United Kingdom · South-West & South Central · Winchester
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UK YOI prison operated by HM Prison & Probation Service. Listed in the GOV.UK Find a prison directory.
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
South-West & South Central
Security level
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Death-row facility
No
comparison of responses from different sub-groups of the prisoner population. researchers from a P-NOMIS prisoner population printout ordered by cell representative of the entire population of the establishment. The formula used in At the time of the survey on 2 February 2026 the prisoner population at England. While the population was made up of mostly remanded or newly separate category C facility. — UK IMB Annual Report (2024) — Safety: 4.1 Reception and induction Reception staff were observed to be professional, engaging with prisoners and having an overall calming effect on arrivals to facilitate the transition into HMP/YOI Winchester. All prisoners were put through an airport-style x-ray security scanner to reduce instances of illicit items being smuggled into the prison. The prison has confirmed prisoners returning from [...] Respect: 5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food As reported in many previous IMB Winchester annual reports, the prison was built 178 years ago, is dilapidated and considered to be unfit for purpose. Cells were designed for one person, but mostly contain two, causing cramped occupancy for years. Accommodation capacity issues, exacerbated by the current lack of spaces across the prison estate, lead to [...] Purposeful activity: In addition to the HMIP Inspection in October 2024, OFSTED separately inspected education skills and work (ESW) provision and Winchester scored ‘inadequate’ across all areas. This was not a surprise to the IMB given a lack of resources, staff recruitment challenges and the considerable issues with prisoner churn. OFSTED made several recommendations, most of which are not achievable without a [...] Preparation for release: Managing this prison population, which is consistently at or close to maximum capacity, has a significant impact on staff workload. The offender management unit (OMU) continues to operate under considerable pressure from the high demand/ high churn and in responding to frequent government initiatives to try to release prisoners early or relocate to lower security prisons. The OMU is [...]
courts in south and central England. At the time of this visit it held fewer prisoners than any prison we have visited were able to have a daily that they had faced over the last two years. Leaders had managed to keep visits
posters around the prison showing their aspiration for how cells ought to look,
release together with demographic and background questions which enables violence and which was providing prisoners with very little time out of cell. On While there had been impressive work to reduce the risk posed by some of the enthusiastic education managers were very frustrated by the prison’s inability to get prisoners to classrooms and workshops, both consistently and on time. This made it impossible to plan work programmes because they did not know who, if been employed in the community were not provided with suitable work. bored and frustrated by the lack of activity, while workshops were underused were simply not enough officers to ensure even the most basic regime for prisoners.
violence and which was providing prisoners with very little time out of cell. On address the causes of violence within the main population. Most prisoners were
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
What the score is responding to:
This facility scores 26. The national average across 584 scored United Kingdom facilities is 4 — 22 points above national average.
Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.
Prisoner survey, results and analyses, HMP Downview, February, 2026 3 Prisoner survey methodology A representative survey of prisoners is carried out at the start of every inspection, the results of which contribute to the evidence base for the inspection. HMI Prisons researchers developed a self-completion questionnaire in November 2023 to support HMI Prisons’ Expectations. The questionnaire consists of structured questions covering the prisoner ‘journey’ from reception to release together with demographic and background questions which enables comparison of responses from different sub-groups of the prisoner population. There are also three open questions at the end of the questionnaire which allow prisoners to express in their own words what they find most positive and negative about the prison. Qualitative analysis of these written comments is undertaken by HMI Prisons researchers and used by inspectors. Sampling On the day of the survey a random sample is drawn by HMI Prisons researchers from a P-NOMIS prisoner population printout ordered by cell location. Using a power calculation, HMI Prisons researchers calculate the minimum sample size required to ensure that the survey findings are representative of the entire population of the establishment. The formula used in the calculation assumes a 75% response rate (65% in open establishments) and a 95% confidence interval with a 7% margin of error. Distributing and collecting questionnaires HMI Prisons researchers distributed and collected the questionnaires in person. A cover sheet was included with the questionnaire which explained the purpose of the survey and that participation was voluntary. Assurances were given about confidentiality, anonymity and the storage and retention of the data. Prisoners were provided with a sealable envelope for their completed questionnaire and told when researchers would return to collect it. When researchers were unable to obtain verbal consent from prisoners, returned and completed questionnaires were deemed as providing consent. The questionnaire was available in 14 languages. Prisoner survey, results and analyses, HMP Downview, February, 2026 4 Survey responses At the time of the survey on 2 February 2026 the prisoner population at Downview was 304. Using the sampling method described above, questionnaires were distributed to 161 prisoners. We received a total of 143 completed questionnaires, a response rate of 89%. The full inspection report is available on our website at: