Windows on new prison near Harborough 'will stop inmates receiving contraband by drone'

The windows will also ‘reduce noise’ and ‘remove the opportunity for residents to dispose of contraband’, enabling ‘easier’ detection of banned items by staff.

Windows facing neighbouring homes will also be obscured to protect householders’ privacy. The details were revealed in new plans for the layout and design of the prison, being built on Welland Avenue, which were approved at Harborough District Council (HDC) planning committee meeting on June 11.

The documents state that the fixed panes would also prevent inmates from disposing of ‘food waste and other rubbish directly out of the window’, thereby ‘reducing the potential for waste related pest issues’.

Other details in the plans, submitted by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), included there would be 14 buildings in the main prison compound, and that the distance from the buildings to the nearest home in Welland Avenue would be 111 metres, with open space and a secure fence in between.

The original plan for the huge prison, capable of housing 1,700 inmates, was rejected unanimously by Harborough District planning committee in April 2022. However, following an appeal from the Ministry of Justice against the decision in June 2022, the scheme received the go-ahead by Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Michael Gove.

Harborough District Council said the MoJ was expected to start work on site later this year.