Block for 250 inmates built at HMP Elmley

A new block to hold almost 250 more prisoners has been built at HMP Elmley.

The first of 247 inmates are expected to move into the new cells at the Category B/C jail, on the Isle of Sheppey, in Kent, in the coming weeks, according to the Ministry of Justice.

It said the new building was armed with secure windows to keep drones carrying "contraband" at bay.

A workshop has also been constructed in a bid to ensure prisoners leave jail with skills to help them find work upon release.

Prisons minister, Catherine McKinnell, said the block would help make sure there was always space to lock up dangerous offenders.

"We inherited prisons on the brink of collapse, but our decisive action will keep our streets safe and create a prison system with the capacity it needs for the future," she said.

The plan to expand the prison with a fully-electric cell block was approved in March.

Builders the Kier Group said then it would also be extending the kitchen facilities.

Managing director, Anthony Irving, said: "The project will not only deliver additional prison places but improve the overall estate at HMP Elmley."

At the time Elmley consisted of six units and held about 1,150 prisoners, according to the Ministry of Justice.

There are units for vulnerable prisoners, foreign nationals, first night prisoners, drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

The expansion is part of a government prison programme, which it hopes will deliver 14,000 more prison places by 2031.

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