HMP Lancaster Farms capacity will increase by more than 40 per cent as part of what the government describe as the largest prison expansion programme since the Victorian era.
The prison will gain four new houseblocks, boosting its capacity by more than 40 per cent, seeing places increase from 584 to 824, with cells equipped with modern security features such as reinforced windows to tackle threats like drones carrying contraband.
Construction is due to finish by the end of the year.
A new workshop will also be added, providing prisoners with the training and skills they need to get a job on release and turn their backs on crime for good – helping to create safer streets and fewer victims.
The new places are part of the largest prison expansion programme since the Victorian era, as the Government plans to add 14,000 extra spaces by 2031 to lock up dangerous criminals and keep the public safe.
Catherine McKinnell, Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, said: ‘’This Government is fixing the prison crisis it inherited – building the prison places needed to protect the public and take dangerous criminals off our streets.
‘’These new houseblocks at HMP Lancaster Farms are just the latest step in that work, with more than 3,300 places delivered across the country in little over two years.
‘’They come equipped with modern security features to tackle threats like drones, alongside a new workshop to boost rehabilitation and ensure punishment cuts crime.
‘’The Lancaster Farms expansion is part of decisive action taken by Government to ensure the country never again faces the nightmare of running out of prison spaces after net 500 places were added in fourteen years before July 2024.
‘’The Government has also recently set out changes to boost prison capacity through plans to remove foreign national offenders more quickly and end the historic injustice of Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences in a way that balances fairness and public safety. ‘’
HMP Lancaster Farms is a Category C resettlement prison for adult men, serving the Northwest of England.
The expansion at HMP Lancaster Farms forms part of the Small Secure Houseblocks Programme, which will deliver 1,080 new Category C prison places across six prison sites.
It forms part of the Government’s £4.7 billion investment in prison building over the 2026/27 to 2029/30 spending review period.
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