Onley (HM Prison)
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HM Prison Onley is a Category C men's prison, operated by
His Majesty's Prison Service His Majesty's Prison Service (HMPS) is a part of HM Prison and Probation Service (formerly the National Offender Management Service), which is the part of His Majesty's Government charged with managing most of the prisons within England and ...
. The prison is named after the lost village of Onley, which is located next to the prison. Onley Prison is in the county of
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...
close to its border with
Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
in England. The prison is in the
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
of Barby in Northamptonshire. However the postal address of the prison is
Willoughby, Warwickshire Willoughby is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish about south of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. The village is about northwest of Daventry in neighbouring Northamptonshire and the eastern boundary of the parish forms part of ...
, therefore most sources list the prison as in Willoughby, Warwickshire. It is next to HMP Rye Hill and
Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre is a secure school and housing unit for children and teenagers between Dunchurch and Barby, south of Rugby, in Warwickshire, England. It is next to HM Prison Onley and HM Prison Rye Hill. While designed for a capa ...
south of
Rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...
.


History

Onley opened as a
Borstal A borstal is a type of youth detention centre. Such a detention centre is more commonly known as a borstal school in India, where they remain in use today. Until the late 20th century, borstals were present in the United Kingdom, several mem ...
in 1968, and became a Young Offenders Institution in 1976. The prison gradually increased in size as new accommodation was added. Its role was expanded in 1998 when juveniles were taken for the first time and for three years from 2001 remanded as well as sentenced juveniles were held in addition to a Young Offender population. During this period there was considerable investment in buildings and staffing to meet
Youth Justice Board The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) () is a non-departmental public body created by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to oversee the youth justice system for England and Wales. Its purposes are set out in section 41 of that Act. It ...
standards. A refurbishment programme commenced at the prison in 2002 and finished in 2006. In 2003 the Youth Justice Board made the decision to remove the juvenile population from Onley. These were replaced by sentenced adults in March 2004, making Onley a prison for adults and Young Offenders. In 2004, Onley Prison was identified as the most violent Young Offenders Institution in England and Wales, according to the
Prison Reform Trust The Prison Reform Trust (PRT) was founded in 1981 in London, England, by a small group of prison reform campaigners who were unhappy with the direction in which the Howard League for Penal Reform was heading, concentrating more on community puni ...
. The trust pointed to high rates of violence between inmates and frequent attacks on the staff at the prison. In September 2007, two inmates escaped from Onley Prison by scaling a fence with a homemade ladder. It was believed that the pair then escaped in a getaway vehicle that had been waiting outside the prison for them. The escaped prisoners were subsequently recaptured six weeks later. A new wing was constructed at the prison in 2009, and in 2010 Onley became an adult only establishment, with all remaining young offenders transferred to other prisons. In July 2011, it was announced that Onley along with several other publicly operated prisons, would be market tested, allowing private operators as well as HM Prison service, to tender for the contract to operate the prison. Onley was removed from the bid in October 2012.


The prison today

Onley is a Category C prison for adult males. All residential wings (apart from I Wing, J & K Wing & L Wing) have 60 single cells each with internal
sanitation Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation systems ...
, in-cell electricity and TV. There are showering facilities, association and dining areas and a
laundry room A laundry room or utility room is a room (architecture), room where clothes are washed, and sometimes also drying room, dried. In a modern home, laundry rooms are often equipped with an automatic washing machine and clothes dryer, and often a l ...
with industrial type
washing machine A washing machine (laundry machine, clothes washer, washer, or simply wash) is a machine designed to laundry, launder clothing. The term is mostly applied to machines that use water. Other ways of doing laundry include dry cleaning (which uses ...
s and
dryers Dryer (or drier) may refer to: Drying equipment * Hair dryer * Hand dryer * Clothes dryer, also known as a tumble-dryer * Belt dryer * Desiccant, a substance that absorbs or adsorbs water * Grain dryer, for storage grain bins * Oil drying agent, a ...
. H Wing is an induction wing for new prisoners. I Wing holds 100 prisoners in 50 double cells, while L wing has 6 double cells and 58 single cells. Both have internal sanitation and comparable facilities to other wings. Education for inmates at the prison may be followed on a full or part-time basis, depending on the needs of the prisoner. Onley also offers training places in a range of industries and activities. The courses include Information Technology, Concrete Workshop (which includes Forklift Truck qualification),
Painting and Decorating A house painter and decorator is a tradesperson responsible for the painting and decorating of buildings, and is also known as a decorator, or house painter.''The Modern Painter and Decorator'' volume 1 1921 Caxton The purpose of painting is t ...
Workshop,
Motor mechanic An auto mechanic is a mechanic who services and repairs automobiles, sometimes specializing in one or more automobile brands or sometimes working with any brand. In fixing cars, their main role is to diagnose and repair the problem accuratelS ...
s and Engineering Workshops,
Bricklaying Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and Mortar (masonry), mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called ''Course (architecture), courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall. Bricks ...
Workshop, Reparative Workshop (which includes Bike Repair qualification and
Driving Test A driving test (also known as a driving exam or driver's test in some places) is a procedure designed to test a person's ability to driving, drive a motor vehicle. It exists in various forms worldwide, and is often a requirement to obtain a dr ...
Theory),
Market Gardens A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. The diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically from under to so ...
, Industrial Cleaning Workshop offering BICS qualifications and the
Waste management Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste, together with monitor ...
Unit which provides
NVQ National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) are practical work-based awards in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland that are achieved through training and assessment. The regulatory framework supporting NVQs was withdrawn in 2015 and replaced by th ...
s. Other employment and training opportunities include residential wing cleaning / painting and orderlies (for example: Gym, Stores, Healthcare, Library) and Catering.


Notable former inmates

*
Alun Kyte Alun Kyte (born 7 July 1964), known as the Midlands Ripper, is an English double murderer, serial rapist, child rapist, paedophile and suspected serial killer. He was convicted in 2000 of the murders of two sex workers, 20-year-old Samo Paull a ...
(as of May 2023) *
Tommy Robinson Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon (' Yaxley; born 27 November 1982), better known as Tommy Robinson, is a British anti-Islam sentiment, anti-Islam campaigner and one of the UK's most prominent far-right activists. Robinson has been active in ...
* Ashley Walters


References


External links


Ministry of Justice pages on Onley
{{Prisons in the East Midlands 1968 establishments in England Onley Onley Onley