HMP Swaleside general description
Introduction:
KC was introduced in 1998 in HMP Swaleside, a Category B Training Prison with an operational capacity 775. It was successful in transforming the wing environment in terms of prison behaviour in a positive way.
Brief history:
HMP Swaleside was built on the site of the former Eastchurch Aerodrome, where the Short brothers opened their factory. There were many pioneering flights. Sir Winston Churchill flew here. Swaleside, Elmley and Stanford Hill total above 1500 inmates, the highest prison population in one place in the country.
The ‘Challenge to Change’ Programme operates as a community on ‘B’ Wing where 42 men participate in the programme on a full time basis. Two 6-month programmes are delivered annually. As a ‘B’ category prison most of the men are at the start of their sentences so after completion most of the men progress to other wings within the prison or move to a ‘C’ category prison to complete their sentence. Some of these men will also remain on the wing to act as mentors for the new group starting the programme