New prison name 'sounds like a hotel' - councillor

HMP Welland Oaks will house up to 1,700 inmates when it opens in 2029.

The name of a new prison being built in Leicestershire has been criticised, with a councillor saying it sounds like "a spa hotel".

Justice Secretary David Lammy announced that the new jail - next to the existing HMP Gartree near Market Harborough - would be called HMP Welland Oaks when he visited the site for a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday.

Lammy said the name had been picked to reflect the nearby River Welland and the Gartree, a historic oak close to the site.

However, county councillor for the area Phil King said he thought the chosen name was "ridiculous".

"It sounds very nice but it's totally inappropriate," said King.

"It's a category B prison designed to hold bad people rather. Residents do not like it.

"It sounds like a resort or a spa hotel - or a new housing estate or a nursing home.

"They should just call it HMP Gartree II."

David Lammy revealed the prison's chosen name at a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the name had been chosen after extensive consultation with local residents and that it drew "inspiration from the geography and history of the local area".

Lammy, who visited the site the day after it was revealed two prisoners had been mistakenly released from Wandsworth Prison in London, said HMP Welland Oaks would add "desperately needed places to the prison estate".

"It's been a long time in the making but the official groundbreaking is a huge step on the journey to opening the new prison on this site," Lammy added.

"I'm really pleased to be able to announce it will be named after the nearby River Welland and the historic Gartree oak."

The new prison, on a site the size of 35 football pitches, is being built as part of a £713m contract with construction firm Wates group.

The MoJ said the jail would be publicly run when it opens in 2029.