Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

New Inverness prison in 2026 is ‘realistic and deliverable’

The P&J visited the HMP Highland construction site - four years after the project was meant to be complete, and now four times the budget.

The long-awaited new prison for the Highlands will “realistically” be finished by 2026.

The Press and Journal was given access to the construction site of the new HMP Highland today – four years after the project was initially scheduled for completion.

In April, the Scottish Government gave the final go-ahead for the project with the signing of a construction contract.

The new prison, which will accommodate 200 inmates, will cost taxpayers £209million, more than four times the original figure of just £52million.

Today, Scottish Prison Service deputy governor and project executive Lorraine Roughan told the P&J the prison will “realistically be finished by 2026″.

She said work on the site “is currently on time and on programme”.

Meanwhile, cabinet secretary for justice Angela Constance – who was also in attendance – said a 2026 completion is “deliverable”.

She said the Scottish Government is not at fault for the delays and increased costs, blaming “Brexit, the pandemic, and construction inflation”.

Works at HMP Highland are “on schedule.” Image: Jason Hedges

A look at HMP Highland

The new 130,000sq ft HMP Highland is being built on an 18-acre plot behind Inverness Retail Park.

It will be Scotland’s first net-zero prison, with improved education and health facilities to help with rehabilitation.

It will also allow more adult men from the Highlands and Islands to be accommodated in the area, which will improve access for families and services, as well as creating local jobs.

The new prison is being built on an 18-acre plot behind Inverness Retail Park. Image: Jason Hedges
HMP Highland will accommodate 200 prisoners. Image: Scottish Prison Service

SPS deputy governor Ms Roughan said: “It’s absolutely going to be a community legacy, and we will be able to bring more people who are from this local area so they can keep in contact with their families and friends.

“Space for family visitors will be large and we’re going to need more staff here, so that will bring employment opportunity into the local area.”

HMP Highland was initially planned to be completed by 2020. Image: Scottish Prison Service.
The new Inverness prison is just behind Inverness Retail Park, near VUE cinema. Image: Jason Hedges

Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary for Justice Angela Constance described HMP Highland as a “vital public service.”

She said: “It will provide great opportunities for a full range of services in terms of community reintegration.

“It’s a vital public service but it will also have broader community benefits such as the creation of job opportunities.”

HMP Highland work will ‘realistically’ be complete by 2026

The new Inverness prison is expected to be finished in 2026, six years after the original plan of 2020. The project was approved in 2017.

Ms Roughan said “it is realistic” to say HMP Highland will be completed by the revised date.

She said: “The work on the site is currently on time and on programme and it’s really pleasing to be able to see some of the developments actually coming out of the ground.

Scottish Prison Service Deputy Governor Lorraine Roughan said there will be a transition period after HMP Highland works are completed. Image: Jason Hedges

“There has been work done at this new HMP Highland site for nearly two years and most of it is not visible but is actually fundamental to achieve the zero direct emissions purpose.”

However, she admitted that the prison will not start operating straight after its completion, as there will be need for a “transition period.”

She explained: “We have to close HMP Inverness before we can open HMP Highland.

“We have deliberately not set an opening date yet because we need to see what training will be required for staff, look into staff recruitment and make sure that people working at HMP Inverness are comfortable with the transition to HMP Highland.”

Meanwhile, justice secretary Angela Constance said 2026 is “deliverable.”

Justice secretary Angela Constance said the Scottish Government is not to blame for delays and increased costs. Image: Jason Hedges

“We’re absolutely focused on the 2026 delivery; I have sought reassurance on many occasions from the Scottish Prison Service and they are confident 2026 is deliverable,” she said.

She added the Scottish Government is doing everything in its power not to go over the current estimated expenditure.

“We’re doing our utmost to ensure this vital project is brought on time and on the revised budget,” she said.

Conversation