Hatfield

Role and background

HMP Hatfield is a prison and young offender institution near Doncaster for men aged 18 and over.

Inside the prison and daily life

It operates across Hatfield Main and Hatfield Lakes, about three miles apart. The smaller Lakes site has double cells and is normally the first stage after arrival; prisoners can subsequently move to the Main site. Both sites have a gym and library.

Training includes warehousing, maintenance, horticulture, recycling and retail skills, including barista work and the farm shop. Education and work are linked to resettlement, with advice on housing, debt and future employment.

Progression is linked to individual circumstances rather than the passage of time alone. The Lakes accommodation is normally used first, with later moves and community opportunities forming separate stages of assessment.

Hatfield works with employers offering paid work through release on temporary licence. Access depends on a detailed risk assessment involving partner agencies. Its two-site arrangement therefore supports a progression model: settling into the prison, developing skills and, where approved, taking greater responsibility in the community.

Visiting and family contact

For relatives, practical preparation matters. Confirm the correct visiting arrangements, accepted identification, accessibility support and property rules before making a journey. Keeping contact with someone in custody can involve several services, and each has its own procedures.

Practical advice before you make arrangements

Use Hatfield's official page below for its current booking route, required identification, permitted items and travel instructions.

Confirm that the person is still at Hatfield and that your visit has been accepted before making travel arrangements. Ask the prison in advance about disability access, medication or children's needs.

Community work or temporary release depends on individual approval and risk assessment; the establishment's open or community setting does not remove custody rules.