Prisons In Scotland
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Prisons In Scotland
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) () is an executive agency of the Scottish Government tasked with managing prisons and Young Offender Institutions. The Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, currently Teresa Medhurst, is responsible for its administration and reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, who is responsible for the Scottish Prison Service within the Scottish Government. There are fifteen prison establishments in the country, one of which is privately managed. The SPS employs over 4,000 staff, with its headquarters in One Lochside, located in South Gyle, Edinburgh. Key personnel The current Chief Executive is Teresa Medhurst and supporting her is the SPS Board consisting of: * Allister Purdie – Director of Operations (acting) * Caroline Johnston – Director of Corporate Services (acting) * Sue Brookes – Interim Director of Strategy & Engagement (acting) List of establishments * HMP Addiewell (privately run by Sodexo Justice Servi ...
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Executive Agencies Of The Scottish Government
Executive agencies are established by ministers as part of Scottish Government to carry out a discrete area of work. They form an integral part of the Scottish Government, but have a specific, well-defined remit. They are staffed by civil servants and headed by a Chief Executive, who is a civil servant, and are directly accountable to the government. Executive agencies differ from Public bodies of the Scottish Government, public bodies, which are not considered to be part of the Government, although they are listed in the Scottish Government's directory of national public bodies alongside the public bodies. Executive agencies may be considered similar to the government's core Directorates of the Scottish Government, directorates, but are generally more focused on the management and direct delivery of public services as opposed to policy formation (although they may also provide strategic policy input). Executive agencies were first established following Sir Robin Ibbs' (then head ...
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Dumfries (HM Prison)
HM Prison Dumfries services the courts of Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The establishment serves as a local community prison that holds adult and under 21 males who are remanded in custody for trial and those convicted but remanded for reports. The prison was built in 1883 by Thomas Bernard Collinson and extended with additions in 1988. The old building is a Category B Listed Building. It is one of only three purpose built 19th century prisons still in use, the others being HM Prison Perth and HM Prison Barlinnie. Residential units There are five main residential halls A, B, C, D and E and a basement B Zero which includes prisoners on observation/separation. Notable prisoners * Kevin Guthrie, actor and convicted sex offender
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Psychiatric Hospital
A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, a behavioral health hospital, or an asylum is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe Mental disorder, mental disorders. These institutions cater to patients with conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and Eating disorder, eating disorders, among others. Overview Psychiatric hospitals vary considerably in size and classification. Some specialize in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients, while others provide long-term care for individuals requiring routine assistance or a controlled environment due to their psychiatric condition. Patients may choose voluntary commitment, but those deemed to pose a significant danger to themselves or others may be subject to involuntary commitment and involuntary treatment, treatment. In general hospitals, psychiatric wards or units serve a similar purpose. Modern psychiatric hospitals have e ...
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GEOAmey
GEO Amey Limited, trading as GEOAmey, is a British company specialising in prisoner transport. It operates services for the Ministry of Justice in England and Wales, and the Scottish Prison Service in Scotland. Ownership GEOAmey was formed in 2011 as a joint venture between GEO Group and Amey plc. Criticisms and incidents In April 2012 GEOAmey attracted serious criticism from High Court judge Julian Flaux for "inexusable" delays in prisoner transport to court in Birmingham, England. Prisoner Adam Herbert escaped from a GEOAmey van while being transported to court in Leicester on 26 December 2015. In July 2018, two prisoners were freed from a GEOAmey van after it burst into flames on the M62 motorway in Cheshire, England. In November 2024, two pedestrians were injured after being hit by a GEOAmey van in Doncaster, England. His Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland reported in December 2024 that problems with prison transport were causing many prisoners to miss hos ...
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Audit Scotland
Audit Scotland () is an independent public body responsible for auditing most of Scotland's public organisations. These include the Scottish Government, local councils and NHS Scotland. Auditing role It audits over 220 organisations, including: * 77 central government bodies (Scottish Government, NDPB's, Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Scottish Water and others) * 23 NHS bodies * 32 local councils * 20 further education colleges History Audit Scotland was established in 2000. It employees a staff of around 250 people. Its corporate HQ is on West Port, in Edinburgh's Old Town. The role of Audit Scotland is to provide the Auditor General for Scotland and the Accounts Commission for Scotland with the services they need to carry out their duties. The core work is to carry out: *financial audits to help ensure that public sector bodies adhere to the highest standards of financial management and governance *performance audits to help ensure that these bodies ...
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Shotts (HM Prison)
HM Prison Shotts is a prison near Shotts, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is a prison holding male prisoners with maximum security classification. Shotts exclusively holds prisoners serving a term of five years or longer, with some prisoners being transferred from other prisons due to a need for a more secure environment. The original prison was opened in 1978 with a design capacity of 528 inmates; the prison was completely rebuilt and new facilities opened in 2012, with a capacity of 538 adult male prisoners. National facilities Shotts is the location for two national facilities, which provide specialist environments for a range of offenders around Scotland, including those outside the standard "catchment area" for the prison. National Induction Centre The National Integration Centre (NIC) is a national facility providing for prisoners at the start of sentences of at least eight to ten years. The function of the centre is to provide an environment which can prepare the inm ...
