DAY 32 · PROPOSAL 31 · PART XIV · POLICY 34
Three Rehabilitation Super-Prisons.
15,000 new places. Capacity to uphold sentences. Rehabilitation to reduce reoffending.
The core idea
Manifesto 1.1 proposes three new rehabilitation-focused prisons, each designed for approximately 5,000 people. Together they would create around 15,000 additional places and replace chronic capacity pressure with planned, modern infrastructure.
No offender should be released earlier than their lawful sentence permits simply because the prison estate lacks space. The justice system must be able to detain those sentenced by the courts, protect victims and the public, and prepare people for a safer return to society.
The proposed scale
Three new prisons
A planned construction programme for three modern institutions.
Around 5,000 places each
Approximately 15,000 additional places across the full programme.
Rehabilitation at the core
Education, training, treatment, discipline and preparation for release would be built into daily operation.
A functioning justice system
Additional capacity should support lawful sentences, public protection and greater stability across the prison estate.
Rehabilitation, not warehousing
These institutions would not exist simply to warehouse prisoners. Their design and operation would focus on reducing reoffending, improving behaviour and helping people leave custody with the skills, treatment and structure needed to live lawfully.
Education
Literacy, numeracy and recognised academic learning linked to individual needs.
Apprenticeships
Structured routes into accredited trades and occupations with relevance to employment after release.
Vocational training
Practical skills aligned with realistic employment opportunities after release.
Employment
Meaningful prison work that builds routine, responsibility and transferable experience.
Drug rehabilitation
Evidence-led treatment, recovery support and continuity of care beyond custody.
Mental health support
Timely assessment, treatment and specialist support within a safe environment.
Discipline
Clear rules, consistent consequences and a stable regime that supports safety and progress.
Preparation for release
Housing, work, treatment and supervision plans developed before the release date.
What success should mean
- Safer custody, with reduced violence, stronger order and safer conditions for staff and prisoners.
- Lower reoffending, measured through outcomes after release and not only activities completed inside prison.
- Victims protected through credible sentences and effective public protection.
- A capable workforce with enough prison officers, clinicians, educators and rehabilitation specialists.
- Better employment, housing and treatment continuity following release.
Costing the ambition honestly
The master manifesto records an original illustrative capital estimate of £6–8 billion for three prisons and approximately 15,000 places.
This is not a final project budget and must not be confused with annual running costs. A full business case must model the complete lifecycle cost before any commitment is made.
Costs that must be modelled
- Land acquisition, planning, enabling works, utilities, transport links and local infrastructure.
- Secure accommodation, workshops, education facilities, healthcare, visits, kitchens and resilient systems.
- Recruitment, pay, pensions, training, leadership and continuing professional development.
- Food, energy, repairs, cleaning, transport, communications, insurance and asset renewal.
- Mental healthcare, drug treatment, education, apprenticeships, employment and resettlement.
- Perimeter security, control systems, digital infrastructure, monitoring and cyber resilience.
A staged delivery test
Need
Publish demand forecasts, evidence about the condition of the existing prison estate and the alternatives considered.
Affordability
Test capital, financing and operating costs against realistic justice budgets.
Deliverability
Set credible milestones for sites, approvals, procurement, workforce recruitment and opening dates.
Value
Compare the programme with refurbishment, smaller prisons and other capacity options.
Questions for scrutiny
- What evidence demonstrates that 15,000 additional places is the right long-term capacity requirement?
- Should three institutions each hold around 5,000 people, or would smaller linked units deliver safer and more effective regimes?
- Which existing prisons should be replaced, refurbished or retained as the new capacity becomes available?
- What safeguards would ensure that capacity pressure never becomes a substitute for lawful sentencing and release decisions?
- How many prison officers, clinicians, teachers, instructors and specialists would be required?
- How would the necessary workforce be recruited, trained and retained?
- What capital contingency and inflation assumptions should sit behind the illustrative £6–8 billion range?
- What annual operating cost would follow construction?
- How should rehabilitation, healthcare, education and preparation for release be commissioned and measured?
- What outcomes should trigger independent review?
- How would local infrastructure, transport, courts, probation services and communities be affected by each chosen site?
- What procurement and oversight model would prevent delay, cost escalation and poor construction quality?
The proposed direction
Proposal 31 would build three rehabilitation-focused prisons, each with capacity for approximately 5,000 people. The programme would add around 15,000 places and combine secure custody with education, apprenticeships, vocational training, employment, drug rehabilitation, mental health support, discipline and preparation for release.
The policy is intentionally ambitious, but it is not presented as cost-free or fully modelled. Capital, financing, staffing, training, maintenance, healthcare, rehabilitation and ongoing operations all require a transparent business case, independent scrutiny and clear parliamentary accountability.
Source basis: Manifesto 1.1, Part XIV, Policy 34, “New Prisons”, and Justice Budget 3.1.