According to its critics, the new HMP Grampian is a swanky, five-star establishment, boasting breath-taking sea views, comfortable rooms and a focus on relaxation rather than rehabilitation.
In reality, the £140million building at Peterhead is a far cry from Centre Parks or Butlins – but neither has it been designed to punish or demoralise its inmates.
This week, the keys to the long-awaited superjail were handed over to its new governor.
Jim Farish, who previously ran HMP Castle Huntly, has taken control of the multimillion-pound complex as construction enters its final phase.
The jail has been built to replace Peterhead jail and Craiginches in Aberdeen and the wraps are scheduled to come off in March.
Yesterday, the Press and Journal was given exclusive access to the 40-acre site which will soon be home for up to 550 inmates from across the north-east.
The jail has been built on land next to the Victorian-era Peterhead Prison.
The last of its inmates were moved out on Wednesday and, today, HMP Peterhead officially ceases to be a prison. It will eventually be torn down and sold off.
HMP Grampian is much, much bigger than its predecessors and the first in Scotland to hold adult men, women and young offenders. Its bright, sunlit rooms and colourful walls are a world apart from the dingy, cold grey and white of older establishments.
Also, the names of its five main sections – Aberlour, Banff, Cruden, Dyce and Ellon – are cheerier than the usual Cell Blocks Delta and Alpha. Each cell has its own desk, sink and basic en-suite toilet – not luxurious, but heaven compared to rooms at Peterhead Prison where slopping out was still common place.
So far, its perhaps easy to see where the holiday camp comparisons come from.
But every section of the prison is closed off with heavy, metal doors operated by complex, electronic keys and cards, and controlled from a central office. The men’s block (Ellon) is the most prison-like section with sliding barred doors to seal off rows of single and double cells.
In comparison, the female wing (Banff) is brighter, smaller and more colourful. There are no bars on the cell windows here, although that’s simply because there is nowhere for them to escape into.
Mr Farish said: “This building gives us the opportunity to do many different things all at once. Other prisons, like Peterhead, don’t have that flexibility,” he said. “In simplified terms, my job is to do all that I can to rehabilitate these prisoners so that they are ready to return to society. They have been punished by the courts and their punishment is a loss of liberty. And that’s where we come in.”
Part of the rehabilitation process involves work placements at the prison’s kitchen or launderette. There is also a focus on education with several classrooms and a library. There are opportunities to get or stay fit with a range of a modern gym equipment and four football pitches.
The jail is scheduled to take on its first prisoners from March 3. It will be fully operational by April 18.
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