Prison Life Index

Prison facilities in the United Kingdom are managed by three distinct administrations: Scotland, England and Wales, and Northern Ireland. The British Parliament delegates some legislative powers to both Scotland and Northern Ireland. As a result, the systems can vary significantly between territories.

These evaluations focus solely on the prison administration in Scotland.

The evaluations measure the violations of prisoner rights by the State. They are based on extensive desk research and expert evaluations. Please refer to the methodology to find out how the Prison Life Index data is collected, sorted, and aggregated.

The data and information for Scotland were collected between March 2024 and June 2024.

B
Occasional violations
B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to drinking water

A
Compliant with the international standards

People in prison have access to food

B
Occasional violations

The prison administration must provide each person in prison with drinking water (Article 35, Rules 2011 n° 331).

In most prisons, incarcerated people eat in their cell. They are served three meals a day on weekdays, and two meals and a snack a day at weekends. In Low Moss prison (Glasgow), His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) reported in 2022 that “dinner was served around 16:00 each day and those who could not afford to buy food from the canteen would need to wait until breakfast at 07:30”. The prison administration must provide food adapted to the needs of people in prison (Article 35, Rules 2011 n° 331. In 2021, HMIPS noted that it was not the case in Kilmarnock prison for those observing a specific diet for cultural or spiritual reasons.

B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison have sufficient living space

B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison can sleep in good conditions

B
Occasional violations

The premises are in good condition, clean and accessible

C
Frequent violations

There is no minimum standard for living space set out in the national regulations. Cells are designed for single occupancy. The administration has installed bunk beds in many facilities to cope with the increase in the number of incarcerated people. In 2023, approximately 37% of single cells were shared by two persons. Some facilities are facing overcrowding, which the government has sought to limit by organising the early release of around 500 people in June 2024.

The administration must provide each person in prison with a bed, a mattress, and bedding (Article 30, Rules 2011 n° 331). In Inverness and Castle Huntly (Dundee) prisons, HMIPS received complaints that mattresses were too thin. Some incarcerated persons stacked more than one to sleep in good conditions.

Older facilities tend to be in poor condition. HMIPS reported in 2019 the presence of rats in outside areas of Barlinnie prison (Glasgow) and an infestation of vermin in Edinburgh prison. In Inverness and Greenock prisons, the inspection mechanism observed that cells were run down and damaged by damp. The Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland declared in March 2024 that Barlinnie prison (Glasgow) was “at risk of catastrophic failure” and that Greenock prison, built [114 years ago],(https://www.inverclyde.gov.uk/news/2023/aug/calls-for-greenock-prison-plans-update-after-concerning-inspection) should be “bulldozed”.

B
Occasional violations

Adequate sanitary facilities allow people in prison to maintain their personal hygiene

B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to personal hygiene products

B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to clothing

A
Compliant with the international standards

Most cells are equipped with a toilet and a sink. In Castle Huntly (Dundee), Kilmarnock and Dumfries prisons, toilets are located outside the cells.

In Inverness and Castle Huntly (Dundee) prisons, incarcerated people share the showers. Where these are outside the cells, they rely on staff to open their cell doors. Experts reported that due to staff shortages, access to showers can be limited.

The prison administration must provide basic personal hygiene products, free of charge (Article 34, Rules 2011 n° 331). HMIPS observed in 2022 that in Addiewell prison the provision of such articles was “sporadic”.

People in prison are provided with a set of clothing upon admission (Article 33, Rules 2011 n° 331). They can wash them in the prison’s laundry. Incarcerated people can be required to wear a prison uniform. In [Low Moss prison (Glasgow)] (https://www.sps.gov.uk/prisons/low-moss), personal clothing can only be worn in “residential areas”.

C-
Frequent severe violations
B-
Occasional severe violations
B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison have access to health awareness and information programmes

B
Occasional violations

Screening programmes make it possible to diagnose people with contagious diseases

C
Frequent violations

Equipment and infrastructures limiting the risk of disease and infection transmission are available

B-
Occasional severe violations

Vaccination programmes are organised

A
Compliant with the international standards
B
Occasional violations

Health awareness and information programmes are organised. Health care services provided in 2022 an oral health education programme called “Mouth Matters”. The programmes are less accessible to people held in overcrowded prisons or those awaiting trial. Screening for HIV and hepatitis is organised upon incarcerated people’s request. People in prison have limited access to equipment to limit the risk of infection transmission. Injection material is not provided.