https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/inspections/ Prisoner survey, results and analyses, HMP Downview, February, 2026 5 Prisoner survey results and analyses Over the following pages we present the full survey results followed by numerous comparative analyses for Downview. For the comparator analyses, where relevant, each question was reformulated using the Chi-square test (or Fisher’s exact test if there are fewer than five expected counts in a cell) into a binary ‘yes/no’ format and affirmative responses compared. Missing responses have been excluded from all analyses and for some questions, responses from a sub-group of the sample are reported (as indicated in the data). Responses from Downview 2026 compared with those from other HMI Prisons surveys These analyses are carried out on summary data from all survey questions. As we have been using a revised version of the questionnaire since November 2023, we do not yet have full comparator data for all questions. • Survey responses from Downview in 2026 compared with survey responses from training prisons inspected since July 2024. • Survey responses from Downview in 2026 compared with survey responses from Downview in 2021. Comparisons between different residential locations within Downview 2026 • Responses of prisoners on the induction unit (A wing) compared with those from the rest of the establishment. • Responses of priso
Built in the mid-nineteenth century, Winchester is a category B reception prison capable of holding up to 649 adult male prisoners from across southern England. While the population was made up of mostly remanded or newly convicted individuals, 129 were longer-term category C prisoners held on adjacent wings known as the West Hill and Hearn units. This is the fourth time we have inspected Winchester since 2016, and it continues to be a persistently underachieving prison. At this inspection, it received our lowest healthy prison assessment in three of our four tests –
4.1 Reception and induction Reception staff were observed to be professional, engaging with prisoners and having an overall calming effect on arrivals to facilitate the transition into HMP/YOI Winchester. All prisoners were put through an airport-style x-ray security scanner to reduce instances of illicit items being smuggled into the prison. The prison has confirmed prisoners returning from court are also scanned. The amount of exposure to radiation is well within established safe parameters. The reception staff are supported by two red band prisoners (who have been granted a position of trust, typically earned through demonstrating good behaviour), who help with issuing kit and providing a meal and drinks whilst the new arrivals wait for their cell allocation. On a number of occasions, Board members observed that prisoners were being delivered to the prison by SERCO late into the evening. During the reporting period, some 398 prisoners (an average of more than seven per week) were recorded as being delivered after 7.30pm. A total of 138 of these arrived after the 8.00 pm deadline. This resulted in reception staff working long after their shifts had ended to process the new arrivals, which was exacerbated by shortages in staff. The delays are said to be due to a shortage of SERCO vehicles and staff and the late ending of court sessions. Board members have also attended, for monitoring purposes, a number of induction sessions on A wing. These are known as Level 2 induction, [...]
5.1 Accommodation, clothing, food As reported in many previous IMB Winchester annual reports, the prison was built 178 years ago, is dilapidated and considered to be unfit for purpose. Cells were designed for one person, but mostly contain two, causing cramped occupancy for years. Accommodation capacity issues, exacerbated by the current lack of spaces across the prison estate, lead to inappropriate prisoners sharing cells, which creates risk and hampers the effective running of the wings. The prison was not designed with older or disabled prisoners in mind and doorways to most cells are not wide enough for wheelchair access. Temperature is difficult to control across the main wings, leaving some cells reportedly ‘too hot’ or ‘too cold’ at different times. There is some positive news on the repair front in that the gym roof leak which had remained unfixed for some three years has now been repaired, meaning that the gym floor is no longer dangerously slippery in wet weather. Other departments, such as education and the correspondence office, still report leaking ceilings. The underground, malodorous, control room remains infested with rats and at least half of the security cameras are not working. Following a Ministerial direction to MoJ, a temporary control room is to be available by November 2025. Overdue building works projects at HMP/YOI Winchester Photo 1. basement entrance to the control Photo 2. Ground work and footings room with mesh on lower door to inhibit installed [...]
Managing this prison population, which is consistently at or close to maximum capacity, has a significant impact on staff workload. The offender management unit (OMU) continues to operate under considerable pressure from the high demand/ high churn and in responding to frequent government initiatives to try to release prisoners early or relocate to lower security prisons. The OMU is under-resourced for the high number of remand prisoners. More than 70% of prisoners held in May 2025 were on remand. The ECLS 7015 initiative ceased on 9 September 2024 and was replaced by SDS 4016 on 10 September (first tranche serving sentences under five years), and on 22 October 2024 (second tranche serving sentences of over five years). Home detention curfew (HDC) criteria introduced in June 2024, resulted in in 13 reassessments. TPRS 1217 altered the rules for transfer to category D prisons and resulted in 72 prisoners being reassessed for potential move. 16% of these early releases were assessed as risk concerns. IMB receives few applications regarding OMU sentence management and the support to prisoners provided by staff and observed by IMB is thorough and helpful. 15 ECLS – End of Custody Supervised Licence 70 allows prisoners to leave up to 70 days before end of sentence 16 SDS 40 – Standard Determinate Sentence release after serving 40% of sentence rather than 50% 17 TPRS 12 – Temporary Presumptive Recategorisation Scheme for those with 12 months or less of a sentence to serve 41 [...]
