HMP Isle of Wight – Camp Hill Barracks is a former Category C men's

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

, located on the outskirts of

Newport, Isle of Wight Newport is the county town of the Isle of Wight, an island county off the south coast of England. The town is slightly north of the centre of the island, and is in the civil parish of Newport and Carisbrooke. It has a quay at the head of the ...

. The former prison lies adjacent to Albany and Parkhurst, both part of HMP Isle of Wight.

History

Camp Hill was built in 1912 using prisoner labour from Parkhurst Prison. Camp Hill was formally opened by

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

. In a report in April 2007,

Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons His Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons is the head of HM Inspectorate of Prisons and the senior inspector of prisons, young offender institutions and immigration service detention and removal centres in England and Wales. The current chief inspe ...

criticised Camp Hill for its lack of a coherent and positive direction, and its failure to improve. Concerns were also raised at the number of inmates not in vocational work at the prison. Camp Hill courted controversy again weeks later, when it emerged an

arsonist Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, water ...

had been mistakenly released 29 months too early from the prison. Arsonist Mr Christopher "Buster" Pocock from Ryde was captured early and was returned to finish his sentence. In January 2008 a convicted drug dealer refused to leave his cell in Camp Hill for a court appearance. Citing the 1998 Human Rights Act, the prisoner claimed his human rights would be breached if he was forced to leave, due to fears he would lose his cell to another inmate amid an overcrowding crisis at Camp Hill. In October 2008, it was announced that the name Camp Hill could be lost, along with the two other prison names, Albany and Parkhurst. The three would become part of one large prison run by a single governor. New names for the larger single prison have been suggested as HMP Solent, HMP Mountbatten and HMP Vectis. HMP Isle of Wight was later selected as the new name for the super prison incorporating all three island prisons. In January 2013 the Government announced the Camp Hill element of HMP Isle of Wight would close as part of a wider reorganisation of prison places. Camp Hill formally closed in March 2013. The now empty Camp Hill prison site has been said to be earmarked for a large housing development, however the ministry of justice still own the site. There is no sign that this site will be offered for housing by them.

References

External links

Ministry of Justice pages on HMP Camp HillHMP Camp Hill – HM Inspectorate of Prisons Reports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Camp Hill (Hm Prison) Prisons on the Isle of Wight 1912 establishments in England 2013 disestablishments in England Newport, Isle of Wight Defunct prisons in England