A quarter of men freed from HMP Norwich had no home to go to, its monitors say. Drug use rose, education was cut by nearly 40% and 150 men live overcrowded.
One in four men released from HMP Norwich last year left with nowhere to live. That is one of the findings of the prison’s Independent Monitoring Board, a panel of local volunteers who can go anywhere in the prison and read its records.
The board’s annual report for March 2025 to February 2026 was published on 23 September. It describes a prison where drug use has risen, education has been cut back hard and buildings are falling apart, but where violence has fallen.
What the board found
HMP/YOI Norwich sits on Knox Road at the edge of Mousehold Heath. It takes men from the courts of Norfolk and Suffolk. Its safe capacity is 640, which the board says means 150 prisoners live in overcrowded conditions.
The main concerns in the report:
- Homelessness on release. “Once again, 25% of prisoners left custody without accommodation.” The prison does not record where men live after their first night out.
- Drugs. Illicit drug use rose during the year. The board blames “a lack of effective perimeter protection” and says phones, USB sticks and drugs are found regularly.
- Education. A cut of nearly 40% in education provision ended every vocational course and six education staff were made redundant. The board says it was “astounded”.
- Buildings. Leaking roofs, broken heating and boilers, faulty lighting and failing washing machines. One healthcare building had no heating or hot water from April to October 2025 after a boiler leak. Britannia House, the open prison, had three working showers for 46 men.
- Health. The prison had no dentist for seven months. Some men placed in 24-hour isolation by the healthcare provider were kept off the normal regime for weeks.
- Young adults. Men aged 18 to 24 were 15% of the population but 42% of those on the violence reduction landing, and were involved in 36% of use of force incidents in February 2026.
The report also quotes the prison inspectorate’s January 2026 visit. Inspectors found that 43% of prisoners said drugs were easier to get than before, and that 24% of random drug tests came back positive. A drug and alcohol charity working inside, Phoenix Futures, has stopped offering one-to-one, group and drop-in sessions because of staff shortages.
Where things improved
Violence went down. The board credits a violence reduction landing opened in 2024, where men who fight are moved onto a restricted regime for at least 12 weeks.
The figures, from the report:
| 2024/25 | 2025/26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Assaults on prisoners by prisoners | 256 | 244 |
| Assaults on staff by prisoners | 134 | 109 |
| Fires started in cells | 37 | 14 |
The fire service attended eight of the 14 fires. The board also praised the reception staff, the prison’s own in-house courses and its links with Norfolk employers. The prison made 46 job offers to men on release, and every man leaving Britannia House had a job offer. Across the prison, 18% of those released were in work six weeks later and 37% six months later.
There were six deaths in custody during the year. The board says all six were expected.
Questions for the minister and the governor
The board has asked the Prison Service how a 40% cut in the education budget supports rehabilitation. It has asked again why there are no plans to improve the segregation unit, which it says does not meet the national standard. Last year, it says, that question went unanswered.
It has also asked the governor to bring back baby bonding sessions on the category B site, removed in 2023, and to make sure every prisoner gets at least an hour of PE a week. Sessions are often cancelled for lack of staff.
What it means for you
- Housing. The prison serves the courts of Norfolk and Suffolk, so men released without an address come out into this area. The board says the 25% figure is “once again” the rate, as in its previous report.
- Families. Child visits are limited to a prisoner’s own children, stepchildren and grandchildren. The board says both visits halls need redecorating.
- You can join the board. Monitoring boards are made up of local volunteers. Norwich’s should have 14 members; it ended the year with 11, and three new recruits are waiting for security clearance. Details are on the IMB website.
The figures in the report are the prison’s own management information, which the board notes may differ from official statistics published later by the Ministry of Justice.
For crime in the city itself, see our latest Norwich city centre crime figures.
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