Foston Hall inspection report 2025
Report for Foston Hall Prison and Young Offender Institution
Summary
Foston Hall opened as a women’s prison in 1997. It is set in the grounds of an old country house but contains a mix of accommodation types with a capacity of just over 300 prisoners. At this inspection 295 women were resident, and the prison was fulfilling many functions, from the management of unconvicted and unsentenced individuals, to holding a significant minority serving very long sentences, including life. The nature and profile of those being held was changing, with a recent surge in the number of women subject to very shortterm licence recall. This was impacting the number arriving and leaving, with consequences for the stability of the prison and prioritisation of resources. When we last inspected in 2021, outcomes in safety were poor, which was unusual for a women’s prison.