HMP Nottingham / Bagthorpe Prison, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire

First visited 12th August, 1903.

Accommodation, 200 men and 28 women, total, 228.

Daily average, 149 and 21, total 170.

Area of site, 21 acres; walled in 5.3 acres.

Number of prisoners per acre, 11, or 43, accordingly.

This Prison is situated on the top of a hill in the country, at Bagthorpe, three miles out northwards from the Midland Railway station; but the electric car at the Sherwood terminus is 10 minutes distant. The site was originally purchased by the War Office for a Brigade Depôt, but discarded, and handed over for a Prison. The design is by Colonel Beamish, and dated 8th October 1890.

The main road from Nottingham ascends the hill, and passes about 160 yards to west of the Prison yard: the Governor's house adjoins the main road, being situated in a beautiful garden about 80 yds by 40 yds. Next east comes the Chief Warder's house, and eight Warders' quarters on the two-flat plan (seen also at Wakefield and Canterbury) with yards and external w-cs, and garden allotments behind.

The quarters and gardens (in front, or on south side of which, the approach road to Prison runs east and west), occupy about 1.6 acres, and the Prison yard is about 160 yards square, leaving about 14 acres of unused ground, on north side, which is let for cultivation.

The site has a beautiful southern aspect, but a remarkable defect in the design seems to be the placing of the Entrance and Gatehouse at the south west corner of the walled enclosure, so that the women, and all visitors, have to pass in front of the Men's accommodation.

The Gate faces west, and the Gate building has a visiting room for three persons, a sleeping-in room, mess room for warders, and the usual Gate-office.

The boundary wall is of brick and 18' 8" high, and has a round cope at top. There are buttresses inside, but not outside, and the wall is built in level horizontal courses up and down hill, which necessitated ugly steps in the cope, which are made of stone. The top foot of the wall tapers rapidly inwards, and consequently has no drip, so is much injured by wet.

All the buildings are of red brick, and the Men's cell block (B) with offices and Chapel in line occupies the centre of the yard, and is well placed, running north and south. To its right or east is the Females' cell block (C) which also runs worth and south, and has a connecting covered way to B, which "way" is built parallel to, and under the same roof, with one from B to the Kitchen. To left of B is the males' Reception, with Infirmary over, also connected by covered way thereto. Outside of these is the detached stores building, with ladder shed at the back, while behind the reception is the work's workshop. Similarly in front of C, and connected thereto by an L shaped covered way, is the females' reception and infirmary, while behind C is the kitchen and laundry, side by side, with separate covered way, as above named, to B, on which is placed the men's weekly bath house. The sides of B are thus left clear and open, for light and air, and there are commodious exercise yards, (with asphalte paths), and yard closets on the west, besides garden space in abundance.

It seems a pity that division walls, with gates and ramps, around the stores and males' reception (as well as of necessity around Females' Prison) prevent the free patrol of the Prison yard, and the thrusting forward of the females' reception, out of the line of frontage, exposes it fully to sight from the Entrance Gate. The greatest error however of the females' Prison plan seems to be, that it has no external entrance, except through reception or from men's Prison. Wide asphalted roads have been formed, at great expense, around the yards.

The facade of offices and Chapel are designed in "Italian" style, with clock tower and stunted Dome roof over it, but the effect is poor, and not equal to Bristol. The side elevation of B block shows prominent pilasters between' the cells, sunk window breasts, and oversailing above to carry the cornice.

Of detached buildings,excepting the small Photo house in front yard, and the wood chopping boxes, covered with corrugated iron erected in 1903, opposite the north end of B, (which face north, and now have the paved floor in front enclosed and roofed over).

The Stores constituted in 1903 are the only important erection. A defect of this building is its division into so many rooms or parts. There is a small office, unused and empty; then another like room, and a Provision store 4/5 empty too! The front room is called a coal store, but had no coal. All these rooms might be thrown into the main store (with stands) now overcrowded, and then the shed for vegetables, (as has been proposed), would be necessary.

