A new prison with the capacity to house approximately 1,500 inmates has been inaugurated as part of the Government's strategy to alleviate overcrowding issues.
The Category C facility, HMP Millsike, spanning the equivalent of 39 football pitches, represents a significant move towards achieving the goal of creating an additional 14,000 prison spaces by the year 2031.
Located in Yorkshire, HMP Millsike has been purpose-built to reduce reoffending, featuring 24 workshops and training areas designed to assist prisoners in securing employment and steering clear of criminal activities post-release, according to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The launch coincides with actions taken by Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who has reinstated the use of police cells for detaining inmates as prison numbers hit a six-month peak.
The Lord Chancellor has highlighted that prisons are currently operating at over 99% capacity, despite the early release of thousands of inmates since September last year as an attempt to mitigate overcrowding. Ms Mahmood commented: "This Government is fixing the broken prison system we inherited, delivering the cells needed to take the most dangerous criminals off our streets.
"HMP Millsike sets the standard for the jails of the future, with cutting crime built into its very fabric. But building jails only takes us so far in ending this crisis, which is why we're also reviewing sentencing so we can always lock up dangerous offenders and make our streets safer."
HMP Millsike has been equipped with advanced security technology designed to thwart drugs, drones, and phones from breaching its walls, featuring barless windows, an extensive network of CCTV cameras, and X-ray body scanners to block unauthorized items from entering the facility.
Mitie Care and Custody, the contractor responsible for running the prison, will work in partnership with PeoplePlus, who are set to handle education and training within the institution. The construction of the prison has been a boon to employment, having generated 800 jobs during its building phase with an additional 600 positions expected to arise from its ongoing operations, according to the MoJ.
Russell Trent, Managing Director of Mitie Care and Custody, commented: "As a resettlement prison, our focus is on rehabilitation and restoration centred on future orientation to break the cycle of reoffending."
This new facility arrives amid the Government's push to expand the prison estate, which saw the beginning of 700 new places at HMP Highpoint in Suffolk earlier this month, alongside a newly opened 460-space houseblock at HMP Rye Hill in Northamptonshire.
The expansion efforts are part of a massive £2.3 billion investment aimed at completing these projects, with an additional £500 million set aside for maintenance across the Prison and Probation Service. However, MPs from the Public Accounts Committee have expressed concerns, warning just earlier this month that the ambitions to deliver the remaining 14,000 spots by 2031 are "still fraught with risk and uncertainty".
Maintenance funding was also called into question by the committee, labelling it as merely a "small proportion" against the £2.8 billion estimated essential for bringing the entire prison infrastructure up to an acceptable standard.
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