HMP Highpoint set to become 'UK's largest jail'

Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, Lord Timpson, was at HMP Highpoint for the ground-breaking event on Thursday

A rural prison is to increase its capacity by more than 50% to become "the UK's largest" jail, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has said.

Three four-storey houseblocks will be built at HMP Highpoint in Suffolk, between the villages of Stradishall and Great Thurlow, near Haverhill.

Construction work has begun on the 700-place expansion, including workshops and teaching facilities to help prisoners get jobs on release, said the MoJ.

Minister for Prisons, Lord Timpson, said they were "designed with a laser-focus on cutting crime" and were part of plans to deliver 14,000 more prison spaces by 2031.

"We cannot simply build our way out of this crisis, which is why we're also reviewing sentencing so we can lock up dangerous offenders, cut crime and make our streets safer," Lord Timpson added.

The accommodation will include workshops and teaching facilities

Highpoint currently holds just under 1,300 prisoners.

The MoJ said that on completion, "Highpoint will be the largest prison in terms of land size in North-West Europe and the largest in the UK based on prisoner population".

Prison governor Nigel Smith said: "The new accommodation will provide a safe and secure environment for us to rehabilitate prisoners and get them ready for release."

The expansion is part of the government's £2.3bn 10-year prison capacity strategy.

The government released certain offenders early last year to ease overcrowding in prisons.

In January 2024, HM Inspectorate of Prisons said Highpoint was failing to deliver its core purpose to prepare men for their return to the community.

Since August 2022, it has worked with City and Guilds, which offers vocational education and apprenticeship partnerships, to teach inmates how to maintain railway infrastructure.

Building and property maintenance company Wates Group has been contracted to deliver the new accommodation and workshop blocks.

The MoJ said it would create hundreds of jobs during its construction and more than 200 jobs once it is built.