The Buildings on the covered ways are now noted, the Kitchen, has a west external door, and a large lantern in roof, and (like Bristol) no "blow through", so that heat is complained of in summer. There is an expensive steel wash up trough (from Armstrong of Leeds): five cooking pots of 40 gallons (approx.), two small Kitchen vegetable steamers, two steam boilers, one range, and an oven (one baking only per day) with an elaborate iron furnace front,and iron ash pit.

There is a large flour loft, and a serving lobby for women's food (used by the Visiting Committee for entering females' Prison). There is a good wooden hood over the cooking pots, and an iron gate on the yard door.

This is at the back of the covered way from B to kitchen, and contains seven divisions, very cramped up, with iron baths painted white. The water is heated in the kitchen by steam, in a tank placed over the steam boilers.

Right in front of the parallel covered ways, (under one roof) leading from B to kitchen and to females' Prison, is the Execution House, used also as a van shed. This has a Pit, but no exit therefrom, except at the top. It is fitted with a new pattern beam, block and chain, but was not used between 1900 and 1903.

The women's yard begins at its south east corner, and a visiting room has been there erected which abuts upon the Execution House wall. There is also a covered coal store, with open front, and a pavement, for storing it on, in the open.

The Laundry is alongside the kitchen, and like it, needed a gable ventilator. There are here two coppers, six tubs of wood, a hot tank over, and retort below the drying closet of six horses by Jones & Attwood (which has special screw knobs on rail pipe ends). There is no Inlet (otherwise) to closet, but an outlet in the roof, drawn down to furnace. The result is frequent "baking" and "rusting" of clothing.

Block C is double sided, seven cell spaces long and three flats high. There is a "special cell" in a Basement, and at north end is an aisle, or lean-to on flat 1, holding weekly females' baths, and warders' w.-c. There are good iron stairs 3' 7" wide, and a 4' 6" high railing to galleries, of 3/16" horizontal rods, (spoiled by a stiff top).

The cells have flat concrete ceilings, red and black tiled floors, sheeted doors, with Thomas' lock with bevelled bolt and two throws, one row of clear glass in the windows, (which, are of the 21 pane pattern), and an electric bell to each. Otherwise they are "Pentonville" cells in all particulars. The Corridor is light, but has been much obstructed by forming stairs into the roof! The w.-cs are in an annex on east side only, but one to each flat. There is a condemned cell, C II 3. It is unfortunate that two flats of this Building have had all the seven cells taken up on west side, for conversion into rooms for three female warders, for whom no accommodation was made otherwise.

An L shaped passage leads from the south end of C to Females' Reception, passing by their Disinfector and Clothes store in route.

This Reception is of modern arrangement,, with four waiting boxes, but they have flat ceilings, and cell locks. The Examination room and Reception Bath adjoin.

Up a fine staircase of stone, the Females' Infirmary is found above the Reception. At stair-head is a padded cell, with inspection steps and head cavity for observation, but the observer is by no means hidden. There is one good sick ward, and it appears small for four beds, but a small "lying-in" ward is also available. There is a good nurses' bedroom, and the lavatory accommodation is most elaborate.

The Men's Reception is entered from the front; on the left is an Examination room and opposite are seven good boxes, with sheeted doors, and cell locks. Beyond Examination room are two good baths, Prison clothes store and w.c, and on right the Medical Officer's room. Behind in an annex is the private clothes store and disinfector. Round the corner are four little cells 8'6"x 5'0" with asphalte floors, (not used for sleeping).

