Styal inspection report 2022
Report for Styal Prison and Young Offender Institution
Summary
Located in the buildings of a former children’s home, Styal is an unusual setting for a prison, with its Edwardian houseblocks situated along tree-lined avenues. At the time of our visit the prison housed 362 women, most of whom were on remand or serving short sentences, with a substantial minority serving four or more years. The site provides excellent opportunities to develop independent living, but also presents some challenges, particularly in supervising women inside the houses and around the grounds. COVID-19 restrictions had meant that women were locked in their houses together – with up to four sharing a small room – for long periods of time. Under such conditions it was perhaps not surprising that there had been an increase in levels of violence since we last inspected as frustrations began to spill over into confrontations. Though restrictions had begun to be lifted, the leaders had sensibly decided not to return to the previous free-flow movement around the prison.