United Kingdom · North-West · Cheshire
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Capacity
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Current population
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Occupancy
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Year opened
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Operational
Figures from official sources · verified 7 Jul 2026 · methodology
Operator
HM Prison & Probation ServicePopulation held
male
Opened
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Region
North-West
Security level
Medium
Death-row facility
No
progress against each of the five key concerns that we considered to the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Risley healthy prison outcomes in 2023 and 2016 Some parts of the prison were in very poor physical condition, and care for those with long-term and chronic conditions was weak. There crisis. The offender management unit (OMU) was understaffed and Good progress had been made in four of the five priority concerns that the other three. — UK IMB Annual Report (2024) — Safety: 4.1 Reception and induction 4.1.1: The Board continued to monitor the running of two regimes that were implemented to protect PCoSO prisoners. At the start of this reporting period HMP Risley had three different types of prison populations, namely PCoSOs, foreign nationals and mainstream prisoners. Historically, it has been a complex and difficult environment to manage. 4.1.2: The prison [...] Respect: 5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food 5.1.1: Most of the accommodation blocks were in a state of poor repair. A refurbishment programme was ongoing in March 2025 after many months of delays. However, there was a regular painting programme on the wings, which kept the internal areas of the prison looking satisfactory. 5.1.2: Although showers are being updated and, in some areas, much improved, by the [...] Purposeful activity: 7.1.1: A lack of available spaces both in education and workshops continued to be an issue. However, the men who can access education engage well and told the IMB they would like to be able to have more time in class. 7.1.2: The library at HMP Risley continued to be well used, with a good selection of materials, including foreign language texts. Men can request books that are not held in stock. [...] Preparation for release: 7.3.1: There was a substantial churn rate, with, on average, around 50 receptions per week throughout the year and similar numbers of discharges and transfers. This rose by approximately 50% in October/November 2024 with the prison re-roll. This had a major impact on the work of the offender management unit (OMU), as staff had a significant turnover of men they were dealing with and requiring [...]
This review visit took place nine months after a full inspection in April What we found during this review visit before our visit. Significant inroads had already been made into the
post for most of that time. The current acting governor had worked hard to phone calls and other contact were not managed effectively, and some were
HMP Risley is a sex offender and general category C resettlement work and education. Note: rehabilitation and release planning became ‘preparation for release’ in October 2023. as a category C resettlement prison. Prisoners had limited time out of cell and insufficient work or education, and most of the available activity All prisoners now had more time out of their cell, and the new regime unemployed prisoners on a basic regime still had only around three hours a day out of their cell and the limited weekend regime remained education, work and skills, quality assurance, and careers information the work required of them in their sentence plans.
was a high level of self-harm and inconsistent support for prisoners in Care for those at risk of self-harm had improved. There were more to understand the drivers of self-harm. However, rates of self-harm which were contributing to violence in the jail. supply of drugs, which remained an ongoing challenge for the jail.
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
What the score is responding to:
This facility scores 24. The national average across 584 scored United Kingdom facilities is 4 — 20 points above national average.
Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.
1.1 HMP Risley is a sex offender and general category C resettlement prison in Cheshire, holding about a thousand male prisoners. 1.2 This review visit took place nine months after a full inspection in April 2023 that had identified a range of serious issues. We assessed progress against each of the five key concerns that we considered to be priorities for action, while Ofsted examined four themes relating to work and education. What we found at our last inspection 1.3 At our previous inspections of HMP Risley in 2023 and 2016, we made the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Risley healthy prison outcomes in 2023 and 2016 Note: rehabilitation and release planning became ‘preparation for release’ in October 2023. 1.4 In April 2023, we found a prison that was not fulfilling its core function as a category C resettlement prison. Prisoners had limited time out of cell and insufficient work or education, and most of the available activity was in part-time and unchallenging roles. 1.5 Some parts of the prison were in very poor physical condition, and prisoners were forced to wash in decrepit showers. There was a huge waiting list for the dentist and no onsite dental facilities, while health care for those with long-term and chronic conditions was weak. There was a high level of self-harm and inconsistent support for prisoners in crisis. The offender management unit (OMU) was understaffed and there were no accredited programmes for prisoners who had committed sex offences. Report of an independent review of progress at HMP Risley What we found during this review visit 1.6 Good progress had been made in four of the five priority concerns that we assessed, and reasonable progress in the fifth. Ofsted found significant progress in one of their themes and reasonable progress in the other three. No concerns or themes were judged to have shown insufficient or no meaningful progress. 