Upon admission, people in prison receive a complete medical examination. Sources indicated that the identification of signs of violence and ill treatment prior to admission is inconsistent.

C-
Frequent severe violations

Access to general health care is quick and consistent

C-
Frequent severe violations

Health workers are qualified and independent

B
Occasional violations

Adequate health infrastructures are available

C-
Frequent severe violations

The National Health Service of Scotland is responsible for providing health care. Health services are usually staffed with nurses and general practitioners. Their insufficient number does not allow to ensure people in prison have access to necessary care. His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) reported in 2022 that in Shotts prison, “the healthcare team had experienced significant and sustained staff shortages across all disciplines”. There was no general practitioner present from 1.30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Primary health care is delivered within prisons. In the oldest ones, such as Kilmarnock and Inverness prisons,
HMIPS reported that the health care infrastructures were small and inadequate to properly welcome people.

There are no hospital facilities within prisons. Medical transfer is ensured by a private company, GEOAmey. This service is dysfunctional. A 2021-2022 audit of the prison administration noted that between August and October 2022, 705 hospital appointments were missed due to a failure by the service provider. In 2024, the Chief Inspector for Prisons observed that “appointments, in some prisons, were more routinely cancelled than they were met”. She reported that “people with stage four cancer [had] three critical care appointments cancelled”.

?
“Specialised care” refers to psychological, psychiatric and dental care according to Rule 25 of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.
C-
Frequent severe violations

Access to mental health and dental care is quick and consistent

D
Regular violations

Mental health and dental care workers are qualified and independent

B
Occasional violations

Adequate mental health and dental care infrastructures are available

C-
Frequent severe violations

Adequate and sufficient psychological, psychiatric and dental care is not provided to people in prison. In Addiewell prison, the Mental Health and Addictions team is operating at 50% of its capacity. People in prison can wait up to six months for a consultation.

B-
Occasional severe violations

People experiencing gender transition can access the necessary care

B
Occasional violations

Elderly people can access the necessary care

B
Occasional violations

Children can access the necessary care

A
Compliant with the international standards

Women can access the necessary care

B-
Occasional severe violations

People with communicable diseases can access the necessary care

B
Occasional violations

People with addictions can access the necessary care

C
Frequent violations

People with mental illnesses or psychiatric disorders can access the necessary care

D
Regular violations

People with physical disabilities can the access necessary care

D
Regular violations

Those suffering from addictions do not have regular access to appropriate treatments. In recent years, drug-related deaths have increased in Scottish prisons.

B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison can continue the health care or treatments started before admission

B-
Occasional severe violations

An individual medical file is opened upon admission and is accessible to the patient

B
Occasional violations

Continuity of treatment is generally ensured. Health workers can access previous medical records of people in prison. However, delays may occur, especially when medical records are held in a different Scottish region, or in Wales, England or Northern Ireland. A confidential medical file is opened upon admission of each person in prison. Incarcerated people are not informed of the existence of this file nor of their right to consult it.

C-
Frequent severe violations
B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison can access legal assistance

B
Occasional violations

People in prison are able to notify a third party in the event of detention, transfer, serious illness or injury

B
Occasional violations

Each person in prison has a confidential file in the official, complete and up-to-date registers

B-
Occasional severe violations

People in prison have access to the internal regulations of the facility they are held in

D
Regular violations

People in prison can receive visits from their lawyer (Article 66, Rules 2011 n° 331). Those who cannot afford private lawyers may benefit from legal aid.

The prison administration opens an individual file for each person in the prisoner records system (PR2). An expert reported that these files contain health and intelligence information that is used by the administration in disciplinary proceedings.

People in prison must be provided with the internal regulations of the facility they are detained in (Article 11, Rules 2011 n° 331). Experts reported that information about rights and procedures is not adequately communicated. The Prison Rules and the internal regulations of the facilities can generally be consulted in residential areas or in the library, at the request of incarcerated people. No specific arrangements are made so that they can access them. In 2022, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) noted that in Addiewell prison “there was no assurance that prisoners had been offered their legal entitlements”.

