Project value: £2.4m

Client: ESS

Scope: More than 2km of new site-wide services

Environment: Live operational prison site

Shanco delivered a £2.4m groundworks and site services package at HMP Sudbury to support a live prison expansion. Working for ESS, the team installed more than 2km of new services across the Category D site, along with foundations for a Rapid Deployment Cell block, generator bases and a new substation. The work formed part of the Ministry of Justice prison expansion programme and had to be delivered without disrupting access, security or day-to-day site operations.

The Project

HMP Sudbury required new site-wide services and supporting infrastructure as part of its expansion works. Shanco was appointed to deliver the groundworks package, including service installation across the prison estate and foundations for new assets linked to the wider scheme.

The Brief

The brief was to install new services across an occupied prison site with strict access, security and movement controls. The route had to work around prison operations, keep the main access road open, and fit within the wider programme being delivered for ESS. EL1 clearance was required for all operatives on site.

The Challenges

This was a live environment with no room for disruption. Surveys uncovered existing services and culverts that had not been identified in the pre-construction GPR survey, which meant parts of the route had to be revised with utility providers. Shanco also found asbestos in some work areas, which required controlled removal measures before work could move on. The service route crossed both soft and hard landscaped areas, including the site’s main access road, so sequencing had to protect access at all times.

How Shanco Delivered

Before work started, Shanco held pre-construction meetings with the client, M&E contractors and prison representatives to agree the route for the new services. After surveys, the team produced site drawings that matched the prison’s access rules, security controls and prisoner movement restrictions. This planning gave the team a route that could be built within a live operational setting while supporting business as usual across the site.

Outcome

Shanco completed the project on time and to the client’s satisfaction. The new site-wide services and supporting foundations were delivered within programme, with access maintained and disruption kept low across the prison.