1.7 Care for those at risk of self-harm had improved. There were more dedicated safer custody staff and we found much improved use of data to understand the drivers of self-harm. However, rates of self-harm remained stubbornly high and, while the number of Listeners (prisoners trained by the Samaritans to provide confidential emotional support to fellow prisoners) had increased, there were still not enough of them in much of the prison. 1.8 There had been substantial improvements in living conditions; in particular, the appalling showers we saw at the inspection had been refurbished or were about to be replaced, and the care and separation unit (CSU) had been refurbished and redecorated. The much-needed new dental suite had been completed at speed and opened a month before our visit. Significant inroads had already been made into the long waiting list for dental treatment. 1.9 All prisoners now had more time out of their cell, and the new regime included evening association for the majority of them. However, unemployed prisoners on a basic regime still had only around three hours a day out of their cell and the limited weekend regime remained unchanged. 1.10 Ofsted inspectors found a broader and more meaningful range of activity for prisoners. Attendance at activities was high and more prisoners were now able to achieve qualifications. Leadership of education, work and skills, quality assurance, and careers information and guidance were all much improved. 1.11 Offending behaviour programmes for people convicted of sexual offences were now available and enabled these prisoners to undertake the work required of them in their sentence plans. Increased staffing in the OMU also allowed prison offender managers to undertake one-to- one work with prisoners who were not on programmes. 1.12 It was clear that the governor, prison group director and other senior leaders had not wasted time in acting on our findings after the full
4.1 Reception and induction 4.1.1: The Board continued to monitor the running of two regimes that were implemented to protect PCoSO prisoners. At the start of this reporting period HMP Risley had three different types of prison populations, namely PCoSOs, foreign nationals and mainstream prisoners. Historically, it has been a complex and difficult environment to manage. 4.1.2: The prison continued to have a transient population, with an average of 205 prisoners arriving each month in 2024. The change in the population during the year resulted in an increase in the number of prisoners arriving compared to the previous period. Since the change has been completed, the average monthly number of arrivals has reduced to 142. 4.1.3: In general, the Board observed well-run reception and induction processes for all types of prisoners. 4.2 Suicide and self-harm, deaths in custody 4.2.1: There were four deaths in custody in the year. One death was within three months of release, and all were apparently from natural causes. 4.2.2: The incidence of self-harm reduced significantly in the year, following the change in prison population. There are fewer issues of prisoner debt which in some cases, prior to the change in population, was given by prisoners as the reason for self-harm, as well as being under threat. Other reasons given were not having vapes available, to annoy staff and as an attempt to get out for a hospital visit or to secure a move to the care and separation unit (CSU). [...]
7.3.1: There was a substantial churn rate, with, on average, around 50 receptions per week throughout the year and similar numbers of discharges and transfers. This rose by approximately 50% in October/November 2024 with the prison re-roll. This had a major impact on the work of the offender management unit (OMU), as staff had a significant turnover of men they were dealing with and requiring them to quickly get to know their new caseloads. 7.3.2: The ‘Building Choices’ programme started being delivered in HMP Risley as a pilot in January 2025. Priority for this was being given to men in the final year of their sentence. The Discovery Programme was delivered to men in the final 13 weeks of their sentence and focused on veterans, although other groups of prisoners were included, especially those serving short sentences and care-experienced prisoners. It was popular and there was a waiting list to join the programme. 20 7.4.1: The Board observed several family days that have been arranged by ‘Partners of Prisoners’ (POPs). There were a total of six POPS-run family days and two ‘prison-run’ family days over the course of the reporting period, catering for different parts of the population – those with families, foreign nationals, etc. These were well attended and families reported being happy with the ease of booking these visits and their treatment by staff. Family days are over-subscribed with 70 applications for 18 places on one occasion. There are also [...]
7.1.1: A lack of available spaces both in education and workshops continued to be an issue. However, the men who can access education engage well and told the IMB they would like to be able to have more time in class. 7.1.2: The library at HMP Risley continued to be well used, with a good selection of materials, including foreign language texts. Men can request books that are not held in stock. Whilst there was still a lack of capacity, slots increased from around 800 to 1,000 visits available per month due to a revised timetable. This meant five groups visited in the morning and another four groups were allowed library sessions in the evening. However, during the population change there was a period where prisoners from A wing, primarily foreign nationals, did not have access to the library. The Board also observed sessions by Shannon Trust mentors, working to support men in improving their reading skills. 7.2.1: There were several workshops available to the men, and these were generally well attended, with the men reporting being satisfied in their work. However, there were still insufficient places in work for the size of the population. 7.2.2: There were issues with equipment in the laundry workshop, requiring maintenance/repair that resulted in the facility being temporarily unable to operate at full capacity and a reduction in the amount of laundry that could be processed for contract work. This reduced the opportunities for work as a result. 7.2.3: Vocational training [...]
