social visits hmp risley

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• Crime, justice and the law
• Prisons and probation

Visit someone in prison

Use this service to request a social visit to a prisoner in England or Wales. There’s a different way to book a prison visit in Northern Ireland or a prison visit in Scotland .

To use this service you need the:

• prisoner number
• prisoner’s date of birth
• dates of birth for all visitors coming with you

If you do not have the prisoner’s location or prisoner number, use the ‘Find a prisoner’ service .

You can choose up to 3 dates and times you prefer. The prison will email you to confirm when you can visit.

The prisoner must add you to their visitor list before you can request a visit. This can take up to 2 weeks.

Request a prison visit

Visits you cannot book through this service.

Contact the prison directly if you need to arrange any of the following:

• legal visits, for example legal professionals discussing the prisoner’s case
• reception visits, for example the first visit to the prisoner within 72 hours of being admitted
• double visits, for example visiting for 2 hours instead of 1
• family day visits - special family events that the prison organises

Help with the costs of prison visits

You may be able to get help with the cost of prison visits if you’re getting certain benefits or have a health certificate.

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Risley Prison Information

• Accommodation: The prison provides multiple residential units with individual cells or shared accommodation for inmates. The cells are equipped with basic amenities, including beds, personal storage, and sanitation facilities.
• Education and Vocational Training: Risley Prison places a strong emphasis on education and vocational training. Inmates have access to a range of educational programs, including basic education, literacy, numeracy, and accredited courses. Vocational training opportunities are also available to develop employable skills and enhance prospects for successful reintegration into society.
• Work Opportunities: Inmates at Risley Prison have access to various work activities within the prison, such as maintenance, cleaning, kitchen, and other designated roles. These work activities aim to develop skills, instill discipline, and promote a sense of responsibility.
• Healthcare: Risley Prison has an on-site healthcare unit staffed with medical professionals who provide primary healthcare services to prisoners. Mental health support, substance abuse programs, and specialized medical care are also available.
• Family Contact: The prison recognizes the importance of maintaining family relationships and facilitates visits and contact with family members, subject to specific guidelines and regulations.
• Resettlement Support: Risley Prison offers pre-release planning and support to help inmates prepare for their eventual release. This may include assistance with accommodation, employment, and access to community-based support services.

Contact Information

Booking a visit to risley prison.

Unlimited Prison Phone Calls Package

• Valid Passport
• Valid Photographic
• Driving Licence (full or provisional)
• Citizen Card
• Senior Citizens Bus Pass Travel Card (issued by Scottish Government)
• Utility bill
• Council tax bill
• Benefit book
• Bank statement
• other letter from official source

• The weekly online and monthly printed national newspaper for prisoners and detainees

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Social visits back up and running.

• Inside Time Reports
• 9th July 2020

The first social visits have taken place at English prisons, 105 days after they were suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Two jails, Risley and Humber, restarted visits on July 8. More are scheduled to begin in coming days and weeks.

The Ministry of Justice said that more than 30 prisons in England and Wales – around a quarter of the total – had this week been approved to transition from regime stage 4, “Lockdown”, to regime stage 3, “Prepare”. This is a necessary step before a jail can be permitted to restore visits and some other elements of a normal regime.

The ministry would not name the prisons, but those which have announced dates for the resumption of visits include Standford Hill (restarting social visits on July 10), Leeds (July 11), Werrington (July 13) and Drake Hall (July 14).

Onley said its plans to transition had been rejected, and it was having to amend and resubmit them.

When visits resume, strict controls will be in place, with the details varying prison by prison, including shorter visiting slots, limits on visitor numbers and “no touching” rules.

HMP Moorland published pictures of its redesigned visitors’ centre (above), where visitors will book in and wait to enter the prison. The seats are at a safe distance apart.

Northern Ireland’s three prisons will resume social visits on July 27. Only one visitor will be permitted per prisoner, with under-16s except in “exceptional circumstances”. The province’s Justice Minister, Naomi Long, said: “The careful reintroduction of visits will be welcome progress for families and those in our care: family contact is an important part of rehabilitation and I’m pleased we are now in a position to move this forward.”

HMP La Moye, on Jersey in the Channel Islands, is reopening visits with up to three friends or family members admitted per prisoner. All must be from the same household and children under 12 will not be allowed in.

Nick Watkins, deputy governor of La Moye, said: “We ensured that prisoners were able to undertake video visits with their relatives for free when we had to suspend face-to-face visits. Prisoners also continued to speak to their family through their in-cell phones. However, although technology has its advantages, nothing beats a face-to-face visit so it’s wonderful news that we can re-introduce them.”

