Prisoner caged in jail housing rapists and murderers wrongly released

Prisoner caged in Buckinghamshire jail housing rapists and murderers was wrongly released to hospital in paperwork mix-up

• The inmate mix-up happened at HMP Grendon in Buckinghamshire 

A prisoner caged in a jail that houses murderers and rapists was wrongly released to hospital after prison guards mixed him up with another inmate who had the same name.

The blunder happened at HMP Grendon in Buckinghamshire, which is home to 180 male inmates many of whom are serving life in the Category B jail for crimes including murder, rape and arson.

The inmate, who was referred to as a ‘resident’ in the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) report, was taken from his room, as the cells are called in the UK’s only fully therapeutic prison, before being escorted to a nearby hospital.

The red flag was only raised after the inmate seemed ‘confused’ about why he was being taken to hospital. 

The prisoner who had been due in hospital was told about the error but missed his appointment, meaning it had to be rearranged. 

The inmate mix-up happened at HMP Grendon 

The report noted that this is not the first time such a mix-up has happened in the prison, with another inmate being sent to the ‘wrong hospital’ in 2019. 

The report states: ‘There were two incidents with hospital escorts (in the reporting year), with one man sent to the wrong hospital and the wrong man with the same name mistakenly sent to hospital.

‘Both men missed their appointments.’

The report stated that a ‘similar incident’ had happened in 2019, saying that it was a ’cause for concern’ that it had happened again.

It stated: ‘The Board reported on a similar incident (in 2019), and processes appear not to have been embedded, which is of concern.’

In the 2019 incident the ‘wrong resident’ was sent to hospital, with it only being flagged when the lag told doctors that he didn’t suffer from the ailments he was meant to.

The report at the time stated: ‘The wrong resident was sent to hospital, where he was not identified before the correct resident’s health details had been shared with him.’

HMP Grendon is the UK’s only fully therapeutic prison, with fish tanks and potted plants dotted about the jail to help keep inmates ‘relaxed and calm’.

A prison source, speaking about HMP Grendon, said that the jail was an ‘incredible resource’, but that errors could happen.

He said: ‘Grendon is a fantastic prison – it really is at the cutting edge of trying to rehabilitate prisoners, some of which are in for the most serious of crimes.

‘This incident is obviously not something to be proud of, but it was caught in time and shouldn’t detract from what the jail is trying to do.’

Prison chiefs, speaking previously, said the error had been made by the jail’s primary healthcare provider, Practice Plus Group.

A spokesman for the Practice Plus Group, speaking about the wrong prisoner being taken to hospital, said it had been ‘open and honest’ with the patient about how the mishap occurred.

The Ministry of Justice have been contacted for a statement. 

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