Aylesbury (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison
Aylesbury (full title Her Majesty's Young Offender Institution (HMYOI) Aylesbury) is a Young Offender Institution situated in Aylesbury
, Buckinghamshire
, England
. The prison is located on the north side of the town
centre, on Bierton
Road. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
.
design and has been on its present site since 1845 following extensive public building in the area that also included the workhouse
(now the Tindal Centre
). Since construction, it has gone through a variety of changes, starting as a county gaol, then became an adult women's prison in 1890, changing to a girls' borstal in the 1930s, and between 1959-1961 was an adult male prison, after which it became a male YOI and since 1989 has held only long term prisoners.
In 1998 Aylesbury Prison was criticised after an inspection report highlighted its poor health regime (the jail saw the rapid turnover of five senior medical officers in two years). The report opened up a wider debate about the pay of medical staff in UK prisons compared to those in the NHS
.
In 2001 the Imam
for Aylesbury Prison was suspended after allegations of inappropriate comments after the September 11 New York terror attacks. A year after this a study of prisoners' diets at Aylesbury (conducted by Surrey University) found that adding vitamins, minerals and other nutritional elements to the diets of young offenders 'remarkably' reduced their antisocial behaviour.
The prison was back in the headlines in 2007 after it was revealed to have a higher rate of self harm by inmates than any other Young Offenders Institution in England Following the introduction of the prison service ACCT (Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork) system the rate of self harm has reduced significantly.
In December 2008, police officers were called in to contain a disturbance at Aylesbury Prison. The incident lasted six hours, and involved a number of inmates.
In November 2009, a prison officer from Aylesbury was jailed after it emerged that she had become pregnant after having a sexual relationship with an inmate. The prison officer was also convicted of smuggling three mobile phones into Aylesbury Prison.
There are full and part-time education programmes at the prison, which range from basic and key skills courses up to Art
, French
and Sociology
at A Level and Physical Education
. Vocational courses and work programmes include Construction
, Painting and Decorating, Bricklaying, Motor Vehicle Mechanics
, Industrial and General Cleaning, Laundry
, Catering
, Gardening
and Waste management
. Inmates also have opportunities to pursue award-based courses including the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.
Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of the Government of the United Kingdom tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales...
Aylesbury (full title Her Majesty's Young Offender Institution (HMYOI) Aylesbury) is a Young Offender Institution situated in Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The prison is located on the north side of the town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
centre, on Bierton
Bierton
Bierton is a village in Buckinghamshire, England, about half a mile northeast of the town of Aylesbury. It is a mainly farming parish, 10 km² in size....
Road. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service
Her Majesty's Prison Service is a part of the National Offender Management Service of the Government of the United Kingdom tasked with managing most of the prisons within England and Wales...
.
History
There has been a prison or gaol of some description in Aylesbury since 1180. The current prison is of early VictorianVictorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
design and has been on its present site since 1845 following extensive public building in the area that also included the workhouse
Workhouse
In England and Wales a workhouse, colloquially known as a spike, was a place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment...
(now the Tindal Centre
Tindal Centre
The Tindal Centre is a centre for the treatment of mental illnesses in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England. It includes a residential hospital for people with profound mental health difficulties and also counselling/therapy outpatient services...
). Since construction, it has gone through a variety of changes, starting as a county gaol, then became an adult women's prison in 1890, changing to a girls' borstal in the 1930s, and between 1959-1961 was an adult male prison, after which it became a male YOI and since 1989 has held only long term prisoners.
In 1998 Aylesbury Prison was criticised after an inspection report highlighted its poor health regime (the jail saw the rapid turnover of five senior medical officers in two years). The report opened up a wider debate about the pay of medical staff in UK prisons compared to those in the NHS
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
.
In 2001 the Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
for Aylesbury Prison was suspended after allegations of inappropriate comments after the September 11 New York terror attacks. A year after this a study of prisoners' diets at Aylesbury (conducted by Surrey University) found that adding vitamins, minerals and other nutritional elements to the diets of young offenders 'remarkably' reduced their antisocial behaviour.
The prison was back in the headlines in 2007 after it was revealed to have a higher rate of self harm by inmates than any other Young Offenders Institution in England Following the introduction of the prison service ACCT (Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork) system the rate of self harm has reduced significantly.
In December 2008, police officers were called in to contain a disturbance at Aylesbury Prison. The incident lasted six hours, and involved a number of inmates.
In November 2009, a prison officer from Aylesbury was jailed after it emerged that she had become pregnant after having a sexual relationship with an inmate. The prison officer was also convicted of smuggling three mobile phones into Aylesbury Prison.
The prison today
As a Young Offenders Institution, Aylesbury prison holds long term male inmates between the ages of 17 and 21 only. Accommodation comprises Single and double cells in eight residential wings.There are full and part-time education programmes at the prison, which range from basic and key skills courses up to Art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and Sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
at A Level and Physical Education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
. Vocational courses and work programmes include Construction
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
, Painting and Decorating, Bricklaying, Motor Vehicle Mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
, Industrial and General Cleaning, Laundry
Laundry
Laundry is a noun that refers to the act of washing clothing and linens, the place where that washing is done, and/or that which needs to be, is being, or has been laundered...
, Catering
Catering
Catering is the business of providing foodservice at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, public house , or other location.-Mobile catering:A mobile caterer serves food directly from a vehicle or cart that is designed for the purpose...
, Gardening
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
and Waste management
Waste management
Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...
. Inmates also have opportunities to pursue award-based courses including the Duke of Edinburgh's Award.
Former inmates
- Florence MaybrickFlorence MaybrickFlorence Elizabeth Maybrick was an American woman convicted in Great Britain of murdering her considerably older husband, James Maybrick.-Early life:...
, a former United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
citizen who was inprisoned at Aylesbury for murdering her considerably older English husband. Maybrick was released in 1904. - Mathilde CarréMathilde CarréMathilde Carré , known as "La Chatte", was a French Resistance agent during World War II who turned double agent....
, a French ResistanceFrench ResistanceThe French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
agent during World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
who turned double agentDouble agentA double agent, commonly abbreviated referral of double secret agent, is a counterintelligence term used to designate an employee of a secret service or organization, whose primary aim is to spy on the target organization, but who in fact is a member of that same target organization oneself. They...
. Carré was held at Aylesbury for the last years of the war where she acted as an informant against other detainees. Carré was deported to France after the war ended. - Jade Braithwaite was at HMYOI Aylesbury for a time after being convicted of the murder of 16 year old Ben Kinsella. He was ordered to serve a minimum of 19 years.
- Eileen Mackenney Author of Borstal Girl published by Simon and Schuster 7th July 2011, Eileen was a inmate from 1949 until 1951.
External links
- Victorian Prisoners Database at the Centre for Buckinghamshire StudiesCentre for Buckinghamshire StudiesThe Centre for Buckinghamshire Studies is the county record office for Buckinghamshire, England. It houses the former Buckinghamshire Record Office and the former Buckinghamshire Local Studies Library. It is located in Aylesbury, in the base of County Hall....
- Ministry of Justice on Aylesbury