Bure (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison Bure is a Category C
men's prison
, located in the parish of Badersfield in Norfolk
, England
. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
, and became operational in November 2009.
, a former Royal Air Force
station, and military
airbase. Built for the Second World War, afterwards RAF Coltishall was used for night fighters, and then ground attack aircraft. In its latter years, the base was home to the 'Jaguar Force', before formally closing on 30 November 2006.
During January 2007, the Home Office
expressed an interest in using the former RAF base. Initially earmarking the site for a new immigration detention facility, by the end of the year media reports suggested the Home Office were planning to establish a new prison at the site. In January 2009, North Norfolk District Council approved plans to establish a Category C prison at the former airbase. In Auguest 2009, it was revealed that the new prison would be used to primarily hold sex offenders, with capacity for around 500 prisoners.
The Ministry of Justice
(MoJ) has taken temporary control of the entire site of the base while building works are underway. Most of the new prison will be housed at the domestic site in the former airmen's H-block
s, along with the junior ranks mess of the airbase. New dual perimeter fences have also been constructed. Phase one of construction was completed in November 2009, and enabled the prison to hold 259 offenders. Phase two of construction was completed in March 2010, and increased the capacity of the prison to 523.
, and was selected in preference to the names of local towns, such as Aylsham
, Coltishall
and Wroxham
after expressions of concern from parish councils and local government.
, convicted of sex offences. Residential units for prisoners consist of mainly single-cell accommodation.
Bure's Learning Resource Centre offers various education courses to prisoners, as does the prison's horticulture
and recycling
departments. Vocational work offered to prisoners includes painting and decorating and industrial cleaning. Other services and organisations which offer support to inmates at the prison include Nacro
, Citizens Advice Bureau
, Jobcentre Plus
and Alcoholics Anonymous
.
Prison security categories in the United Kingdom
There are four prisoner security categories in the United Kingdom used to classify every adult prisoner for the purposes of assigning them to a prison. The categories are based upon the severity of the crime and the risk posed should the person escape....
men's prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
, located in the parish of Badersfield in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, 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 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...
, and became operational in November 2009.
History
Bure Prison is being established on the domestic site of RAF ColtishallRAF Coltishall
The former Royal Air Force Station Coltishall, more commonly known as RAF Coltishall , was a Royal Air Force station, a military airbase, North-North-East of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk, East Anglia, from 1938 to 2006....
, a former Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
station, and military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
airbase. Built for the Second World War, afterwards RAF Coltishall was used for night fighters, and then ground attack aircraft. In its latter years, the base was home to the 'Jaguar Force', before formally closing on 30 November 2006.
During January 2007, the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
expressed an interest in using the former RAF base. Initially earmarking the site for a new immigration detention facility, by the end of the year media reports suggested the Home Office were planning to establish a new prison at the site. In January 2009, North Norfolk District Council approved plans to establish a Category C prison at the former airbase. In Auguest 2009, it was revealed that the new prison would be used to primarily hold sex offenders, with capacity for around 500 prisoners.
The Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Justice is a ministerial department of the UK Government headed by the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, who is responsible for improvements to the justice system so that it better serves the public...
(MoJ) has taken temporary control of the entire site of the base while building works are underway. Most of the new prison will be housed at the domestic site in the former airmen's H-block
H-block
H-block or h-block can refer to:* H engine, with cylinders in an H pattern* Maze , Belfast, where the prison blocks were built to a uniform H-shaped plan** Anti H-Block, 1981 Irish Republican election label...
s, along with the junior ranks mess of the airbase. New dual perimeter fences have also been constructed. Phase one of construction was completed in November 2009, and enabled the prison to hold 259 offenders. Phase two of construction was completed in March 2010, and increased the capacity of the prison to 523.
Name
The prison's name is taken from the nearby River BureRiver Bure
The River Bure is a river in the county of Norfolk, England, most of it in The Broads. The Bure rises near Melton Constable, upstream of Aylsham, which was the original head of navigation. Nowadays, the head of navigation is downstream at Coltishall Bridge...
, and was selected in preference to the names of local towns, such as Aylsham
Aylsham
Aylsham is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Bure in north Norfolk, England, about north of Norwich. The river rises near Melton Constable, upstream from Aylsham and continues to Great Yarmouth and the North Sea, although it was only made navigable after 1779, allowing grain,...
, Coltishall
Coltishall
Coltishall is a village on the River Bure, west of Wroxham, in the English county of Norfolk, within the Norfolk Broads.Coltishall was a place of note even when the Domesday Book was compiled. For 250 years it was a centre of the malting industry...
and Wroxham
Wroxham
Wroxham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The civil parish of Wroxham has an area of 6.21 square kilometres and in 2001 had a population of 1532 in 666 households. The village is situated within the Norfolk Broads on the south side of a loop in the middle reaches of...
after expressions of concern from parish councils and local government.
The prison today
HMP Bure opened in November 2009. The prison is largely used to hold Category C adult males from the East of EnglandEast of England
The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...
, convicted of sex offences. Residential units for prisoners consist of mainly single-cell accommodation.
Bure's Learning Resource Centre offers various education courses to prisoners, as does the prison's horticulture
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
and recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
departments. Vocational work offered to prisoners includes painting and decorating and industrial cleaning. Other services and organisations which offer support to inmates at the prison include Nacro
Nacro
Nacro is a registered criminal justice charity operating in England and Wales. It is not formally linked with Sacro in Scotland or NIACRO in Northern Ireland.-History:...
, Citizens Advice Bureau
Citizens Advice Bureau
A Citizens Advice Bureau is one of a network of independent charities throughout the UK that give free, confidential information and advice to help people with their money, legal, consumer and other problems....
, Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus was a government agency for working-age people in Great Britain. The agency was formed when the Employment Service, which operated Jobcentres, merged with the Benefits Agency, which ran social security offices, and was re-named Jobcentre Plus on 1 April 2002...
and Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous is an international mutual aid movement which says its "primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety." Now claiming more than 2 million members, AA was founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio...
.