Plans submitted for prison expansion

Lewis Smith Local Democracy Reporter

Plans to expand the troubled Parc Prison to house hundreds more inmates have been submitted to Bridgend County Borough Council on behalf of the UK’s Ministry of Justice.

The plans were handed in to the authority for the creation of a new “K-shaped Houseblock” to accommodate an extra 345 residents along with an additional 160 members of staff.

The application from Galliford Try Construction Limited comes just months after a report into the Bridgend prison that found failure to tackle an “alarming” flow of drugs in the facility, which led to “a spate of tragic deaths”.

If approved the proposal will see works at the privately run facility to build a new K-shaped block on the south-west of the site along with the repositioning of parts of the boundary wall and the construction of a new road alongside the southern boundary of the northern car park.

It will also see the development of a replacement kitchen and dining block with a new gym, multi-faith building, education building, and visitor/staff entrance with additional car parking and associated infrastructure.

The plans read: “Between 2010 and 2024 the overall capacity of the national prison estate increased by fewer than 500 places.

“A recent inquiry by the Public Accounts Committee forecasts that the prison capacity will run out in early 2026.

“To respond to current and projected demand the government has outlined plans to add 14,000 new prison places by 2031. The proposed development is intended to contribute to that target.”

HMP Parc is a category B prison located in Coity, Bridgend. It was opened in 1997 and is operated by private security firm G4S on behalf of the Ministry of Justice. The current site holds a total of 1,670 inmates as well as 676 members of staff.

A pre-application consultation over the proposals ended in June with concerns raised from both residents and members of the local community council.

Coity Higher Community Council expressed their concerns over the plans, fearing increased traffic along Heol Spencer as a result of the additional staff and visitor numbers.

Some members of the public who live nearby also opposed them because of issues with noise as well as reports of drones being flown into the prison from residential streets.

There was additional criticism over the management of the prison with people said to be “looking for ways into the prison grounds” and loitering in a wooded area.

A response from the applicant said additional external dog patrols had
been put in place to deter inappropriate activity on the prison grounds as well as an ongoing window replacement programme that would “make it impossible” for drone drops to be made to individual cells.

The full plans to extend the prison will now be considered by the local planning authority ahead of a decision in the coming months.