Major prison design flaw put noisy inmates next to homes

HMP Stirling opened in June 2023

A "major design flaw" at Scotland's new £85m women's prison led to nearby households complaining about noise and anti-social behaviour, a new report has said.

HMP Stirling was opened a year ago, replacing Cornton Vale as one of the main women's prison in Scotland.

However, a report by HM Inspector of Prisons Scotland said the separation units, which house the most challenging inmates, were "located within sight and sound of the neighbouring community".

The report said it should have been designed with the Separation and Reintegration Unit (SRU) located on the other side of the prison.

The Scottish Prison Service said the report "highlights many areas of good practice" at the new jail and that Scotland was "leading the way when it comes managing women in custody".

The publication of the report comes after nearby residents claimed they had to keep their windows closed and wear noise-cancelling headphones at night to drown out screaming, shouting and swearing from the site.

Some have previously complained they could see into the cells from their homes.

'The impact on people’s mental health is unbelievable'

Tony McAulay has lived on the estate next to the new prison site for 24 years

Tony McAulay's garden is just 30m from the prison perimeter.

He said: “They need to move prisoners who are misbehaving in the manner that these are misbehaving as far away from the residents of this estate and let’s put an end to this.

"The impact it’s having on people’s mental health is unbelievable. It’s the stress of the whole situation.

“I’ve heard from two pensioners who felt that the only way out was to sell their house. That’s not right."

Tony, who has lived on the estate for 24 years, added: “I can’t plan for anybody to come at the weekend to celebrate a birthday or whatever the occasion might be because we know it’s going to be an embarrassing situation for us.

“We’ve been failed, not only by Stirling Council but also the Scottish government, the SPS. They’ve left people in a fairly fragile state.

“We’ve all been hoodwinked here and the situation needs to be put right. Let us know what’s happening and when it’s happening so we can get our lives back together and move on."

The design of the new prison is "significantly different" from a traditional jail

While inspectors praised many elements of the new prison, they said the location of the SRU - which holds prisoners who can often be dangerous and violent - seemed an "unfortunate design decision".

The design of the new prison was intended to be "significantly different" from a traditional jail.

It took into account the fact that most inmates have experience of trauma and was built as a campus with no overt security on show - and without bars on its windows and cells.

The prison houses about 100 inmates, which is 300 less than the HMP Cornton Vale facility it replaced.

Inspectors said the new modern accommodation was highly impressive and there were some outstanding examples of caring, compassionate staff.

But they said there had been early design flaws such as removable blinds, windows that could be easily broken, and fragile shower walls that broke into shards.

Inspectors said the new modern accommodation was highly impressive

While these had now been resolved, the report said the major flaw was the location of the SRU, which houses prisoners with the most complex psychological challenges.

It said noise levels in the segregation unit had resulted in complaints from the local community.

At the time of the inspection the prison had put together an update on a six-point plan aimed at addressing concerns from locals.

Measures included ventilation in the rooms so windows could be locked and a new hedge to obscure views of the unit.

There were also measures relating to staff managing and intervening in moments of upset and distress to reduce the impact on those living in the surrounding area.

Inspectors strongly recommended repurposing some parts of the prison and using segregation units in other jails to solve the problem.

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Wendy Sinclair-Gieben told BBC Scotland News: "The reality is that some women are very mentally ill, some women are violent and refractory and some women are noisy.

"The staff are more than capable with dealing with all of those, but they need to be able to deal with them without disrupting either the other prisoners or the local community."

A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: "It is just over a year since we opened HMP & YOI Stirling. We recognise there are areas where improvement is needed and are working hard to address these for our staff, those in our care, and our neighbours.

“Our transformative and groundbreaking Strategy for Women in Custody, supported by significant investment from the Scottish government, has delivered a step change in how we support the rehabilitation of those in our care, reducing the risk of reoffending, and helping to build safer communities.”