His Majesty's Prison Holme House is a 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 in Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham,

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 is operated by His Majesty's Prison & Probation Service.

History

A purpose built prison, Holme House opened in May 1992, and was expanded to include further houseblocks and workshops in the late 1990s. In July 2002, Holme House suffered a three-day

prison riot A prison riot is an act of concerted defiance or disorder by a group of prisoners against the prison administrators, prison officers, or other groups of prisoners. Prison riots have not been the subject of many academic studies or research inqui ...

. The prisoners turned violent after being locked up for longer periods due to staff shortages. Various fixtures and fittings were destroyed during the incident. Another major disturbance followed a year later, when rioting prisoners threw pool balls at prison officers. An incident in September 2014 resulted in one inmate being taken to hospital. Mike Quinn, vice-chairman of the National Association of Probation Officers Northumbria branch, said that the event was a consequence of staff cuts in the prison service. A spokesman for 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 ...

stated that this had been an isolated incident unrelated to staffing levels. In 2017 the prison was re-rolled from a Category B local/remand prison to a Category C training and resettlement. This coincided with being chosen as a pilot site for a joint

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...

and Ministry of Justice programme to develop better ways to promote recovery from drug addiction (Drug Recovery Prison Programme).

The prison today

A Category C Reform prison, Holme House takes adult male prisoners, and some sentenced young offenders. Accommodation at Holme House comprises seven self-contained residential communities. One house block is a drugs therapeutic community (69 places) and another block is for vulnerable prisoners. A mixture of single and double cells with integral sanitation and communal showering facilities. Holme House has a workshop complex and an Education Department who both provide inmates with employment and education classes. Work/training areas include laundry,

woodwork Woodworking is the skill of making items from wood, and includes cabinet making (cabinetry and furniture), wood carving, joinery, carpentry, and woodturning. History Along with stone, clay and animal parts, wood was one of the first mater ...

, furniture assembly, textiles, Print Workshop production, 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 ...

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 ...

, electrical testing and picture framing. Many areas of training can lead to

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 ...

qualifications in related fields. There is a Visitors Centre located outside of Holme House Prison, which has a children's play area, disabled access toilets, a refreshment bar and a baby changing facility. The Visits Hall within the prison has a supervised play area, a tea bar, toilets and a baby changing facility.

References

External links

Ministry of Justice pages on Holme House

HMP Holme House - HM Inspectorate of Prisons Reports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holme House (Hm Prison) Prisons in County Durham Category B prisons in England 1992 establishments in England Men's prisons Buildings and structures in Stockton-on-Tees