HM Prison Birmingham is a
Category B 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, correc ...
, located in the
Winson Green
Winson Green is a loosely defined inner-city area in the west of the city of Birmingham, England. It is part of the ward of Soho.
It is the location of HM Prison Birmingham (known locally as Winson Green Prison or "the Green") and of City Hospi ...
area of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The prison was operated by
G4S
G4S is a British Multinational corporation, multinational private security company headquartered in London, England. The company was set up in 2004 when London-based Securicor amalgamated with Danish firm Group 4 Falck. The company offers a ran ...
from 2011, before it was returned to
HM Prison and Probation Service
His Majesty's Prison and Probation Service is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) responsible for the correctional services in England and Wales. It was created in 2004 as the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) by combin ...
in August 2018. The government takeover was originally planned to be temporary pending improvement, but became permanent in April 2019.
History
HM Prison Birmingham was formerly called Winson Green Prison.
It is a
Victorian prison, designed by DR Hill, who also designed
All Saints' Hospital, which was completed in 1849.
In 1995, Birmingham was criticised by its own Board of Visitors for being soft on prisoners. This arose after allegations that one inmate had gone on two weeks' holiday to
Menorca
Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capi ...
, while being released for weekend leave.
In January 1999 an inspection report by
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 ...
attacked conditions at Birmingham, describing the health centre in the jail as the "untidiest and dirtiest" inspectors had ever come across. The report also criticised the prison for its lack of a sex offender treatment programme, the lack of employment and education opportunities, and the inadequate bathing arrangements where some inmates were only being allowed a full wash three times a week.
In March 2001 the Chief Inspector declared that conditions had worsened in Birmingham Prison where around 11% of inmates had claimed to have been assaulted by prison officers. One particular incident involved a mentally-disturbed prisoner who had been denied a wash or change of clothes for weeks because staff thought he was faking his illness.
In 2002 the prison was expanded as a result of a multimillion-pound investment programme by the Prison Service. 450 additional prisoner places were added together with new workshops, educational facilities, a new healthcare centre and
gym
A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational ins ...
as well as extensions and improvements to existing facilities. Two years later, a report from the Chief Inspector found that conditions at Birmingham had substantially improved, stating that the prison was a place where "positive attitudes are firmly embedded".
In November 2007, the
Independent Monitoring Board warned in a report that overcrowding at Birmingham was putting prisoners and staff at risk. The report stated that if overcrowding was not tackled, then there was a potential for unrest. Two years later, the Board issued another report that criticised levels of overcrowding at Birmingham Prison. The report also noted that inmates from the jail were being transferred to prisons further north, to accommodate increased prisoner levels from the South-East of England.
Birmingham became the first publicly built, owned and operated prison in the UK to be transferred to the private sector.
G4S
G4S is a British Multinational corporation, multinational private security company headquartered in London, England. The company was set up in 2004 when London-based Securicor amalgamated with Danish firm Group 4 Falck. The company offers a ran ...
formally took over the day-to-day running of the prison in October 2011. Shortly after taking over the operation of the prison, G4S had to spend £500,000 replacing all the keys and locks in the prison after the master keys went missing.
Executions
Numerous
judicial execution
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
s by
hanging
Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging i ...
took place at the prison until the abolition of capital punishment in the UK. The first was that of Henry Kimberley, on 17 March 1885, for the murder of Emma Palmer.
A total of 35 executions took place at Birmingham prison during the 20th century. The last person ever to be hanged at the prison was a 20-year-old
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
n named Oswald Augustus Grey. He was executed on 20 November 1962 after being convicted of the
shooting death of newsagent Thomas Bates during the course of a
robbery
Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the perso ...
in Lee Bank Road on 3 June 1962.
Christopher Simcox
Christopher Simcox (10 December 1909 – 23 January 1981) was an English double murderer, notable and perhaps unique in being twice sentenced to death, and twice reprieved.
Simcox, a maintenance fitter by trade, lived in Smethwick, Staffordshire, ...