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Polmont (HM Prison)
His Majesty's Young Offenders Institution Polmont is the largest young offender's institution in Scotland. It is located in the village of Reddingmuirhead. HMP Polmont first opened as a Borstal in 1911 in the buildings of the former Blairlodge Academy. The Academy had been forced to close in 1908 due to financial difficulties and a subsequent outbreak of an infectious disease, and the Prison Commissioners bought the site in 1911. It is designed to hold up to 760 inmates between the ages of 16 and 21, although there have been several reports and complaints about the presence of inmates younger than 16. Living conditions have also been criticised, including an alleged insufficency of food and the outdated practice of slopping out. As of January 2024, HMP Polmont is no longer exclusively a young offenders institution; short-term, low-supervision adult males can now be transferred there and housed within the facility. Notable inmates have included murderer Luke Mitchell, Chris ...
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Perth (HM Prison)
HM Prison Perth is a prison in Perth, Scotland, which houses remand, short term, long term and life adult male prisoners (those prisoners serving under four years). It was originally constructed to hold French prisoners captured during the Napoleonic Wars, and is the oldest working prison in Scotland. Purpose and location The prison is a maximum security establishment which also houses fine defaulters and those on remand from the courts of Angus, the Dundee City council area, Perth and Kinross and the northern part of Fife. There is a secure unit for Category A prisoners who are serving sentences of up to life imprisonment. It is Scotland's oldest prison still in use. Buildings and facilities Main building The main building, a half-mile (1 km) south of the city centre beyond the South Inch, was constructed by architect Robert Reid (1774–1856) from 1810-12 to hold French prisoners captured during the Napoleonic Wars, when it was known as the Depot. In 1842, the build ...
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Low Moss (HM Prison)
HMP Low Moss is located on the outskirts of Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire; near Glasgow, Scotland. It has been operated by the Scottish Prison Service as a prison since 1968 and was for low-category prisoners who had sentences of less than 36 months to serve. The original establishment was closed in May 2007, with the entire site being cleared and redeveloped with a considerably enlarged footprint. The new prison was reopened in March 2012, and accepted its first intake in almost five years. Scott Watson is the Establishment's acting Governor. History RAF Bishopbriggs Originally a World War II, Second World War-era Royal Air Force (RAF) Barrage balloon depot, known as RAF Bishopbriggs, constructed in 1939, base of No.18 (Balloon) Squadron and No. 15 Maintenance Unit RAF, No. 15 Maintenance Unit. It was also used as an overnight 'transit' camp for other RAF Units being transferred from the south of England to the north of Scotland. After WW2, RAF Bishopbriggs was utilised as ...
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Kilmarnock (HM Prison)
HM Prison Kilmarnock is a prison in Bowhouse, Hurlford near Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, Scotland. It is situated south-east of Hurlford on the Mauchline Road. Its location means it is locally known as ''Bowhouse Prison''. The prison was opened 25 March 1999 by Premier Prison Services and was privately run by Serco (who acquired Premier in 2002) until the expiry of their contract in March 2024 at which point the Scottish Prison Service took over direct management of the prison. In 2005 the BBC program Panorama uncovered several failings in the operational running of the prison, resulting in the prison carrying out internal investigations. The prison has a design capacity of 500 places and holds short-term, long-term and remand male adults. References Prisons in Scotland HM Prison His Majesty's Prisons (Her Majesty's Prisons in the case of a female monarch) is the name given to prisons in the United Kingdom, as well as some in Australia and a small number in Ca ...
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Inverness (HM Prison)
HM Prison Inverness, also known as Porterfield Prison (Prìosan Uch a' Phortair), is located in the Crown area of Inverness, Scotland, and serves the courts of the Highlands and Islands. It covers all the courts in the Western Isles as well as courts from Fort William, Wick and Elgin. The prison houses both adult and young remand prisoners, convicted adults serving up to four years, and other prisoners awaiting to go to another prison or needing management support, tending to be serving long sentences up to life imprisonment. The prison in October 2024 was governed by Scott Watson; designed to hold 103 prisoners, the average population was 117. Gangster Jimmy Boyle was a notorious prisoner at Porterfield, severely disruptive and often in the "cages" whose only facility was a concrete block to sleep on. His life was transformed after he was transferred to the "special unit" in Barlinnie Prison, where he was rehabilitated and became a respected artist after his release. Redev ...
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Greenock (HM Prison)
HMP Greenock is a prison located in Greenock, Scotland, serving designated courts in western Scotland by holding male prisoners on remand, and short-term convicted prisoners. It also provides a national facility for selected prisoners serving 12 years or over, affording them the opportunity for progression towards release. It also accommodates a small number of female prisoners ranging from remand to long-term. Although officially labelled as ''HMP Greenock'', it continues to be known by its original name ''Gateside Prison''. Senior Management HMP Greenock's Governor is Mrs Morag Stirling and the Deputy Governor is Mr. Gerry Watt. Residential areas HMP Greenock is divided into five separate residential areas. Arran and Bute Work began to build Arran and Bute halls in August 2013, with work completed in July 2014. These Halls are a new type of facility called Community Integration Units (CIU) They will hold 8 and 6 prisoners respectively, who will use their time there as a steppi ...
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