HM Prison Wakefield, High-security prison in Wakefield, England
HM Prison Wakefield is a high-security facility in Wakefield comprising multiple buildings with Victorian architecture designed to house Category A male offenders. The compound contains approximately 600 single-occupancy cells with integral sanitation systems for managing high-risk inmates.
The site began in 1594 as a house of correction and transformed into a modern prison facility over centuries. In 1967 it became England's oldest operating dispersal prison, a designation it maintains today.
The facility serves as a major employer and institution in Wakefield's identity. Its historical role in criminal justice shapes how locals view the town's place in England's penal system.
Visitors must arrange appointments at least two days in advance and bring valid identification. Everyone entering undergoes security procedures including physical screening and detection checks.
This facility pioneered the dispersal prison concept in 1967, designed to spread high-risk offenders across multiple locations rather than concentrating them in one place. The model developed here later shaped how the entire English prison system manages dangerous inmates.
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