Channings Wood (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison Channings Wood is a Category C
men's prison
, located in the village of Denbury
(near Newton Abbot
) in Devon
, England
. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
.
built a camp and shooting range
at Denbury in the run up to the invasion of Europe in 1944
. The site was taken over by the Royal Corps of Signals
junior training Regiment. The construction of Channings Wood Prison began on the former Ministry of Defence site in 1973, by a combination of contract and prison labour. The prison officially opened in July 1974, with further accommodation added in 1991.
From the 1990s Channings Wood gained a reputation for pioneering therapeutic work to reform sex offenders and drug addicts. This was confirmed in a report by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
in April 2003, however the report noted that overcrowding at Channings Wood was putting this good work at risk. Further accommodation was constructed at the prison in 2003.
Channings Wood was praised again in a report in 2005 which highlighted the prisons education programme, accommodation and levels of safety. However a year later ten inmates staged a roof-top protest at the prison for 28 hours. The prisoners were "protesting about their food being cooked by prisoners on the sex offenders register." The protest ended peacefully.
A new 64 bed unit was opened at Channings Wood in 2007. The new wing houses the specialist Therapeutic Community which tackles drug misuse issues amongst prisoners.
Treatment Programmes.
The prison provides courses to prisoners, include Barbering, Business Studies
, Catering
, Industrial Cleaning, Creative Media Studies
, Customer Services, Driving Theory, Dry-Lining, Electrical Installation, ESOL, Food Hygiene, Fork Lift Driving, Horticulture
, Information Technology
, Painting and Decorating, Physical Education
and Yoga
. It also offers employment
opportunities.
The prison offers a gym
and league sports. The prison chaplaincy offers a chapel and multi-faith room to inmates and staff at the prison.
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 village of Denbury
Denbury
Denbury Hill is the name of an Iron Age Hill fort located near the village of Denbury in Devon, England.The old fort is situated on a hilltop to the south east of the village, occupying the entire hilltop of Denbury Down at 160 Metres above Sea Level. It is surrounded on the south and east sides by...
(near Newton Abbot
Newton Abbot
Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England on the River Teign, with a population of 23,580....
) in Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, 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...
.
History
The United States ArmyUnited States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
built a camp and shooting range
Shooting range
A shooting range or firing range is a specialized facility designed for firearms practice. Each facility is typically overseen by one or more supervisory personnel, called variously a range master or "RSO – Range Safety Officer" in the United States or a range conducting officer or "RCO" in the UK...
at Denbury in the run up to the invasion of Europe in 1944
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
. The site was taken over by the Royal Corps of Signals
Royal Corps of Signals
The Royal Corps of Signals is one of the combat support arms of the British Army...
junior training Regiment. The construction of Channings Wood Prison began on the former Ministry of Defence site in 1973, by a combination of contract and prison labour. The prison officially opened in July 1974, with further accommodation added in 1991.
From the 1990s Channings Wood gained a reputation for pioneering therapeutic work to reform sex offenders and drug addicts. This was confirmed in a report by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons
Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons is the head of HM Inspectorate of Prisons and the senior inspector of prisons, young offender institutions and immigration service detention and removal centres in England and Wales...
in April 2003, however the report noted that overcrowding at Channings Wood was putting this good work at risk. Further accommodation was constructed at the prison in 2003.
Channings Wood was praised again in a report in 2005 which highlighted the prisons education programme, accommodation and levels of safety. However a year later ten inmates staged a roof-top protest at the prison for 28 hours. The prisoners were "protesting about their food being cooked by prisoners on the sex offenders register." The protest ended peacefully.
A new 64 bed unit was opened at Channings Wood in 2007. The new wing houses the specialist Therapeutic Community which tackles drug misuse issues amongst prisoners.
The prison today
Channings Wood Prison houses offenders serving a wide range of sentence lengths, and predominantly receives new arrivals from local prisons across the South West Area. Two of the residential living blocks at the prison make up the Vulnerable Prisoners Unit which specialises in delivering Sex OffenderSex offender
A sex offender is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and by legal jurisdiction. Most jurisdictions compile their laws into sections such as traffic, assault, sexual, etc. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crimes of a...
Treatment Programmes.
The prison provides courses to prisoners, include Barbering, Business Studies
Business studies
Business studies is an academic subject taught at higher level in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom, as well as at university level in many countries...
, 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...
, Industrial Cleaning, Creative Media Studies
Media studies
Media studies is an academic discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history and effects of various media; in particular, the 'mass media'. Media studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly from its core disciplines of mass...
, Customer Services, Driving Theory, Dry-Lining, Electrical Installation, ESOL, Food Hygiene, Fork Lift Driving, 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...
, Information Technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
, Painting and Decorating, 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....
and Yoga
Yoga
Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline, originating in ancient India. The goal of yoga, or of the person practicing yoga, is the attainment of a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility while meditating on Supersoul...
. It also offers employment
Employment
Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
opportunities.
The prison offers a gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
and league sports. The prison chaplaincy offers a chapel and multi-faith room to inmates and staff at the prison.