Janet Wallsgrove, governor of Parc, said plans were being drawn up to resume visits there but no date has been fixed yet. She said when they resume, visitor numbers would have to lower than before, while the need for staff to change personal protective equipment between searches would make the process take longer. She said: “Things will be will be slower, there will be less visitors able to enter into the visits hall at any one point, and so the frequency of visits may well be impacted.”

Governors were told last month that they could consider relaxing restrictions from July 6, but a strict process set out by the ministry in its National Framework means they must seek permission at every step before making changes.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons has pointed to growing frustration among prisoners as they see restrictions being lifted in the community but not in jails. The inspectorate has also warned that red tape could delay the lifting of restrictions, with governors needing “three layers of authorisation” before they can act.

Risley had hoped to be the first to restart social visits, taking bookings last week for an initial session on July 6, but this had to be postponed when the prison’s plans were not approved in time.

Restrictions on visits at Risley now include:

• Only one 45-minute visit per prisoner per month
• Weekdays only
• Up to two visitors may attend – either two adults, or an adult and a child over 10
• Only partners, close relatives or “significant others” may visit
• Visitors’ temperatures will be checked, with anyone recording over 37.8C being turned away
• No hugging or touching; 2m distance to be kept at all times
• No toilets, refreshments or children’s play area
• Visitors must wear masks on the way in, although they can be removed in the visits hall.

Despite the strict rules, families welcomed the development. One prisoner’s mother said on social media: “I feel they have worked hard to put this in place so soon. Fingers crossed for approval and well done HMP Risley, credit where it’s due.”

At Humber, there will be just three visits sessions a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons.

Purple Visits, the company which won the contract to provide video visits at prisons throughout England and Wales, said it was offering free purple paint to any jail which wants to repaint its visits hall or video visits room.

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One thought on “ Social visits back up and running ”

hi all i was just wondering if anybody knows if liverpool prison is open for visits yet thanks

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HMP Risley improves efforts to limit sex offender risk

• Published 19 February

A review has found that HMP Risley has made "substantial and measurable progress" in every area of concern

Inspectors say there have been improvements at a prison where work to limit the risk of sex criminals re-offending was not happening.

HMP Risley in Cheshire was told to take immediate action after 14 risks were found during a visit last July.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) said the "critical" sex-offender work programmes were now happening.

But while leadership and conditions had improved, self-harm rates remained "stubbornly high".

Risley held 1,032 prisoners when initial inspection took place in March last year.

A major concern raised in the inspection was that convicted sex offenders were being released without completing offending behaviour work specific to their risks.

HMIP team leader Hindpal Singh Bhui told BBC Radio Merseyside a severe shortage of staff and lack of investment was partly to blame for the courses not happening.

"One of our major concerns last time was that this is a prison with a high number of sex offenders, and one thing that should be absolutely critical for this particular offending group is access to offending behaviour programmes," he said.

He added that it was good to see that staff were now in place to run the programmes, which meant prisoners "came out having done the work that was on their sentence plans which should make them less likely to reoffend".

One of HMIP's concerns was that inmates were locked up for 22 hours a day in a prison that had "not created enough places in work or education".

The most recent inspection found living conditions were better, all prisoners now had more time out of cell, and a broad range of activities was well-attended.

"Substantial and measurable progress" had been made against all 14 concerns raised, the report added.

Prison's 'unstable leadership led to problems's

Prisoners locked up for up to 28 hours in pandemic

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook , external , X , external and Instagram , external ? You can also send story ideas to [email protected]

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• Ministry of Justice
• HM Inspectorate of Prisons

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Risley Prison

Parts of HMP Risley in Warrington 'beyond repair' inspectorate report finds

• Monday 24 July 2023 at 5:25pm

Parts of a prison which houses sex offenders are "beyond repair" with a lack of rehabilitation programmes an "astonishing failure", a report has found.

An unannounced Prison's Inspectorate visit to HM Prison Risley in Warrington in April 2023 found high levels of violence and self-harm among inmates.

The low-security jail – which is meant to focus on training and resettlement so inmates can develop skills and find a job when released – was “still not fulfilling its function as a category C resettlement prison”, with many prisoners locked up for 22 hours a day.

Its also found too many prisoners convicted of sexual offences were being released without having completed offending behaviour work specific to their risks, and slammed the lack of rehabilitation programmes for those jailed for sexual offences as an "astonishing failure".

The report found the following "priority concerns":

Recorded levels of self-harm among prisoners were high and too often support ended without the underlying causes having been addressed.

Living conditions had deteriorated across many wings and showers were in a particularly poor state.

Health care provision was undermined by a lack of onsite dental services and weak management of long-term conditions.

The regime did not provide sufficient time out of cell for a category C resettlement prison.

Leaders did not provide a broad enough range of education, skills or work activities to meet prisoners’ needs.

