Bronzefield inspection report 2022
Report for Bronzefield Prison
Summary
Bronzefield, the largest women’s prison in the country, was badly affected by the death of a baby born to a mother in the prison in 2019. Since that tragedy and after the recent publication of the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman report into the case, there had been impressive action from leaders, particularly the deputy director, to respond to recommendations. This included setting clear standards within the prison and stronger partnership working with local maternity services. At the time of our inspection there were 468 women held on four main house blocks. House block 1, which contained the drug treatment and detoxification wing, was noisy and unsettled, and the women housed there reported twice the levels of intimidation from their peers and abuse from staff than elsewhere in the jail. Sodexo, which ran the prison, was also the education provider.