Prison Categories in England & Wales
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Prisons in England and Wales are divided into several categories relating to the age, gender and security classification of the prisoners it holds.
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[edit] Male adult prisoners
Male adult prisoners (those aged 21 or over) are given a security categorisation when they enter prison. These categories are based on the likelihood that they’ll try to escape, and the danger to the public if they did escape. The four categories are:
- Category A prisoners are those whose escape would be highly dangerous to the public or national security
- Category B prisoners are those who don’t require maximum security, but for whom escape needs to be made very difficult
- Category C prisoners are those who can’t be trusted in open conditions but who are unlikely to try to escape
- Category D prisoners are trusted enough to wander freely within the prison but must show up for several daily roll calls
[edit] Female adult prisoners
Prison security categories for women are similar to those for males – category A is the same. The other two categories are ‘closed’ for prisoners who can’t be trusted in an open prison, and ‘open’ for prisoners who are trusted enough to wander freely but must show up for daily roll calls.
[edit] Young offender secure centres and institutions
When young offenders under the age of 21 are sentenced to a custodial sentence they may be sent to one of three types of establishment:
- Secure Training Centres (STCs) – privately run, education-focused centres for offenders up to the age of 17
- Local Authority Secure Children’s Homes (LASCHs) – run by social services and focused on attending to the physical, emotional and behavioural needs of vulnerable young people
- Young Offender Institutes (YOIs) – run by the prison service, these institutes accommodate 15-21 year olds and have lower ratios of staff to young people than STCs and LASCHs
[edit] Rest of the UK
Prisons in England and Wales are managed by HM Prison Service. Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands have their own prison administrations.
