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Work as a prison officer at Hollesley Bay and Warren Hill Prisons

You need to be a confident communicator and team player to work in a prison. Sound like you?

Apply to Hollesley Bay and Warren Hill prisons

About HMP Hollesley Bay and Warren Hill

Set in a rural location just off the Bawdsey Peninsula on the Suffolk coast, there are 2 adult male prisons within a mile of each other:

While we will aim to find you a role in the prison you select as your preferred choice during the application process, this may not always be possible and you’ll be allocated to the one that has an immediate need for staff.

Inside HMP Hollesley Bay

With a capacity of 485 prisoners, HMP Hollesley Bay is an open prison for adult males who are coming to the end of their sentence or who have been assessed as posing minimal risk to the public. Prisoners spend most of their day away from their accommodation, studying or working.

Preparing prisoners to return to their communities

To help them prepare to reintegrate into their communities, prisoners have access to:

  • a wide range of full and part-time nationally recognised qualifications and vocational training programmes, including English, Maths and IT, plastering, bricklaying, and painting and decorating
  • structured careers advice from a Job Club and Virtual Campus – a secure web-based information service that allows them to search for jobs anywhere in the UK
  • employment in onsite kitchens, gardens, a clothing exchange store, recycling workshop and a farm shop that’s open to the public

Inside HMP Warren Hill

HMP Warren Hill is a training and resettlement male prison with a capacity of 267 prisoners. Following an inspection in 2019, it was reported as being the safest in the country.

Working in partnership with a range of specialist organisations, the prison provides therapeutic and psychologically informed interventions to address the complex needs of individual prisoners. Individuals are encouraged to focus on their progress towards reducing, and evidencing, their risk of reoffending in preparation for moving to an open prison or back to their community.

Prisoners also have access to a wide range of education opportunities, including core curriculum subjects such as Maths and English, and vocational courses.

Staff benefits

As an employee of HMP Hollesley Bay or HMP Warren Hill, you’ll have access to a range of facilities and employee benefits including:

This is in addition to the great benefits you get from being a part of HM Prison and Probation Service.

How to get to HMP Hollesley Bay and HMP Warren Hill

With ample free onsite parking, the prisons are just 30 minutes from Ipswich and an hour from Colchester.

Find HMP Hollesley Bay and HMP Warren Hill on a map (opens in a new tab).

A word from the Governor at HMP Hollesley Bay

A word from the Governor at HMP Warren Hill

I’m extremely proud of all our staff and the incredible work they do each day. Our officers play an essential role in working with prisoners to reduce their risk of harm in preparation for them moving to open prisons and eventually to their communities. The role can be challenging, but it’s also very rewarding. It’s the team we have at HMP Warren Hill that makes it such an enjoyable place to work. They come from all walks of life and are passionate about making a positive difference in the lives of the men we work with.
Governor Nicholson, HMP Warren Hill

Find out more about the prison officer role

An extraordinary job.

Done by someone like you.

Become a prison officer