Dartmoor inspection report 2023
Report for Dartmoor Prison
Summary
Having been scheduled to close for some years, Dartmoor, one of the oldest jails in the country, received a reprieve in 2021 because of ongoing population pressures in the English prison estate. Many of the problems we highlight in this report stem from the costly failure by the prison service to plan adequately for this situation and, on this inspection, it was disappointing to see the doubling up of cells that were designed for, and at our last inspection held, one prisoner. Given the relatively older age of the Dartmoor population, the long sentences many are serving and the already inadequate numbers of work, training and education places, the inspectorate would be very concerned if the number of prisoners increases further. At our last inspection in 2017, we described a prison that was decaying fast with damp cells and buckets strategically placed underneath leaking roofs. This failure to invest in the infrastructure meant that the prison had not had some of the improvements that we have seen elsewhere, such as the of incell phones, electronic kiosks, or fit-for-purpose health, education, or laundry facilities. Given the state of the jail, the leaders had done well to keep the prison clean and there had been refurbishment of some showers.