5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food 5.1.1: Most of the accommodation blocks were in a state of poor repair. A refurbishment programme was ongoing in March 2025 after many months of delays. However, there was a regular painting programme on the wings, which kept the internal areas of the prison looking satisfactory. 5.1.2: Although showers are being updated and, in some areas, much improved, by the end of this reporting period in March 2025, residents of A wing are still having to take showers in a mobile shower area outside the main residential block. This was particularly difficult for the men during the winter months. There was no alternative to this as population pressures required the wing to remain open while the showers were being refurbished. At the end of the reporting period, the refurbished showers on C and D wings were still out of use and awaiting sign-off between the contractor and the prison. 5.1.3: The IMB was concerned at the delays in repairs and whether adequate quality checks were always made before contracts are signed off. 5.1.4: Vermin control remains an issue, especially in the older wings (A and B). Improvements have been made using humane traps and better management of kitchen facilities, i.e. ensuring food all food is cleared away, to help control the rat problem. 5.1.5: The re-roll in autumn 2024 resulted in damage to many cells by the outgoing prisoners, e.g. broken phone sockets, offensive graffiti and damage to bedding. Recent fabric checks have [...]
HMP Risley is a mixed sex offender and general category C resettlement prison in Cheshire, that held 1,032 prisoners at the time of our inspection. For the last two years, the leadership had been unstable, with temporary governors being in post for most of that time. The current acting governor had worked hard to maintain stability and set an agenda that sought to improve decency in the jail and support his staff team, but the prison was still not fulfilling its function as a category C resettlement prison. The many prisoners who were unemployed were locked up for 22 hours a day, in a prison that had not created enough places in work or education for the size of the population. The jail operated a split regime which meant that most prisoners were only in poorly paid, part-time work or education. They did not have enough time out of their cells, with no evening association and an even worse situation at the weekend. Only those on the excellent, enhanced living unit had a regime that was commensurate with the category of the prison. Inspectors were particularly concerned about the public protection arrangements at Risley. The offender management unit was understaffed and there was insufficient support from probation services; this meant that some of the public protection arrangements were inadequate, men were not supported to reduce their risk of harm, and preparations for release were often not good enough. Some high-risk prisoners were released homeless, systems to monitor phone calls and other contact were not managed effectively, and some were leaving having had little or no interaction with a prison offender manager. Since the last inspection the proportion of men serving sentences for sexual offences had increased significantly, and they now represented 40% of the total population, but there was a failure to provide for them. Despite HMI Prisons raising this issue in 2016, there were still no accredited programmes for these prisoners. This represents an astonishing failure by the prison service, which has been far too slow in putting provision in place. Although the effectiveness of these programmes has, at times been questioned, if the prison service believes they are effective and necessary, they should make sure that the right prisoners get access to them. Other prison service bureaucracy was hampering progress. The lack of suitable dentist facilities meant that there was a huge waiting list and prisoners had to be sent in small groups to HMP Thorn Cross for treatment. The governor was waiting to hear if he could have the funds to refurbish the existing dental suite, but progress on this application was slow. Since our last inspection, when we commented on poor living conditions, the situation had deteriorated, with parts of the prison now beyond repair. Progress had been slow in refurbishing the showers, some of which were in appalling condition; this had not been picked up by leaders’ decency checks. The Ofsted inspection revealed that the provision of education, training and work was inadequate, much of the work on offer was repetitive and boring, and prisoners were not provided with skills that would be useful when they were released. Rates of pay were also very low, at just £10.20 a week even for some full-time workers. This was likely to have led to the increased levels of debt which were contributing to violence in the jail. Our score for safety had improved to ‘reasonably good’, with better oversight of the use of force and some excellent work with Cheshire police in reducing the supply of drugs, which remained an ongoing challenge for the jail. Overall levels of violence were similar to those of comparator prisons and it felt reasonably safe. However, leaders had not identified that levels of violence among the general population were higher than similar prisons when excluding those
Scrutiny inspection of HMP Risley (2020-11-24)
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World Prisons. (2026). HMP Risley. Retrieved July 21, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-risley
"HMP Risley." World Prisons. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-risley.
@misc{worldprisons-hmp-risley,
author = {{World Prisons}},
title = {HMP Risley},
year = {2026},
url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-risley},
urldate = {2026-07-21}
}