Edmunds Hill (HM Prison)
Encyclopedia
HM Prison Highpoint North (formerly called Highpoint Prison and Edmunds Hill Prison) is a Category C
men's prison
, located in the village of Stradishall
(near Newmarket) in Suffolk
, England
. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service
.
base. On its closure in 1970, the RAF base was briefly converted into a transit camp for Uganda
n refugee
s.
The prison opened in 1977 as Highpoint Prison. In 1997, the North part of Highpoint became a women's prison. On 3 October 2003, two years after the July 2001 separation of the North and South prisons, the North prison became HMP Edmunds Hill. The prison was then converted into a Category C Male establishment in January 2005.
In October 2006, 10 inmates rioted at the prison damaging toilets and shower facilities at the prison. The riot started after the inmates were caught with home brew
. Another home brew was involved in riots that occurred less than a year later, when inmates crafted a liquor from Marmite
and fruit juice.
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 Stradishall
Stradishall
Stradishall is a village and civil parish in the Borough of St Edmundsbury in the English county of Suffolk.The Royal Air Force operated an airfield near Stradishall, RAF Stradishall, which was operational between 1938 and 1970. The former airfield is now the site of two category C prisons: HMP...
(near Newmarket) in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, 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 site of Highpoint North Prison opened in 1938 as an RAFRoyal 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...
base. On its closure in 1970, the RAF base was briefly converted into a transit camp for Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
n refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
s.
The prison opened in 1977 as Highpoint Prison. In 1997, the North part of Highpoint became a women's prison. On 3 October 2003, two years after the July 2001 separation of the North and South prisons, the North prison became HMP Edmunds Hill. The prison was then converted into a Category C Male establishment in January 2005.
In October 2006, 10 inmates rioted at the prison damaging toilets and shower facilities at the prison. The riot started after the inmates were caught with home brew
Home Brew
"Home Brew" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was screened on 15 January 2009, as the second episode of the fourth series.-Synopsis:...
. Another home brew was involved in riots that occurred less than a year later, when inmates crafted a liquor from Marmite
Marmite
Marmite is the name given to two similar food spreads: the original British version, first produced in the United Kingdom and later South Africa, and a version produced in New Zealand...
and fruit juice.
In May 2007 a report from the Independent Monitoring Board
Independent Monitoring Board
Independent Monitoring Boards are statutory bodies established by the Prison Act 1952 to monitor the welfare of prisoners in the UK to ensure that they are properly cared for within Prison and Immigration Centre rules, whilst in custody and detention...
criticised the prison for the neglect of foreign nationals and the treatment of mentally ill offenders at the prison. The report also raised concern that the prison had lacked a Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
for two years.
The prison was renamed Highpoint North prison in 2011.
The prison today
The Category C men's prison has an educationEducation
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
department, and work opportunities for inmates in Data Input, Contract Cleaning, Garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
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 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...
. Other facilities include 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 prison chaplaincy. The prison complex consists of six buildings. Three of these are residential treatment units which combine to house 160 men. The remaining three house 67 men each.