Ofsted round-up – This week: Three of the latest Ofsted Prison inspections
HMP Morton Hall, Lincoln
Summary of grades awarded:
HMP Morton Hall is a semi-open prison for women with a capacity for 391 offenders. All offenders participate in purposeful activities,including education, vocational training and work. Provision in literacy, numeracy, ESOL, ICT, key skills, art/visual design, digital design, business studies, hairdressing, manicure, and travel and tourism takes place through a link with Lincoln College. Vocational work-based learning takes place in the prison’s catering areas, workshops and gardens.
The overall effectiveness and capacity to improve at Morton Hall were judged to be satisfactory. Achievement and standards were satisfactory for employability training and learners could develop good work skills. However, these skills are not formally recognised and Ofsted suggested this was an area for improvement. Overall achievement for literacy, numeracy and ESOL was good or better with the report noting that: “Most learners taking external tests and qualifications achieve them.” Personal development and social integration also had good standards.
The overall quality of provision was graded satisfactory andgood teaching was listed as a key strength. Although teaching for employability training was generally good, provision for this area was graded inadequate,partly due to insufficient literacy, numeracy and language support. For other areas of provision, lessons were generally well planned and progress was adequately recorded, though some target-setting was overly ambition for pre-entry level learners.
Ofsted said leadership and management were satisfactory and that the prison’s strategy, “clearly sets out policies and procedures for all aspects of learning and skills provision.” Inspectors did identify some areas for improvement. They suggested communication could be better, particularly where learning needs of individuals were not passed on to work or education providers. Resettlement needs and pre-release support could also be improved. Promotion of equality and diversity and learning resources, including the prison library, were good.
HMP Bullingdon, Bicester
Summary of grades awarded:
HMP Bullingdon, near Bicester in Oxfordshire, is an adult category C prison that consists of five units, including those for remand, drug dependency, sex offenders and prisoner support. The prison has capacity for 963 offenders and regularly operates near that limit. Educational provision, through links with Milton Keynes College, consists of accredited programmes in ICT, literacy, numeracy, ESOL, key skills, barbering, art, music, creative writing, bricklaying and the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS). Accredited vocational training opportunities include horticulture, physical education, industrial cleaning, laundry and dry cleaning and food hygiene. Open and distance learning courses are available for learners wanting to participate in higher-level learning.
Ofsted graded the effectiveness of provision at Bullingdon as satisfactory. Achievement and standards were satisfactory for employability training and good in literacy, numeracy and ESOL and personal development and social integration programmes. Inspectors noted: “Pass rates for literacy, numeracy and ESOL at entry level [were] high for those learners who complete the course,” and highlighted this as a strength. Success rates were also high for social and life skills courses, but pass rates for music, art and creative writing courses could be improved. Poor attendance was a problem for many classes in all areas of provision.
Teaching in many areas was seen as a strength, with training in industrial cleaning achieving an outstanding grade. Many lessons across the three areas of provision were described as “well planned and managed”. Learners have an individual learning plan to monitor their progress, but in some cases the targets set were “too general” or were the same for all learners. The range of provision was generally seen as adequate; though in some cases inspectors felt that the number of available places was insufficient.
Leadership and management received a satisfactory grade with Ofsted stating: “HMP Bullingdon has a clear strategy for learning and skills which is supported by a three year development plan.” Partnership work and arrangements with the education provider were listed as a key strength. Ofsted said the systems for providing information, advice and guidance were under-developed and the induction programmes was inadequate. These were both areas for improvement. Communication was good, while equality of opportunity, resources, self-assessment and quality improvement processes were all deemed satisfactory.
HMP Dartmoor, Yelverton
Summary of grades awarded:
HMP Dartmoor is a category C adult male training prison situated in the middle of Dartmoor, Devon. The prison has a capacity of 646 with a current population of 622 offenders. Approximately 43% of the prison’s population engages in learning and skills activities. Education and training is funded by Devon and Cornwall LSC and delivered by several contractors, including Strode College. Around 110 places are available for offenders to engage in accredited work and/or training programmes.
Ofsted gave satisfactory grades to all areas of Dartmoor’s inspection, including the effectiveness of provision. Achievement and standards in employability training were satisfactory on most courses, and the “good” development of learner’s personal and vocational skills was a key strength. Achievement for literacy and numeracy was satisfactory, but was low for ESOL learners. Achievement for personal development and social integration was satisfactory and the report stated that, “many learners successfully complete short courses and modules to gain a range qualifications and awards.” The development of learners’ self-esteem and confidence on personal development programmes was listed as a strength.
Teaching and learning were described as satisfactory in all three areas of provision. Inspectors commented that most learning sessions were adequately prepared and managed, though in some cases tutors did not give sufficient attention to different learning preferences and abilities. For employability training and personal development and social integration programmes it was noted that there were insufficient opportunities or places for offenders. Poor target-setting for individual learning plans was an area for improvement across all provision. The Story Book Dads project, part of theliteracy provision, was highlighted as a key strength because it was, “particularly proactive in motivating learners otherwise not engaged inlearning.”
Ofsted found leadership, including the management of resources, equality of opportunity and support for those with learning difficulties, to be satisfactory. Quality improvement arrangements were under-developed and could be improved. Inspectors also felt that data was not being, “routinely analysed or used to make management decisions and drive improvement.” Ofsted noted that partnerships with external organisations were satisfactory, communication between staff was “open and effective,” and staff development was adequate to meet the needs of the prison.
Responses