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The Borough has two prisons within its boundaries. Stockton Borough Libraries provide a service to both via the Priority Services Section.
To contact Priority Services:
Tel: (01642) 528045 / E-mail:priority.services@stockton.gov.uk
The Priority Services Section is located at Billingham Library, Bedale Avenue, Billingham. Staff can be contacted between 8.30 am and 4.30 pm; Monday to Thursday and between 8.30am and 4 pm on Friday. Outside these hours there is an answer phone service.
Kirklevington Prison Library Kirklevington Grange is one of the few Resettlement prison in the country. Entry to it is by application and selection from inmates classed as Category C or D who are serving a sentence of more than 12 months and are in the last 2 years of that sentence. It houses about 180 inmates.
The aim of the prison is to resettle inmates back into the community.
On arrival all inmates are classed as Category C whilst they work through a programme of personal development lasting several weeks. Only when this is completed do they become Category D and have the opportunity to work outside the prison. This may be paid work or voluntary community work.
The Library aims to meet the information, cultural, occupational needs of the inmates, and in common with Holme House, functions as far as is possible as any small community library.
Approximately 58% of inmates are registered Users and they have unsupervised access to the library 5 nights a week between 5.45 pm and 7.45 pm and one afternoon between 2.00pm and 4.00pm. Take up is not as high as in a closed prison as inmates have access to sources of reading materials whilst they are out during the day.
The library is staffed by 2 part time Senior Library Assistants who are aided by an unpaid inmate orderly. A part time professionally qualified Librarian is responsible for the development and monitoring of the service.
HM Prison Holme House Holme House Prison Library serves the inmates of Home House Prison, which is a Category B local prison serving the Teesside courts. The prison houses about 950 inmates in six house blocks, one of which houses a therapeutic unit and one is for prisoners on remand. All inmates, except those in the Segregation Unit, have access to the Library once a week and over 90% of inmates are registered Library users. Many of them have never used libraries before and do very little reading outside prison.
The Library functions as far as is possible as any small branch library. It offers the range of services expected in a public library subject to security restrictions e.g. the Internet is not accessible to prisoners.
To read more about HM Prison Holme House Library services, please click on the 'Holme House Library' menu button.
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