PFI Prison Expiry and Transfer Tranche 2

Government Transformation and Service Delivery

Record date: 31 March 2026

Whole-life cost: £2.7bn
Published schedule: 22/01/2022 – 31/07/2026
NISTA delivery confidence: Not disclosed
Senior responsible owner: James Smith

What the project is for

The aim of this project is to carry out the exit and transfer of services at HMP Ashfield and Forest Bank in a safe, effective and efficient manner following the expiry of their PFI contracts. HMPPS needs to undertake essential work to ensure it is able to manage the expiry of the Project Agreements and transfer the service, while maintaining continuity so there is no disruption to the regime or capacity at the prisons and also ensure opportunities to modernise the sites and align service provision to future need is fully considered. The project scope also includes delivering 458 additional prison places through the Rye Hill houseblock delivery. Project scope change approval was received in March 2026 to transfer the remaining HMP Rye Hill activity competition re-run to a later Tranche.

Departmental delivery commentary

Compared to financial year 24/25-Q4, the NISTA Delivery Confidence Assessment (DCA) rating at 25/26-Q4 has increased from Amber to Green. This is primarily due to the agreement to move the remaining HMP Rye Hill operator competition to a later tranche, meaning the remaining delivery is now approaching completion following the successful transfer of services and exit of the existing PFI contracts at HMPs Ashfield and Forest Bank and the delivery of HMP Rye Hill Houseblock expansion.

Schedule

Compared to financial year 24/25-Q4, the project at 25/26-Q4 remains scheduled to finished on 31/10/26. The project is on track to deliver against the baseline schedule following the transfer of remaining HMP Rye Hill activity to a later Tranche.

Cost

The HMT-agreed Whole Life Cost for 25/26-Q4 has decreased from £3,862.165m to £2,730.04m. All costs have been reported in 2024/25 base prices in line with NISTA requirements. This is a change from previous years where costs were reported in nominal prices. All costs reflect this accounting reduction regardless of any actual changes.

Benefits

This project currently reports no monetised benefits. The project seeks to realise efficiencies in future operating costs following the transfer of service to new operator contracts when compared to the PFI contracts. The project benefits also include the focus on the continued quality of service across the PFI contracts until expiry, and following the transfer of service, improvements in service quality in the new contract in line with the key Departmental priorities.