C-
Frequent severe violations
C
Frequent violations

The disciplinary system set out by public regulation is proportionate and appropriate

B-
Occasional severe violations

The different categories of people in prison are placed in separate facilities or wards

C
Frequent violations

The working and training conditions of prison staff contribute to the preventive framework

C
Frequent violations
C-
Frequent severe violations

People in prison are not subjected to physical harm

D
Regular violations

Discipline is enforced in a proportionate way

C
Frequent violations

People in prison are not subjected to abusive, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment

C-
Frequent severe violations

The Prisons and Young Offenders Institutions Rules 2011 detail the disciplinary system. There is no guidance on the sanctions to be applied depending on the offence, which leaves a wide margin of discretion to prison staff.

Due to overcrowding in certain facilities, the separation of people awaiting trial from those sentenced is not always effective. Men and women are not systematically separated during transportation. Transgender people are not always placed in facilities corresponding to their gender. This is due to the administration’s decision to take a “person-centred risk informed decision about the placement”.

Staff shortages have a negative impact on access to health care and activities in most prisons. HMIPS noted this issue in Polmont (Reddingmuirhead) and Perth prisons in 2023 or in Inverness and Shotts prisons in 2022.

Some facilities are particularly affected by the lack of staff. The Auditor General noted in 2019, that prisons in the North East of the country were struggling to recruit. In Grampian prison (Peterhead), 34 prison staff positions were vacant.

People in prison are regularly subjected to physical harm. Violent acts between incarcerated people are recorded. The prison administration reported in 2023 that “the number of occurrences of serious prisoner on prisoner violence for the reporting year 2022/23 has decreased to 91 from 108 incidents compared to 2021/22”.

Violence by staff is also reported. HMIPS reported in 2023 that in Addiewell prison, “60 per cent of prisoners said they had witnessed staff abusing, threatening, bullying, or assaulting another prisoner and 40% of prisoners said they had been abused, threatened, bullied or assaulted by staff themselves”.

There are records of abusive, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. Excessive use of searches on women and of solitary confinement have been reported in Polmont prison (Reddingmuirhead) in 2023. Incarcerated people with mental illness or in psychological distress tend be isolated in segregation units and not provided with the adequate care.

D
Regular violations
C-
Frequent severe violations

Internal or administrative inspections are carried out regularly by the central administration

C-
Frequent severe violations
i
Alternative evaluation methodology due to data access challenges

External inspections are regularly carried out by independent bodies

B
Occasional violations
D
Regular violations

In the event of an offense committed against a person in prison, the response of the institution is effective

D
Regular violations

People in prison, their legal assistance or their loved ones can file a complaint

C-
Frequent severe violations

The 27th of June 2013, the United Kingdom has ratified the Optional Protocol on the United Nations Convention against Torture. The National Preventive Mechanism has been established in 2009 with 21 bodies monitoring places of deprivation of liberty. The Scottish National Preventive Mechanism sub-group is composed of six bodies: the Scottish Human Rights Commission (Chair), HMIPS, the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland, the Care Inspectorate, the Independent Custody Visitors Scotland and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary for Scotland. External inspections are carried out by all of these organisations. People in prison can raise a complaint by filing a “prisoner complaint form”. The system lacks efficiency and clarity. HMIPS reported in 2022 that in Addiwell prison, “forms were not readily available, and staff demonstrated a lack of knowledge around the use of them”, adding that this reflected the situation in the rest of the country. Complaints are handled internally in the prison where they are made. Confidentiality is not ensured. Legal assistance and loved ones can file a complaint, but neither they nor incarcerated people trust this system. The response of the institution is often deemed ineffective.

External complaints to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) require first going through the internal complaints process.

B
Occasional violations
C
Frequent violations

Every person in prison can access a job

D
Regular violations

People in prison who work receive equitable remuneration and are free to use at least part of their earnings

C
Frequent violations

People in prison work in good conditions

B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to a diverse range of qualifying jobs that are not more dangerous or arduous than work outside the prison

B
Occasional violations

Sentenced people are required to work in prison (Article 82, Rules 2011 n° 331). In practice, the job offer is insufficient. People awaiting trial and women have lower access to opportunities and most cannot work. The job assignment process is not standardised across the country and is not transparent.

The Institute for Crime and Justice Policy research distinguishes two types of work within prisons in the United Kingdom: prison services and prison industries. Incarcerated people can carry out various types of work for the prison service: cooking, running the laundry, cleaning, assisting teachers, serving food and beverages in visiting areas, or working in the prison library. There is no data available regarding the number of incarcerated people employed in prison industries.

