Up to 36% of men left HMP Winchester with no bed for their first night, says the prison's monitoring board. Drug finds doubled and serious assaults rose.
Up to 36% of men released from HMP Winchester in the past year had nowhere arranged to sleep on their first night out. That is one of the main findings of the prison’s Independent Monitoring Board, whose annual report was published today (IMB news release, 1 October 2026).
The board is a team of unpaid local volunteers with the right of access to every prisoner and every part of the prison. Its report covers 1 June 2025 to 31 May 2026 (IMB Winchester annual report 2025-26, PDF). It finds that education, work and preparation for release at the Romsey Road jail are too thin to give most men a realistic chance of staying out.
Released with nowhere to go
About 30 sentenced prisoners are released from Winchester each month, according to the report. Over the year, the share of men with no accommodation arranged for their first night ranged between a fifth (20%) and a third (36%).
The board says those men are pointed to charities that may be able to provide tents, and to food banks. It says the risk is sharpest for men released straight from court, sometimes without warning.
Work after release was just as patchy. The share of men in a job six weeks after leaving ranged from 36% in August to 7% in April.
The board’s chair, Cord Oestmann, said in the release that much of staff time goes on keeping prisoners safe. “As a result, there is limited opportunity to support rehabilitation and resettlement, something borne out by the high number of those released homeless and failing to secure employment post release,” he said.
The report notes that Winchester is due to join the Immediate Release Pathfinder. The scheme is meant to identify men on remand who might be freed from court and would benefit from resettlement support.
What the board found inside
The report describes “a high-risk environment with areas of repeated instability”. The main figures for the year:
- Drugs: drug finds rose 114%, from 0.73kg to 1.56kg per 1,000 prisoners. Positive mandatory drug tests ranged from 18.7% in December 2025 to 50% in February 2026.
- Hooch: finds of illegally brewed alcohol rose from 276.9 litres to 331.7 litres.
- Violence: around 27 assaults by prisoners on other prisoners each month, and around 13 on staff. There were 13 serious assaults on staff, more than double the year before.
- Self-harm: 532 incidents, down from 784 the year before. The board says the rate is still among the highest of comparable prisons.
- Deaths: five deaths in custody, one of them within 14 days of release. Two were from natural causes; the causes of the other three had not been confirmed by 30 June 2026.
- Key workers: 75% of prisoners had a named key worker, but fewer than 10% of the sessions took place.
- Time out of cell: some prisoners got as little as three hours a day.
- Offender management: four prison offender managers in post instead of eight, each holding around 40 cases.
- Education: average attendance of around 49%.
The building is part of the problem. The main prison dates from 1846, and the report describes water leaks, vermin and cells that are “stiflingly hot” or “particularly cold”. A new care and separation unit was started in 2022. Its main contractor later went into administration, and no work took place during the year. The board also says a lack of barriers on C wing let men collecting drug debts reach neurodivergent prisoners on another landing. Barriers went in in May 2026.
Some progress, and the inspectors’ view
The report is not all bad news. HM Inspectorate of Prisons issued an Urgent Notification on Winchester after its October 2024 inspection, a formal warning that serious concerns need immediate action from the Justice Secretary. Inspectors went back in February 2026 and lifted it (HM Inspectorate of Prisons, report published 26 May 2026).
The board lists what that follow-up found. Leadership and staffing were stronger and there were early signs of better safety. But violence was still among the worst in similar prisons, drugs were still widely available and purposeful activity had not improved.
The board also praises staff. It singles out the officers on the care and separation unit for professionalism and compassion with prisoners who have complex needs. Drug rehabilitation staffing rose from 1.5 to 8 full-time posts, with more than 200 referrals a month in 2026.
Why it matters to Winchester
HMP/YOI Winchester is a local reception prison for men. It takes people from the courts at Winchester, Southampton, Portsmouth, Basingstoke, Aldershot, Bournemouth and Salisbury. Most of its population are on remand or awaiting sentence. It had an operational capacity of 664 in May 2025, plus up to 127 category C men in the Westhill and Hearn resettlement units next door.
The board’s questions to ministers ask for funding dates for the estate, action on staff shortages, and a plan to reduce overcrowding.
What it means for you
- If someone you know is being released: resettlement support at Winchester starts 12 weeks before the release date and covers housing, benefits and work. Ask early.
- If you want to help: the board itself is short of people. It should have 12 members and finished the year with seven, after three resigned and nobody joined. Anyone can apply to become an IMB prison volunteer.
- If you live near the prison: the board recorded that reports of possible drones and of throw-overs, where people outside throw parcels over the walls, increased. The prison took steps to work more closely with the police.
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