HMP Foston Hall

Interserve's East Midlands regional delivery team has been praised for their work on the recently completed Video Court at HMP Foston Hall. The project involved the provision of video links and conferencing facilities to enable hearings to take place over the link, allowing prisoners to take part in court proceedings without leaving the confines of the Prison.

This includes remand hearings, committals and bail applications.

Achievements

• Costs: Reduction of court escort costs by up to 40-50%.
• Operational:
  • Reduction of prisoner processing time as they prepare to leave the prison, thus freeing Prison Officers to carry out other duties within the Prison.
  • The potential to accommodate the predicted increased court appearances, caused by the proposed increase in remand prisoner numbers and the new YJB facility.
  • Interview rooms allow prisoners to have contact with their families via a video link to local libraries, helping them to keep in touch with relatives who are unable to travel to the prison, for example their children. Given the level of involvement with Social Services at female establishments, this could provide an important link with children who have been taken into care.
  • Video links could also help with the counselling of distraught, potentially self-harming prisoners.
• Security: Minimising the risk of escape whilst prisoners are being escorted to and from the prison, especially in relation to Category ‘A’ Prisoners.

Ian Cooper, the prison’s site manager stated: “I would just like to place on record my appreciation and thanks for the way that Interserve have delivered this contract from an establishment point of view. The work is of good quality, was on schedule with good communication links and has caused us very few disruptions.”