Planning application lodged for new Highland prison

The new HMP Highland, which replaces the 112-year-old HMP Inverness, is set to be based in Inverness city centre on a site south of the Inverness Retail and Business Park.

The facility will serve the Highlands, Islands and Moray areas.

Meabhann Crowe, senior planner at Colliers International, said: “Identifying a suitable site for a new prison facility is a rare task. Finding a suitable location was not as straightforward as with many other buildings.

“However, the Highlands, Islands and Moray areas need a modern, fit-for-purpose prison facility and we have found an excellent location for the impressive designs, which the Scottish Prison Service has commissioned.

“The new HMP Highland is proposed on a site which we believe to be wholly suitable to this development. It benefits from good accessibility and existing landscaping on the site will assist in creating a setting for the building.

“The response to the public consultation we carried out was overwhelmingly positive with a complete 100 per cent of respondents in support of the Prison Service’s aim to create a modern, fit for purpose facility.”

Colliers International worked alongside the Scottish Prison Service and a specialist consulting team, including BakerHicks, ITP Energised, Fairhurst Engineers, TGP Landscape Architects, AOC Archaeology and ERM Consulting in bringing the planning application together.