HM Prison Wrexham
| Location | Wrexham, Wrexham County Borough |
|---|---|
| Security class | Adult Male/Category C |
| Capacity | 2,106 (upon completion) |
| Population | ~500 (as of July 2017) |
| Opened | February 2017 |
| Managed by | HM Prison Service |
| Governor | Russ Trent |
HM Prison Berwyn (also known as Carchar Berwyn EM) (Welsh: ['bɛrwɪn]) is a £250 millionCategory C adult male prison in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. When fully operational it will become the largest fully operational prison in the UK.
The gaol's name was announced by Governor Trent on 17 February 2016. The name Berwyn comes from the elements of Middle Welsh barr (summit, peak) and gwyn (white). A spokesperson for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) said that the prison had been named after the Welsh mountain range. Other names considered include Bridgeway, Marcher, Cerrig Tân, Dee Vale and Whittlesham. These names were suggested by local schools, communities and historical societies.
The 2,106 capacity prison opened on 28 February 2017, located at the Wrexham Industrial Estate, Wales. It will be operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service although 34% of services will be outsourced. It is hoped that 1,000 jobs will be created upon opening Work started on the prison in May 2015. and recruitment of staff began at the end of October that year. The prison cost £250 m to build.
The governor is Russ Trent and who had previously served as the project director. One of Trent's first roles as governor was to give the prison its official name which was revealed on 17 February 2016 as HMP Berwyn. Trent has stated that the prison's goal is to work to rehabilitate the men in the prison, with a focus on a successful crime-free future.
The prison is split into three houses, the first, Bala opening in February 2017 and the other two, Alwen and Ceiriog expected before the autumn. Each section can hold different communities including one for armed forces veterans. Staff said they believe that the small community size would make management simpler.
Staff at HMP Berwyn are expected to stick to a set of values, the values are:
Residents of the town Bala in Gwynedd were angered by the use of their town's name for one of the prison's houses, with a petition being started to get the name changed. The petition has over 400 signatures.
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