Ascending, the Males' Infirmary is found over. The front ward has four windows on infirmary each side, and holds six beds: a bath and w.c. adjoin. There is a nurses' room and dispensary, and two cells for convalescents. These are placed sideways over the little reception cells below, and are consequently dark in some parts! At the end is a canvas padded cell, again with "observation steps". About the passages are many inconvenient cast iron "swing" windows, opening in horizontal sections, which will not close tight, but they are without guard bars. In the front walled yard, used for hospital exercise, is a Mortuary with door seen in front, and the yard itself has a door, opposite to that which leads by flat III,(which is thus available for either sex). Ascending this long stone stair a "Geyser" was found in the passage of Isolation Hospital, but it was used for heating the water for "wheel" bath only, and not for bathing on the spot. The Isolation ward is small but there is a good nurse's room, w.c. &c.

The works' workshop is built against the Private Clothes Store at back of males, reception but entered from without, and is seldom in full use. It contains a carpenter's bench, a smith's forge, and a fitter's bench, with a paint store division, and an Artisan Warder's office, (glazed), where are numerous plans remaining.

The Offices have (like the males' cell block B) very poor yellow tiles, mixed with black, in passage floor. There are here four good rooms in each side, and a Solicitor's' room, and Library in a glass division at north end , and this building differs from Bristol in having no basement below the office rooms. Ascending to the Chapel above, a low ceiling is found. There are fourteen windows, each with a hopper for ventilation 17" x 5½", and two centre flowers, with perforations under 12" tube Buchan's as Extract. At first the perforations seemed small, but subsequent examination showed the valves to be closed, and since opened, all has worked well.

The seats are good, with backs and kneelers, and Gill stoves heat the place well. Gas Lighting was introduced for a few dark winter mornings and afternoons only, but an alteration of an hour would have made the 14 windows suffice.

The Males' Prison is reserved for the last. It has four flats and 26 cell spaces length. Entering from office or south end there are four gated cells seen on the left of B I, (erroneously called locally B II,because the Boiler house is below ) and then the Chief Warder's office of two cells with one cased and one cell window, and very heavy roof beams, but no fire place! There are two warm cell inlets and two cell extracts, but these had not been swept, and did not draw well on 12th August 1903. All the doors of this block have inspection "traps", and gas boxes rendered in cement .with clear glass, and tin shutters, and large flues which cause flickering badly! The wooden corner tables have no girder support, and get loose. The men's corridor is dark as there are no windows in south gable, and nine small ones only in north end. There are three skylights which are not continuous. The railings are like the Females' Prison, and the Galleries have two intermediate supports between the brackets. There are wide stairs with cast iron risers, and (even in Females' Prison) a centre stringer! In the real "Basement", opposite the Boiler house, there are three "special" cells on east side. Complaints have been made of unequal distribution of heat to cells in this block, but the Record book does not substantiate real cold. The top flat is undoubtedly the warmest, but the heating pipes have been lately rejointed, and means taken to obtain more equal radiation.

The corridor roof has very neat iron trusses, and indeed all the rafters are iron, and the many guard bars below the distant corridor skylights form a noticeable feature, as also does (as in C) the great stair and cross landing to attics, which much blocks the light. There are eleven large clerestory windows each side, and there are w.cs to each flat in annexes on both sides, but these unfortunately have been placed opposite each other (allowing prisoners to make signs across).

The Boiler flue is in a brick chimney in eastern closet entrance. The cells are in all respects like those in Females' block, have solid 18" window breasts, and good red-tiled floors, the same tiles being found in floor of covered way to Reception. There are two condemned cells B II 1 & 43.

There can be no doubt it was intended that the ample width (16 feet) given to modern local Prison corridors, was expected to be used for prisoners' work in association. This provision has however of late years been somewhat set aside, and detached Industrial shops provided even where not required for Juvenile Adults. An example of this is seen at Nottingham, where an elaborate shop was constructed at great cost in 1905-6, which for sometime after completion was seldom adequately occupied. It stands in the north yard, near the work's workshop, and the two seem alike in their apparent want of appreciation. On the other hand, the recent extension and improvement of the wood chopping establishment is useful and appreciated.