The prisoner wage earning policy defines the rates at which people in prison are paid for their work. The remuneration ranged from £5 to £21 per week in 2022. The prison administration increased all incarcerated people’s wages by £1 per week in 2023.

B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to vocational training

B
Occasional violations

People in prison have access to education

B
Occasional violations

Vocational classes are provided by the prison administration and recognised by accredited qualifications. They include cooking, carpentry, plumbing.

Educational training is provided across Scotland by the Fife College. It ranges from primary level classes, such as mathematics and literacy, to higher education degrees. People in prison who do not speak English can attend English lessons. Teachers providing education and vocational classes are accredited by the Scottish Qualification Authority.

In practice, attendance to vocational trainings and education is low across the country.

B
Occasional violations

People in prison spend at least one hour per day in the open air

A
Compliant with the international standards
A
Compliant with the international standards

People in prison have access to a library

A
Compliant with the international standards

People in prison can participate in recreational and cultural activities

A
Compliant with the international standards
A
Compliant with the international standards
B
Occasional violations

Most people in prison can spend one hour in the open air. In Addiewell and Perth prisons, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland (HMIPS) reported in 2022 and 2023 that people in prison had to choose between going outside and receiving evening medication or eating their meals hot.

Various recreational and cultural activities are organised by the prison administration and with local or national organisations, such as theatre or music.

People in prison have access to sporting equipment in good condition. Qualified gym instructors oversee training.

In all prisons, a chaplaincy team provides spiritual support. In 2024, 59 chaplains were employed by the prison administration. Among them, 29 were members of the Church of Scotland, 23 were Catholic and seven were Muslim representatives. In some facilities, the multi-faith room is mainly decorated with objects of the Christian obedience. People practising Judaism or Islam can have difficulties to access a diet that conforms to their spiritual practices.

?
See category ‘Being protected’ for communication with legal assistance and external monitoring bodies.
C
Frequent violations
B
Occasional violations

People in prison can correspond in writing with their loved ones

A
Compliant with the international standards

People in prison can talk with their loved ones on the phone

B
Occasional violations

People in prison can receive visitors

B
Occasional violations

People in prison may be granted temporary leave to visit their loved ones

C
Frequent violations

Measures are in place to guarantee the best interests of children of an incarcerated parent

B
Occasional violations

People in prison can use the phones available in their cell to call any of the ten contacts in their pre-approved list. Calls are monitored. Everyone is provided with 200 free minutes per month for national calls. Prices for international calls vary greatly, affecting the access for incarcerated people with limited resources.

The number and duration of visits allowed depend on each person’s judicial status. Sentenced people can receive at least 30 minutes of visit per week or two hours over a 28-day period (Article 63, Rules 2011 n° 331). People awaiting trial and people in prison with civil sentences are entitled to at least 30 minutes per week (Article 64, Rules 2011 n° 331). Procedures to request a visit vary across the territory. In most prisons, incarcerated people are responsible for booking the visit themselves and informing their loved ones.

Visits take place in common rooms that can accommodate up to 50 simultaneous groups. In the oldest prisons, visiting areas are in poor condition.

People in prison may be granted different types of temporary leaves to visit their loved ones: “home leaves” for a maximum of seven nights, “day release”, and “release for compassionate reasons” to attend funerals, births or other family events (Article 136, Rules 2011 n° 331). Only people in prison with the lowest security classification can be granted temporary leave by the administration. Escort staff is often unavailable. In practice, only a few people in prison can exercise this right.

Children can stay with their mother in Mother and baby units that are generally adequately furnished. In practice, there are few children in prison with their incarcerated parent.

C
Frequent violations

People in prison have access to information and various media

A
Compliant with the international standards

People in prison who have retained their right to vote may vote

C
Frequent violations
i
Alternative evaluation methodology due to data access challenges

People in prison generally have access to information through television, newspapers, and radio. Televisions are located in cells and common areas. People can consult newspapers in common areas or purchase them from the prison commissary, as well as radio stations. The access to television can be removed as a result of a disciplinary sanction.

Until 2020, only people awaiting trial were allowed to participate in general and devolved elections. In 2020, the Franchise Act extended the right for those sentenced for a maximum of 12 months to vote in Scottish Parliament or local government. Sentenced people cannot vote in general elections. People in prison who retain their right to vote must complete an electoral registration and can vote by proxy or post. Polling stations are not held in prisons.