RNAS Ford
HMP Ford Gatelodge
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| Location | Ford, West Sussex |
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| Security class | Adult Male/Category D |
| Capacity | 521 |
| Opened | 1960 |
| Managed by | HM Prison Services |
| Governor | Glenn Knight |
| Website | http://www.justice.gov.uk/contacts/prison-finder/ford |
HM Prison Ford (informally known as Ford Open Prison) is a Category D men's prison, located at Ford, in West Sussex, England, near Arundel and Littlehampton. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.
The site was initially RAF Ford before changing into Royal Naval Air Station Ford (RNAS Ford) a Fleet Air Arm station.
The following units were here at some point:
The site was converted to an open prison in 1960 with a capacity of 521.
The prison houses convicted adult males and specialises in dealing with non-violent offenders with a low risk of absconding but does not limit itself exclusively to that category of offender.
Media during the 1990s widely portrayed Ford as the favoured location for the placement of high-profile and celebrity prisoners, though this was more of a tabloid-led portrayal rather than fact.
Creating headlines, in 1996 Lord ('Charlie') Brocket, aged 44, was transferred to Ford following an incident in which he was stabbed in a semi-secure prison in Bedfordshire. There was a great deal of media interest in the colourful character who had been convicted of insurance fraud but who had epitomised 1980s consumerism, and shortly after his arrival he was photographed visiting a physiotherapist in the local town of Bognor Regis. Following that incident, he was denied the usual freedom that comes with a stay in an open prison. The Board of Visitors at the time had raised concern over the system regarding inmates being able to obtain private medical treatment. Chairpersons Mrs Lillian Holdsworth and subsequently Mrs Alison Munn had discussed this at Area Manager level. The system was changed after this incident and all external medical appointments more thoroughly vetted.
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