, a double-murderer, was scheduled for execution at Birmingham prison on Tuesday, 17 March 1964, but was reprieved.
The prison today
Birmingham holds adult male prisoners, serving the
Crown Court
The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all Indictable offence, indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals lied to it by the Magistrates' court, magistrates' court ...
sitting in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...
and
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
and the
Magistrates' Court
A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings.
Courts
* Magistrates' court (England and Wales)
* Magistrate's Cour ...
s of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
,
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
and
Cannock
Cannock () is a town in the Cannock Chase district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It had a population of 29,018. Cannock is not far from the nearby towns of Walsall, Burntwood, Stafford and Telford. The cities of Lichfield and Wolverh ...
.
Education and training at Birmingham Prison is provided by
NOVUS
Novus ("new" in Latin) may refer to:
Companies
* Novus Biologicals, a biotech company based in Littleton, Colorado, US
* Novus Entertainment, a Canadian telecommunications company
* Novus International, an animal health and nutrition company
* Nov ...
, part of
The Manchester College
The Manchester College is the largest further education college in the United Kingdom and the largest single provider of 16-19, adult and higher education in Greater Manchester, with more than 25% of Greater Manchester’s learning provision un ...
group. Learning programmes for inmates include basic and key skills,
bricklaying
Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called '' courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall.
Bricks may be differentiated from blocks by si ...
,
plumbing
Plumbing is any system that conveys fluids for a wide range of applications. Plumbing uses pipes, valves, plumbing fixtures, tanks, and other apparatuses to convey fluids. Heating and cooling (HVAC), waste removal, and potable water delivery ...
,
painting and decorating
A house painter and decorator is a tradesman responsible for the painting and decorating of buildings, and is also known as a decorator or house painter.''The Modern Painter and Decorator'' volume 1 1921 Caxton The purpose of painting is to imp ...
,
carpentry
Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tr ...
,
joiner
A joiner is an artisan and tradesperson who builds things by joining pieces of wood, particularly lighter and more ornamental work than that done by a carpenter, including furniture and the "fittings" of a house, ship, etc. Joiners may work in ...
y,
forklift truck
A forklift (also called lift truck, jitney, hi-lo, fork truck, fork hoist, and forklift truck) is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. The forklift was developed in the early 20th century by various c ...
training, industrial
cleaning
Cleaning is the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment. Cleaning is often performed for aesthetic, hygienic, functional, environmental, or safety purposes. Cl ...
,
catering
Catering is the business of providing food service at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park, festival, filming location or film studio.
History of catering
The earliest account of major services be ...
,
textiles
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
,
barbering
A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave men's and boys' hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a "barbershop" or a "barber's". Barbershops are also places of social interaction and publi ...
,
information technology
Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to create, process, store, retrieve, and exchange all kinds of data . and information. IT forms part of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system (I ...
,
business
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...
,
creative arts
The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both hi ...
and
performing arts
The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perform ...
. All courses lead to qualifications such as
NVQ
National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) are practical work-based awards in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that are achieved through assessment and training. The regulatory framework supporting NVQs was withdrawn in 2015 and replaced by the ...
s, and there is the option for further study with the
Open University
The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...
.
The Prison
Library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
Service is provided by
Birmingham City Council
Birmingham City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local council area in the United Kingdom (e ...
's Library Services, and all prisoners have access to the service. As well as facilities for independent learners, the library has special collections on law, employment, health, community information, English as a second or other language (ESOL), and basic skills materials. There is also a Learning Centre within the library to provide additional learning support to those with dyslexia and ESOL needs.
Physical education
Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...
at Birmingham is provided on a daily basis over a 7-day period, and evenings over 5 days. There are a number of sports delivered and also sports related subjects from basic skills to NVQ Level 2 in Sports and Recreation.
Birmingham has a prison
chaplaincy
A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...
with full-time chaplains from the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
,
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
,
Free Church
A free church is a Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government (as opposed to a state church). A free church does not define government policy, and a free church does not accept church theology or policy definitions fr ...
and
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
faiths. There are also sessional staff from the
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
,
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
and
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
faiths.
