HM Prison Perth

HMP Perth

Location	Perth, Perth and Kinross
Status	Operational
Security class	Category A
Capacity	670+
Opened	1840 (184 years ago) (1840)
Managed by	Scottish Prison Service
Governor	Andrew Hodge

HM Prison Perth is a prison in Perth, Scotland that houses short term adult male prisoners (those prisoners serving under 4 years). It was originally constructed to hold French prisoners captured during the Napoleonic Wars, and is the oldest prison in Scotland that is still in use.

Purpose and location

A maximum security establishment which also houses fine defaulters and those on remand from the courts of Angus, the Dundee City council area, Perth and Kinross and the northern part of Fife. There is also a secure unit for Category A prisoners who are serving sentences of up to life imprisonment. It is Scotland's oldest prison still in use.^[1]

Buildings and facilities

Main building

The main building, a half-mile (1 km) south of the city centre beyond the South Inch, was constructed by architect Robert Reid (1774–1856) from 1810-12 to hold French prisoners captured during the Napoleonic Wars, when it was known as the Depot. In 1842, the building began service as a civilian prison. It comprises five halls (labelled A to C) and has a capacity of 504 prisoners.

Friarton Hall

A second building, Friarton Hall, which was, until 1999, a separate institution known as HM Prison Friarton, was situated opposite the southern end of Moncreiffe Island, 1+1⁄4 miles (2.0 km) south southeast of the town centre. This modern building once served to prepare prisoners for open conditions and had a capacity of 89. Friarton closed in early 2010 and is no longer part of HMP Perth, this building was demolished to make way for a new housing estate.^[2]

Current capacity

HMP Perth no longer has a D Hall or an E hall. The old C Hall was knocked down in 2006 to make way for a new fit for purpose C Hall which holds 365 prisoners. HMP Perth now holds around 700 prisoners. Perth holds a conserdably large amount of long term prisoners who usually serve for more than 4 years.

Hanging block

In 1965, the United Kingdom's last condemned suite was constructed at HMP Perth. The building was separate from the rest of the prison and was known as the 'Hanging Block'. It was never used as the death penalty was suspended later that year and abolished for murder in 1969.^[3]

When the gallows at HMP Barlinnie were removed in 1995, the facility at HMP Perth was retained for use in the unlikely event of a death sentence being executed for one of the remaining capital offences. It was converted for use as an officer training facility after the final abolition of the death penalty for all offences in 1998 and demolished in 2006.^[4]

See also

• List of Category A listed buildings in Perth and Kinross
• List of listed buildings in Perth, Scotland

References

56°23′8″N 3°25′48″W / 56.38556°N 3.43000°W / 56.38556; -3.43000

This page was last edited on 4 January 2024, at 23:46