The following tables show a breakdown of (a) suspected and (b) viable explosive devices or components found in each prison in England and Wales in each of the last 12 years up to the end of March 2009.
Of these incidents 76 per cent. were suspected devices. This category covers false alarms including such incidents as unattended bags or suspicious packages sent via the postal system, or bomb hoax calls.
Viable explosive devices mainly relate to prisoners making small incendiary devices by packing readily available flammable material such as match heads into an improvised container (17 per cent. of incidents in table); 6 per cent. of incidents relate to unexploded wartime ordnance discovered during excavation work; and, 1 per cent. relates to fireworks being found in the grounds of establishments.
There were no serious injuries as a result of any of these incidents and minor injuries were recorded in just three cases. Apart from unexploded wartime ordnance finds, none of the viable devices discovered were likely to have had the capability to cause life threatening injuries and none involved the use of sophisticated improvised explosives or commercial or military explosives.
1997-98 Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Ashwell — 1 Bedford 1 — Birmingham 3 — Bristol 1 — Brixton 1 — Cardiff 2 1 Doncaster 1 — Frankland 1 — Garth 1 — Glenn Parva 1 — Highdown 1 — Holloway 1 — Hull 1 — Lewes 1 — Manchester 2 — Moorland 1 — Pentonville 1 — Reading 1 — Shrewsbury 1 — Stoke Heath 1 — The Verne 1 — Wakefield 1 — Weare 1 — Wellingborough 1 — Whitemoor 1 — Total 28 2
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Altcourse 1 — Birmingham 1 — Brinsford 1 — Brixton 1 — Feltham 1 — Feltham 1 — Glen Parva — 1 Highdown 2 2 Leicester — 1 Lindholme 1 — Liverpool — 1 Long Lartin 1 — Low Newton 1 — Nottingham 1 — Sudbury 1 — Whitemoor 2 — Winchester 1 — Wormwood scrubs — 1 Total 16 6
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Belmarsh 2 — Bristol 1 — Brockhill 1 — Bullingdon 1 — Canterbury 1 — Chelmsford 1 — Feltham 1 — Ford — 2 Full Sutton — 1 Garth — 1 Highdown 1 — Hindley 1 — Holloway 3 — Holme House 1 — Huntercombe 1 — Lincoln — 2 Littlehey 1 — Maidstone 1 — Manchester 5 2 Northallerton 2 2 Onley 1 — Parc 2 — Parkhurst 1 — Standford — 2 Swaleside 1 — Whitemoor 1 — Woodhill 1 — Total 31 12
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Blakenhurst 1 1 Brixton 1 — Camp Hill 1 — Channings Wood — 1 Chelmsford 1 — Doncaster 1 — Downview 1 — Durham 1 — Forrest Bank 1 — Full Sutton 1 1 Garth 2 — Haverigg 1 — Highpoint 1 — Hindley 1 — Lincoln 1 — Long Lartin 1 — Maidstone 1 — Manchester 1 — North Sea Camp — 1 Parc — 1 Rochester — 1 Send 1 — Swinfen Hall 1 — Verne — 2 Wakefield 1 — Wolds — 1 Woodhill 2 — Wormwood Scrubs 1 — Total 24 9
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Bedford 1 — Brockhill 2 — Bullingdon 1 — Canterbury 1 — Cardiff 1 — Durham 1 — Eastwood Park 1 — Elmley 1 — Gloucester 2 — Haverigg 1 — Highpoint 1 — Holloway 1 — Leeds 1 — Manchester — 1 Moorland 2 — Northallerton 1 — Parc 1 — Preston 1 — Shepton Mallet 1 — Shrewsbury 1 — Swansea — 1 Woodhill 1 — Wormwood Scrubs 3 1 Total 26 3
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Ashwell — 3 Birmingham 1 — Doncaster 1 — Eastwood Park 1 — Featherstone 1 — Glen Parva 3 — Hatfield (Moorland Open) 1 — Highpoint 1 — Holme House 1 — Leeds 1 — Leicester 1 1 Lewes 1 — Lincoln 1 — Lindholme 1 — Northallerton 1 — Parc 1 — Preston 1 — Send 1 — Standford Hill — 2 Wayland 1 — Wolds — 2 Woodhill 1 — Wormwood Scrubs — 1 Total 21 9
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Ashwell — 1 Birmingham 1 — Bristol 1 — Dartmoor 1 — Dover 1 — Downview 1 — Hatfield (Moorland Open) 1 — Lancaster — 3 Leicester 1 — Lewes 1 — Lincoln 1 — Lindholme — 2 Manchester 1 1 Stafford 1 1 Wakefield 1 — Wandsworth 1 — Winchester 1 — Wormwood Scrubs 2 — Total 16 8
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Belmarsh 1 — Blundeston — 1 Bristol 1 — Bullingdon 1 — Bullwood Hall 1 — Eastwood Park 1 — Feltham 1 — Guys Marsh 1 — Holloway 1 — Hull 1 — Leeds — — Leicester 1 — Lincoln 1 — Lindholme — 1 Lowdham Grange 1 — Manchester — 1 North Sea Camp — 1 Norwich 1 — Parc 3 1 Pentonville 1 — Portland 1 — Wayland 1 — Wolds — 1 Total 19 6
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Aylesbury 1 — Belmarsh 2 — Bristol 2 — Bullingdon — 1 Elmley — 1 Full Sutton — 1 Hindley 1 — Hollesley Bay 1 — Holme House 1 — Hull 1 — Manchester 2 2 Moorland 1 — Warren Hill 1 — Whitemoor — 1 Total 13 6
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Albany 1 — Aylesbury 1 — Bristol 1 — Canterbury 1 — Castington 1 — Elmley — 2 Garth — 2 Glen Parva 2 — Haverigg — 2 Highpoint 1 — Hull 1 — Lindholme 1 — New Hall 2 — Peterborough 2 — Send 1 — Standford Hill — 1 Stoke Heath — 2 Swinfen Hall 1 — Thorn Cross 1 — Wakefield 1 — Wormwood Scrubs 1 — Total 19 9
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Belmarsh 1 — Canterbury 1 — Edmunds hill 1 — Feltham 1 — Frankland 2 — Full Sutton 3 — Gartree 1 — Leeds 1 — Lewes 1 — Long Lartin 1 — Norwich — 1 Parc 1 — Risley 1 — Rye Hill 1 — Stoke Heath — 1 Swaleside — 1 Swinfen hall 1 — Thorn cross 1 — Wakefield 2 — Whitemoor — 1 Total 20 4
Establishment Suspected Viable explosive devices or components Belmarsh 1 — Bristol 1 — Brixton 1 — Chelmsford 1 — Elmley — 1 Full Sutton 1 — Garth — 1 Haverigg — 1 Leicester 1 — Lindholme 1 — Long Lartin 2 1 Manchester 2 1 Moorland 1 — Parc — 1 Pentonville 1 — Standford Hill 1 — The Mount 1 — Wellingborough 1 — Whitemoor 1 — Woodhill 2 — Wormwood Scrubs 2 — Total 21 6 These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.