Staff shortages 'significant' for prison - report

Staff shortages are having "a significant impact" on the running of a high-security prison, according to a report.

The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) said important services were being affected at HMP Full Sutton, near Stamford Bridge, East Yorkshire.

Prisoners on some units were having less time out of their cells in the evenings and mental health provision was limited to weekdays. However, assaults on staff almost halved in 2025, when compared with the previous year.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said it was tackling staffing shortages by recruiting more officers.

The IMB previously raised concerns about staffing in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

According to the report, there continued to be daily shortages of staff throughout 2025, with unfilled vacancies, illness, restricted duties and resignations all playing a part.

"This regularly required the introduction of curtailed or restricted regimes in order to maintain safety for staff and prisoners," the report said.

The number of suspicion-based drug tests carried out fell from 62 in 2024, to six in 2025.

However, despite the challenges, prisoner unemployment fell during the reporting year, as did the number of serious violent incidents and assaults on staff.

Assaults on staff almost halved to 42, compared with 80 in 2024.

Fewer men were segregated, with the average daily roll falling from 36 to 31.

Prisoners also continued to have access to employment, education, the gym and corporate worship, the report said.

However, the provision of education in the prison's smaller units remained very limited in scope.

Richard Terry, who chairs the IMB at Full Sutton, said: "Despite staff shortages, Full Sutton still maintained a generally safe environment for prisoners and staff whilst providing as much purposeful activity as possible, in the form of workshop employment.

"The board remains concerned about reduced education provision, the lost opportunities in suspicion drug testing and the disproportionate number of evening lockdowns experienced by smaller units."

Independent Monitoring Boards are made up of unpaid volunteers who report on whether those held in prisons and immigration facilities are being treated fairly and humanely.

Responding to the report, a spokesperson for the MoJ said: "We inherited a prison system in crisis, and while there is more work to be done, we're pleased to see the board recognising positive improvement at HMP Full Sutton.

"We are tackling staffing shortages by recruiting more officers and deploying them where they're most needed, as well as boosting salaries."

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