New £250million superprison wins a ‘five star’ rating in glowing review from paedophile inmate who says he is ‘grateful to be transferred here’
- Thurman, jailed for molesting a 5-year-old, moved to the new prison last year
- He says the conditions are better than HMP Whatton but would like more pillows
- £253mn prison is part of a government plan to build rehabilitative institutions
Convicted paedophile Michael Thurman, 80, said he was ‘glad to be moved’ to Britain’s new £253mn superprison in Northamptonshire.
In a letter to Inside Time, a monthly newspaper for prisoners, he thanked HMP Five Wells’ governor for the chance to stay in a prison with ‘conditions far better than [his] previous prison’.
He added: ‘I have to say that, despite small problems, HMP Five Wells is a 5-star establishment.’
Thurman, who was jailed for seven years for molesting a five-year-old girl, was transferred from HMP Whatton last September.
HMP Five Wells, a Category C ‘training and resettlement’ prison, opened in 2022 and provides up to 1,700 ‘low risk’ inmates with ensuite rooms, a snooker table and rehabilitative courses.
Thurman was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in 2020 for sexual activity and assault
HMP Five Wells in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire is Britain’s most expensive prison
Cells are called rooms and offer single beds and shower space in this private megaprison
Minimum-security Bastøy Prison in Norway is rated one of the most luxurious prisons in the world.
Bastøy Island was once home to a brutal reformatory and now homes 100 prisoners in wooden cottages, who are able to work on a farm and spend their free time sunbathing and playing tennis.
Prisoners are encouraged to learn new skills and take on academic courses, preparing for a steady transition into working life after prison.
Prisoners can access books and stay in touch with loved ones back home. They have access to a range of counselling services and work focuses on teaching them to be ‘good neighbours’.
With an emphasis on rehabilitation, the progressive institution reported a repeat offense rate of 16%, compared to the European average of 70%.
Britain had some success with HMP Grendon, a psychiatric prison in Bucks that promised progressive techniques and reported low levels of violence, self-harm and reoffending.
Data on Five Wells’ rehabilitation rate have not yet been published.
In his letter to Inside Time, Thurman complained about some of the features in the prison.
He said having one pillow and one bedsheet was ‘a tad hard’ for prisoners without state pensions.
The ‘slight lack’ of shelves was another minor irritation.
HMP Five Wells was opened in February last year, run by security company G4S on a ten-year contract.
The prison has seven houseblocks with more than 60,000 square metres of accommodation areas and ancillary buildings.
It is the first of six new prisons to be completed, with construction of the £170mn facility in Glen Parva underway.
A spokesman said at the time: ‘The new-generation category C facility will be run with a strong focus on rehabilitation in order to break the cycle of reoffending.
Justice Minister Dominic Raab said following the opening that he was ‘interested in punishment, because that’s what the public expect’ but was ‘not really interested in stigmatising prisoners’.
Five Wells is planned as a rehabilitative institution, offering prisoners with a low risk of escape qualifications, help with addiction and training for new careers.
Mr Raab said that prisoners would lose some privileges for bad behaviour.
MailOnline reported inmates ‘partied with booze and drugs’ at Five Wells in January.
G4S said ‘appropriate action’ had been taken as footage showed prisoners doing shots and smoking cannabis on prison grounds.
Prison cell or student digs? Prisoners like the new Five Wells, but would prefer more pillows
A room at HMP Five Wells, which promises a more progressive approach to imprisonment
Five Wells is part of the government’s plan to create a ‘modern, efficient prison estate that is fit for the future’ and will have a clear focus on rehabilitating offenders, they say
READ MORE: It looks like a luxury development – but it’s actually a Category C prison! Brand new £253m jail boasts a fishing lake, landscaped gardens and river views (but the bars aren’t the kind you can drink in)
Thurman moved to ‘Britain’s cushiest prison’ in September 2022 by request.
Michael Thurman fled Britain just before he was due to be questioned in 2017 after his victim – who was just five when he sexually abused her – contacted police.
He reached Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands, to evade the law, but was eventually tracked down with the help of Spanish cops.
Extradited back to the UK, he was found guilty by a jury of three counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual assault of a child and jailed for seven years in 2020.
Thurman was placed on the sex offenders register for life at Leicester Crown Court.
Detective Constable Aisling McPhillips, who was the investigating officer, said after the sentencing ‘The fact that Thurman fled the UK after the allegation was made78 is an obvious indicator he knew what he’d done – and that his actions were going to have serious consequences.
‘He thought by fleeing not only Leicestershire but the UK completely, he’d be able to escape punishment for his abhorrent crimes, involving a young child.’
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