His Majesty's Prison Edinburgh is located in the west of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

on the main A71, in an area now known as Stenhouse, and, although never named as such, has commonly been known as Saughton Prison from the old name for the general area. The prison is situated on the edge of a predominantly residential area and has good transport and road links to the city centre, which provides good access both for local courts and prison visitors. The building of the prison began on 31 July 1914 with the first prisoner being received in 1919. The prison consists of four halls: Glenesk, Hermiston, Ingliston and Ratho. The prison receives inmates from the courts in Edinburgh, the Lothians and the Borders. The prison manages adult male and female individuals including those on remand, short term sentences (serving less than 4 years), long term sentences (serving 4 years or more), life sentence prisoners and extended sentence prisoners (Order of Life Long Restrictions).

Healthcare

As of 1 November 2011, healthcare is provided by the

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

. Prior to this it was provided through prison service employed nursing staff, with a GP and on call service provided by the healthcare staff provider (Medacs). Lloyds Pharmacy currently supplies medication through daily deliveries (Monday to Saturday).

Library

The prison library was the winner of the 2010 UK Libraries Change Lives Award for its work in promoting literacy among its incarcerated population, who typically have much lower literacy rates than the general population. Kate King, the librarian, was also named UK public library staff of the year in 2014.

Notable inmates

* James Forbes - Son of notorious Leith double murderer Donald Forbes was imprisoned here after being found guilty of assault and torture of a man in Largs * Stephen Gough - A naked rambler repeatedly imprisoned for public nudity *

Eduardo Paolozzi Sir Eduardo Luigi Paolozzi (, ; 7 March 1924 – 22 April 2005) was a Scottish artist, known for his sculpture and graphic works. He is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of pop art. Early years Eduardo Paolozzi was born on 7 March 1 ...

- Scottish sculptor and artist was held here for three months during World War II because of his Italian heritage *

Kenny Richey Kenneth Thomas Richey (born August 3, 1964), in Zeist, Netherlands is a British-US dual citizen who in 1987 was convicted in Ohio of murdering a two-year-old girl and sentenced to death. He spent 21 years on death row before re-examination of his ...

- Served 21 years on death row in Ohio, and spent 6 months at HMP Edinburgh before being found not guilty of Serious Assault to permanent disfigurement and was released on 8 March 2009 *

Peter Tobin Peter Britton Tobin (27 August 1946 – 8 October 2022) was a Scottish convicted serial killer and sex offender who served a whole life order at HM Prison Edinburgh for three murders committed between 1991 and 2006. Police also investigated Tob ...

- Sentenced to life imprisonment with a whole life order for the murders of Angelika Kluk,

Vicky Hamilton Vicky Hamilton (born April 1, 1958) is an American record executive, personal manager, promoter and club booker, journalist, playwright, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker, and artist. She is noted for managing the early careers of Guns N' R ...

and Dinah McNicol. Tobin died in October 2022. * Nicholas Rossi - American sex offender fugitive.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:HMP Edinburgh 1919 establishments in Scotland Buildings and structures in Edinburgh

Government buildings in Edinburgh Government agencies established in 1919