Amey Secure Infrastructure, a provider of integrated facilities services to the public sector, has been working alongside its client HMPPS, to involve young female offenders at HMYOI Wetherby, in the design of a refurbishment project that has transformed a 48-bed unit into a modern, bright, and child-friendly space.
The £0.5m project took place at a specialist facility located within HMYOI Wetherby that manages vulnerable juveniles with complex needs. It forms part of the Governor’s drive to improve living conditions at the site.
The prison team consulted with female residents about what they wanted to see from the new facility. The focus was on creating a space that was homely and would offer an appropriate environment for offenders that were suffering from some form of trauma.
As a result, all fixed furniture was replaced, and the area was modernising. The room doors have been replaced with electro-chromatic ones which incorporate ‘smart glass’ that is electronically tinted and can be controlled to improve comfort, maximise access to daylight and reduce energy costs. In addition, a comfort cooling system will remove heat from each room and replace it with cooler air, ensuring that each room is kept cool during the summer months.
The introduction of bar-less windows has flooded each room with natural light and will significantly reduce energy and cost, as less powered lighting is required during daytime occupancy. To improve the ambience and atmosphere of the rooms, all room fixtures and finishes have been carefully picked to match with the walls and ceilings, which have been painted with colours from the autism friendly colour range and chosen by each individual child.
Kevin Cassidy, Amey’s Project Manager said:
“The project ran extremely smoothly and we’re delighted that the young people staying at Keppel now have a safe, and personalised environment that should promote respect and a sense of pride for their individual surroundings. We enjoyed working with them to choose paint colours and we hope that by involving them in our design planning it will lead to less unacceptable vandalism within the unit.”
Ryan Farrar, Site Liaison Officer at HMYOI Wetherby said:
“Following the works and feedback received from the young people, the Governor, staff and myself, the unit has benefited from some pioneering works especially around the barless windows offering uninterrupted views of the fields and trees the Keppel rooms overlook. The paint colours chosen amongst the discussions, offer choice for the young people to identify what room suits them and the comfort cooling has helped to cool the unit over what was a great summer.
I would really like to congratulate Amey on their choice of contractors and especially site management who were a fantastic team who worked with the establishment on all occasions to keep the works running smoothly with an understanding mindset regarding the complexities of working in this difficult environment but also keeping to timescales and project timelines.
This is a great example of good partnership working between Amey and HMPPS especially with a project that came at such short notice.”