Booking a prison visit should be simple and straightforward. Until now that was far from the case. Booking a visit required both prisoner and visitor to jump through hoops: paper forms and drawn-out phone calls. And if the visit date turned out to be impossible, they had to start all over again.
Now you can book a visit online. It takes about 5 minutes. Before, picking an available date was pot luck. Now there's a date-picker that lets you select 3 possible slots instead of 1. It’s a straight-forward service with user-needs at its heart but, if you get stuck, you can call the prison's visits booking line and someone will help you with the booking.
Here's a very short film we've made about it:
By making it easier to book visits, prisoners will see more of their friends and family. Evidence suggests this will help their rehabilitation. Transformation isn't just about websites.
The service was built by the Ministry of Justice, with a combined team from the National Offender Management Service, HM Prison Service and MoJ Digital Services.
For more of the story behind this service, read Mike Bracken's account of his trip to HMP Rochester or check out the service’s transformation page.
Join the conversation on Twitter, and don't forget to sign up for email alerts.
20 comments
Comment by Pauline posted on
How do you find out the prisoners number??? so you can go ahead with online booking of a visit?
Comment by Carrie Barclay posted on
You can find a prisoner using this service: https://www.gov.uk/find-prisoner However it will be the prisoner's responsibility to get in touch with you to let you know their prison number etc.
Comment by linda posted on
This service does not appear to work this is day 2 trying to use it
Comment by Olivia posted on
Hi,
If a visit is booked and someone cant make it, is it possible to change the name of one of the people to someone else?
Comment by Louise Duffy posted on
Hi Olivia,
It's best to contact the prison directly if this happens. You can find contact details here: http://www.justice.gov.uk/contacts/prison-finder
Thanks,
Louise
Comment by Paige posted on
Hi my partner was sent to nottingham today, I was on his previous list 4 months ago for a visit. Will that still be on the system all will it have to he put through again if so how long does it take to be approved for a visit?
Thanks
Paige.
Comment by Louise Duffy posted on
Hi Paige,
You might want to get in touch with the prison first before booking a visit. You can find the contact details of the prison here: http://www.justice.gov.uk/contacts/prison-finder
Thanks,
Louise
Comment by Debs posted on
Hello
Is there a list of prisons where online booking can't be used?
Thanks
Comment by Louise Duffy posted on
Hi Debs,
According to the information on this page: https://www.gov.uk/prison-visits, you can arrange a visit to any prison in England and Wales through this service. If you're visiting someone in Northern Ireland or Scotland you'll need to contact the prison directly.
This link also lists the type of visits that are not covered by the online service: https://www.gov.uk/prison-visits so you need to get in touch with the prison directly.
Hope that's helpful.
Comment by c.steer posted on
So how do I find the booking form to fill in I am new to computers
Comment by Louise Duffy posted on
Hi there,
Here's the link to the booking form: https://www.gov.uk/prison-visits
You'll need this information to complete the form:
prisoner number
prisoner’s date of birth
dates of birth for all visitors coming with you
make sure the person you’re visiting has added you to their visitor list
Hope that's useful.
Comment by Shawnaa posted on
i have a visit booked which i did online but i do not have a visiting order woll the prison let me in?
Comment by Carrie Barclay posted on
Your identity will be checked on arrival to make sure you’re on the visitor list.
Comment by jessicca posted on
What happens after you book the visit and its confirmed by email do you need the visiting order ?
Comment by Carrie Barclay posted on
Hi Jessica
The Visiting Order (VO) number is generated by the booking system, it is included in your confirmation email and you will need this to change or cancel a booking.
However, if you're visiting a prison the guidance is that you only need your ID, not the VO number. If when you visit the prison you are asked for the VO number you should report this via the Contact Us link on the Prison Visits Booking form.
I hope that helps.
Comment by Ilysa Mcnally posted on
How late in advance can I book e.g. book a visit today (Tuesday) for the Sunday coming???
Comment by Carrie Barclay posted on
Hi Ilysa. Thanks for your question. A visit needs to be booked 3 working days in advance. So in this case, the visit request would have to be no later than Tuesday to allow for a visit on Sunday.
Comment by carole posted on
How far in advance can you book visits
Comment by Carrie Barclay posted on
Hi Carole. You can book up to 28 days in advance. Thanks for your question.
Comment by kimberly posted on
does anyone know how to cancel a visit online?