HMP & YOI Stirling – Holmes Miller

Nominee Information

HMP & YOI Stirling is a ground breaking new 100 person custodial facility for Women in Custody in Scotland and replaces the previous HMP Cornton Vale prison on the existing site between Cornton and Bridge of Allan, to the north of the city of Stirling in central Scotland. The design is heavily focused on mental wellbeing and a trauma informed approach to design, creating a therapeutic environment with landscape and nature at it’s core.

The project, along with the associated Community Custody Units, provides a world leading departure to traditional custodial design. It is focused on change for the better via person centred approaches for all users. It headlines the development of Therapeutic, Trauma Informed, Gender Specific Design that supports people through their relationship with its’ context and service.

It required completely new ways of thinking differently to what was required, whilst at the same time, having to consider and take cognisance of more traditional operational, safety and security requirements. From the outset these requirements had identified a need for creativity and innovation.

The requirements in some ways needed to balance a number of behavioural characteristics. However, a significant concept trail was to create an environment that tried as far as was acceptable for the occupants to receive very similar and balanced spaces for mental wellbeing. The focus of which rigorously sought to make all people feel they were being treated and provided with very similar, functional, safe, and relaxing spaces. Every space and the spaces between them were designed to lift spirits and capture an ethos of equality (internally, externally, environmentally, and contextually).

A step change from previously designed prison environments in Scotland, the overarching design concept was to embed the masterplan within the landscape and the site’s richly historic and scenic surroundings. This link forms a continuous theme throughout the establishment, with a series of design features focusing on transparency, nature and light, linking a variety of landscaped courtyards and gardens, each with it’s own individual character designed in response to it’s surrounding adjacencies.

In creating something new and with no reference models required significant effort from the whole team. This was not without challenges, but via the design process the team were able to see, debate and decide on the best solutions that were possible to achieve.

Through concept, change, delivery and continued development of the operational service, the project has ideally delivered and encourages a therapeutic and trauma informed environment for all users (occupants, staff, service providers, and visitors), supports mental health and wellbeing and is also a catalyst for change.