HM Inspectorate of Prisons on HM Prison, Penninghame 199711. Administration and Other Services General Office 11.1 Staffing in the General Office comprised a Supervisor and four civilian staff. The Supervisor was responsible for finance/budgets and also undertook any necessary criminal or court desk duties though given the nature of the establishment, that was a very small part of his responsibilities. Two of the civilian staff shared the switchboard and typing duties as well as doing some invoicing and parole work. Another of the civilians concentrated solely on invoicing and ordering with the fourth member of staff being in charge of the stores and the canteen stocks. All the staff were interchangeable and could therefore provide cover on any of the desks during periods of absence. We were satisfied that all desk procedures were in accordance with SPS instructions. 11.2 Since our last inspection the office had been redesigned and now provided a very pleasant and bright working environment. SPIN terminals had been provided for all relevant functions and apart from some problems with the speed of the FAM package, the system seemed to be working well. 11.3 The main problem identified by staff was in relation to procurement. Being in rather a remote location, they occasionally found it difficult to get essential supplies - eg, because of adverse weather conditions. In the past, they had been able to negotiate deals with local suppliers but many of those suppliers were no longer on the SPS approved lists and difficulty was being experienced in resolving this situation with SPS HQ. Stores 11.4 As noted above, the storeman was based in the General Office and he was responsible for a number of stores in various parts of the establishment. The stationery store was located in what was no more than a cupboard just outside the main office and though small, it was adequate for the needs of the establishment. The staff uniform store, which was situated in a cupboard at the rear of the weights/fitness room, was clean and tidy with adequate stock. The main domestic store was located in a part of the building where the new prisoner accommodation was being provided; again, the area was clean and well organised with adequate racking. 11.5 All the stocks were computerised and when staff required an item from either the domestic or the uniform store, they submitted a request form which was then approved by the Office Supervisor prior to the item being issued by the storeman who was also responsible for certifying the delivery and the condition of the appropriate accounts prior to payment. In addition to those functions, he had responsibility for the stocks and cash in the vending machines which had replaced the prisoners' canteen - see paragraph 7.26. 11.6 In overall terms, we were satisfied that all stock in the stores was being properly kept in good condition and that all procedures were in accordance with SPS instructions. Records and Journals 11.7 We examined the establishment's records and journals and were satisfied with the level of recording. Community Relations 11.8 Good relationships with the local community had been established over the course of many years. That said, we believe that the new Governor should re-examine this area with a view to some re-vitalisation, particularly given the changing nature of and forecast growth in the prisoner population. Butler Trust 11.9 Shortly before our inspection, an Officer - who had previously been an award winner - had been given the responsibility of re-generating interest in the Scheme at local level. Having made contact with the Trust's HQ, some publicity material and advice as to how to proceed had been received. A committee had also been set up to consider and evaluate any nominations. 11.10 It had been several years since any nominations had been put forward from Penninghame but the Officer now responsible was confident that there was a number of potentially good candidates and that with the right encouragement, it would be possible to put some names forward in the near future.
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