Assaults by prisoners have been rising with an average of three assaults a week on staff, some serious. There have also been assaults and serious assaults by prisoners on other prisoners. Drones were used to bring drugs into the prison which Petherick of G4S confirmed.
In June 2016 inspectors said prison violence was increasing because of large amounts of illegal drugs in the prison.
In autumn 2016 concerns were expressed about drugs which can make prisoners violent being smuggled into the prison. Jerry Petherick of G4S who run the prison claimed "a very small minority of staff are corrupt". Petherick also said contraband was brought in by visitors, by drones and was thrown over the walls.
Staff shortages were also problematic influencing efficiency, morale, and wellbeing. Jobs for prison officers at Birmingham Prison were advertised with a starting salary of just under £10 an hour.
2016 prison riot
There was reportedly a buildup of frustration over prison conditions prior to the riot. Low staff numbers, poor healthcare and nutrition were cited as factors. Also, prisoners being on 'lockdown' in their cells all day was cited as a major contributing factor to the disturbance.
On 16 December 2016, a prison officer was reportedly "rushed" by inmates leading to a rapid escalation of what prison officials described as "trouble".
According to a G4S statement, staff retreated from two of the prison's four wings, sealing the abandoned sections before withdrawing.
The disturbances, however, subsequently spread to the remaining two wings.
According to a different account of events told by a "prison affairs blogger" quoted by ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', the breakdown in order began after inmates seized control of fire hoses and began breaking lights.
Prison staff attempted to
lock down
"Lock Down" is a song by British girl-group Stooshe. It is a song with live instruments, strong beats and thick synths. The video was directed and produced by Damien Sandoval. It includes a cameo from America's Next Top Model and Guess model ...
inmates in their cells, however, during the operation an officer's keys were stolen, whereupon security staff were ordered to evacuate the wing.
An injured prisoner was baited.
A
Prison Officers Association spokesman described the incident as, "another stark warning to the
Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry.
Lists of current ministries of justice
Named "Ministry"
* Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia)
* Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan)
* Ministry of Just ...
that the service is in crisis". Shadow justice secretary,
Richard Burgon
Richard Burgon (born 19 September 1980) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds East since 2015. Burgon served as Shadow Secretary of State for Justice and Shadow Lord Chancellor in the Shadow C ...
said, “This is only the latest in a number of disturbances across the prison estate. The justice secretary is failing to get this crisis under control.”
[HMP Birmingham prison rioters will face 'full force of law', says Truss](_blank)
''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''
Michael Spurr
Michael Spurr, (born 20 September 1961) was Chief Executive Officer of HM Prison and Probation Service 2010–2019. He joined HM Prison Service in 1983 as a prison officer, before training to become a Governor a year later. He became Chief Execu ...
of
National Offender Management Service
His Majesty's Prison and Probation Service is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) responsible for the correctional services in England and Wales. It was created in 2004 as the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) by combin ...
Agency claimed
drugs
A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...
,
overcrowding
Overcrowding or crowding is the condition where more people are located within a given space than is considered tolerable from a safety and health perspective. Safety and health perspectives depend on current environments and on local cultural n ...
, and
reduced staffing had put prisons under pressure.
[HMP Birmingham riot: 240 prisoners to be moved after riot](_blank)
''BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
''
One inmate in the prison's G wing, which was reserved for sex offenders during the riots, reportedly informed his
that, during the disturbance, rioting inmates had attempted to gain access to that section of the facility and that prisoners were "terrified" they would be attacked.
were dispatched to assume control of the situation due to the scale of the disturbance, which had grown to involve more than 600 inmates.
By late that day, prison officials were reportedly back in control of the facility.
. The Birmingham riot was described by one source as the worst prison disturbance in a B category prison in the United Kingdom since the
.
The Birmingham riot caused about £2 million worth of damage.