Far too many prisoners convicted of sexual offences were released without having completed offending behaviour work specific to their risks.

When inspectors visited, 404 of the 1,032 prisoners being held at the jail were serving sentences for sexual offences.

The proportion had “increased significantly” and represented 40 per cent of inmates, but there were still no accredited programmes for sex offenders, despite the watchdog raising concerns seven years ago.

Chief Inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said: “This represents an astonishing failure by the Prison Service, which has been far too slow in putting provision in place.

“Although the effectiveness of these programmes has at times been questioned, if the Prison Service believes they are effective and necessary they should make sure that the right prisoners get access to them.”

The report stated: "The many prisoners who were unemployed were locked up for 22 hours a day, in a prison that had not created enough places in work or education for the size of the population.

"The jail operated a split regime which meant that most prisoners were only in poorly paid, part-time work or education.

"They did not have enough time out of their cells, with no evening association and an even worse situation at the weekend.

"Only those on the excellent, enhanced living unit had a regime that was commensurate with the category of the prison."

Preparations for releasing prisoners were “often not good enough”, Mr Taylor said in his report.

Examples included some high-risk inmates being left homeless on release and phone calls not being properly monitored.

He also blamed “other Prison Service bureaucracy” for “hampering progress”.

Mr Taylor said leadership at the prison had been “unstable” for the last two years with a string of temporary governors and the current acting boss working “hard to maintain stability and set an agenda that sought to improve decency in the jail and support his staff team”.

The conclusion of the report said: “If Risley is to prepare prisoners adequately for their eventual release, it must provide far more purposeful activity that gives prisoners the skills and experience they need to settle successfully on release.

“The prison must also make sure that its critical public protection function is being met, particularly for the large population of prisoners convicted of sexual offences.”

In response, a Prison Service spokesperson said: “We accept improvements must be made and we are already taking decisive action to address the serious issues raised in this report.

“We are recruiting more probation officers at HMP Risley to improve the risk-assessment of serious offenders and rolling out a dedicated programme to better manage sex offenders.

"We are also now supporting prisoners at risk of homelessness when released with basic, temporary housing while they find a more permanent home.”

HMP Risley is managing self-harm across the prison and planning a new ‘safety summit’ at the prison which will focus on how to tackle the underlying causes of self-harm

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Risley 2021-22 annual report published

• #HMP Risley

The  2021-22 annual report for HMP Risley  is now published.

Visits and getting there, HMP Risley

Visits are held at the following times:

• Monday 14:30-16:15
• Tuesday 14:30-16:15
• Wednesday 14:30-16:15
• Thursday 14:30-16:15
• Friday 09:00-11:15,14:30-16:15
• Saturday 09:00-11:15, 14:00-16:00
• Sunday 09:00-11:15, 14:00-16:00  

You can book visits online, go to www.gov.uk/prison-visits . All you need is the name and date of birth of the person you are visiting, their prisoner number and details of the visitors. You can choose up to 3 possible dates and times. Prison booking staff will check what’s available and confirm your visit by email. If you’ve made an online visit booking request and haven’t received a confirmation email within 1-3 working days, email [email protected]

You can also book by email [email protected] or phone. The number is 01925 733284 open between 8.30 -12.00 and 13.30 -16.30 Monday to Friday.

There is a visitors centre 01925 733063 or click here . You should book in here at least 30 mins before your visit for the paperwork to be completed. You need to have some photo ID and proof of address. You can leave items such as mobile phones, cigarettes, food & drink etc in lockers during your visit; you will be searched by prison staff before being admitted to the visits hall.

Don’t be late for your visit, there will be no admission for AM visits after 10:30 and PM visits after 15:30

From Warrington Bus Station take the 586 or 588 to Leigh or vice versa . click here These services run every hour and stop at the prison. Bus services from Liverpool and Manchester run to both Leigh and Warrington.

By train go to either Warrington Central (Liverpool/Manchester Line) or Warrington Bank Quay Click here   which are about 6 miles from the prison. Taxis ranks are available at both stations. (01925 393 111 or 01925 396396 for local cab firms).  It is a short walk to the bus station from either station.

If driving to the prison from the M6/M62 at junction 21A turn east onto the M62 towards Manchester. Leave the M62 at the next exit. There is only one road that leads away from this junction, it is signposted Warrington East and Birchwood (A574). You must follow the signs for Leigh (A574). The prison is two miles away and you must negotiate four closely spaced roundabouts. You will pass over the M62 and almost immediately you will see the prison wall on your right. Continue along the main road until you reach the prison entrance.

There is car parking available on the Visitors Car Park

  Return to Risley

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HMP Risley - report (PDF, 728.2 KB)

Report on a scrutiny visit to HMP Risley by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons (17 and 24–25 November 2020)