Latchmere House is a building overlooking Richmond Park in the Ham area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, in south west London, England. Originally built during the Victorian era as a private dwelling, Latchmere House was then owned by the Ministry of Defence and had various uses until after World War II, when the building was transferred to Her Majesty's Prison Service. Latchmere House was then used as a detention centre and prison until it was closed in September 2011. The future ownership and use of the building is yet to be determined.
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Originally built in the 19th century as a private dwelling, during the First World War (1914-1918) Latchmere House was used as by the Ministry of Defence as a hospital for treating officers suffering from 'shell shock'[1].
During the Second World War Latchmere House was used as a detention and interrogation centre (known as Camp 020) for enemy agents captured by MI5.
Latchmere House was transferred to Her Majesty's Prison Service in 1948. It was used as a Young Offenders Institution, remand centre, and a deportees prison before becoming a Category D men's resettlement prison in 1992.
In December 2003 a report from Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons praised Latchmere House for its rehabilitation centre, employment opportunities for inmates, and the good relationships between staff and prisoners, but noted that the prison could do more to prepare prisoners for release and that it sometimes did not quickly employ new arrivals, who might for several months be under-occupied.[2]
According to the August 2004 Prison Service Annual Report, Latchmere House's average prisoner was spending 57.6 hours every week in "purposeful activity", which made the prison "best in the country at providing useful work for its inmates."[3] The prison also did well at staff race equality and in educating its prisoners, but was not so successful at resettling prisoners or preventing drug use.
In September 2011, the Ministry of Justice closed the prison at Latchmere House[4] and transferred remaining inmates to other prisons. The closure formed part of wider-ranging cost saving plans by the ministry.[5].
Latchmere House is expected to be sold by the Ministry of Justice to raise revenue. The building constitutes prime real estate overlooking London’s Richmond Park[6] which could be converted for residential, commercial or leisure purposes. However, Richmond London Borough Council has applied for the main Victorian wing of the building to be listed as a site of special Architectural or Historic Interest,[7] which may affect the future use of the site. There have also been calls for the building to be reserved for use by the local community.