In addition to the HMIP Inspection in October 2024, OFSTED separately inspected education skills and work (ESW) provision and Winchester scored ‘inadequate’ across all areas. This was not a surprise to the IMB given a lack of resources, staff recruitment challenges and the considerable issues with prisoner churn. OFSTED made several recommendations, most of which are not achievable without a significant increase in resources and investment. At the time of writing (July 2025) budgets have been cut by 7.5% and OFSTED recommendations have not been enacted. It is the Board’s view that the education service provided under contract by Milton Keynes College does not meet the needs of a local prison with high churn and a large proportion of remand population. Functional skills maths and English courses are mandated and consume a large part of the budget but require 60 guided learning hours to complete. Only 14 prisoners have completed English and 12 completed maths in a 12-month period, as most prisoners do not stay in Winchester for the length of time required. This year the budget has been cut further so new courses cannot be funded. Direct purchase system (DPS) funding has also been cut by 20%, hence the Education Outreach programme has been cut, including Bearface Theatre and Therapeutic Art, which were reasonably well attended and popular activities. Allocation rates have improved this year and are now hovering around 70-80%. However, attendance rates remain a concern, [...]
1.1 HMP Winchester is a small Victorian reception prison that serves the courts in south and central England. At the time of this visit it held about 630 prisoners in the main category B prison and a small, separate category C facility. As seen at our full inspection in early 2022, over half of all prisoners were unsentenced and nearly 90% had been at Winchester for three months or less. 1.2 At our previous inspections of HMP Winchester in 2019 and 2022, we made the following judgements about outcomes for prisoners. Figure 1: HMP Winchester local healthy prison outcomes in 2019 and 2022 Good Reasonably good Not sufficiently good Poor Figure 2: HMP Winchester category C healthy prison outcomes in 2019 and 2022
Winchester is a small, Victorian, local prison that serves the courts in south and central England. At the time of our inspection it held nearly 500 prisoners in the main category B prison and a small, separate category C facility. Over half of the prisoners were unsentenced. At our last inspection in 2019, we found a prison struggling with high levels of violence and which was providing prisoners with very little time out of cell. On our return, we were disappointed to find that – despite some limited progress – our healthy prison test scores remained the same. Winchester continued to be one of the most violent prisons in the country. While there had been impressive work to reduce the risk posed by some of the most violent prisoners, there was no meaningful strategy to understand and address the causes of violence within the main population. Most prisoners were locked in their cells for 22.5 hours a day, and even more at the weekend. The enthusiastic education managers were very frustrated by the prison’s inability to get prisoners to classrooms and workshops, both consistently and on time. This made it impossible to plan work programmes because they did not know who, if anyone, was going turn up each day. There was no assessment of the skills of prisoners when they came into the prison, which meant that those who had been employed in the community were not provided with suitable work. As during our 2019 inspection, men on the category C side of the prison did not have enough to do. We found a group of relatively low-risk prisoners who were bored and frustrated by the lack of activity, while workshops were underused and the gardens were out of bounds. There is huge scope to develop the offer for these prisoners and create a thriving, productive environment which will support sentence progression and provide an incentive to prisoners on the main site. Despite some improvements to the fabric of Winchester’s buildings, such as new showers on some wings, ongoing issues with the water supply meant that fewer prisoners than any prison we have visited were able to have a daily shower. Many of the cells, particularly on the C4 landing, were covered in graffiti or dilapidated, with worn out furniture and lavatories. Leaders had put up posters around the prison showing their aspiration for how cells ought to look, but there was no credible plan for how or when these improvements would be made. The prison had struggled to recruit and retain enough staff and this problem was directly affecting the day-to-day running of the jail, where at times there were simply not enough officers to ensure even the most basic regime for prisoners. Officers were frequently cross deployed from the gym and the offender management unit which meant access to these services was further reduced. Leaders will need to develop an understanding of why so many officers (in an affluent part of the country with low levels of unemployment) are leaving the prison and put in place some meaningful support to help retain good staff members during their first year of service. Inspectors were frequently impressed by many of the officers and staff, who showed great skill and dedication in their work, despite the many challenges that they had faced over the last two years. Leaders had managed to keep visits going during the latest lockdown and this was a real achievement, given how frequently the prison was short staffed. There is no doubt that the pandemic has limited some of the progress at Winchester, but leaders have failed to show enough real, sustained grip. If it is to improve from this disappointing inspection, the prison will need leaders to be active and visible on the wings, and set clear, measurable targets for improvement so that prisoners are safer, kept in decent conditions and given enough to do during the day. Charlie Taylor HM Chief Inspector of Prisons March 2022
Full inspection of HMP Winchester (2019-06-17)
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World Prisons. (2026). HMP Winchester. Retrieved July 22, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-winchester
"HMP Winchester." World Prisons. Accessed July 22, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-winchester.
@misc{worldprisons-hmp-winchester,
author = {{World Prisons}},
title = {HMP Winchester},
year = {2026},
url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/hmp-winchester},
urldate = {2026-07-22}
}