score for purposeful activity improved while 18 declined. More than half were assessed as ‘poor’, the lowest of our four judgements.
‘Overcrowding, exacerbated by nationwide pressures on prison spaces, contributes to lack of activity, with prisons often holding many more prisoners than they have places available for in work, training and education. Staff shortages also impact on prisons’ ability to deliver regular, ordered and sufficient time out of cell. Rebuilding from COVID-19 restrictions has been slow, with many prisons still running more restrictive regimes than before the pandemic.’
