Bosses at Yorkshire jail HMP Wetherby spend £10,000 on BMX dirt bike track for inmates

A prison spent £10,000 on a BMX dirt bike track for prisoners.

Bosses at HMP Wetherby, a 290-capacity prison in West Yorkshire, threw taxpayers’ money on the ‘pump track’ so prisoners could hone their cycling skills.

But despite a “grand opening” last November, when the prison posted photos of offenders “getting air” while jumping and kicking furiously around the track, it has barely been used since.

In prison, perpetrators are between 15 and 18 years old.

A social media post from HMP Wetherby captioned: ‘As part of our Open Day we opened our brand new BMX track, in partnership with @LeedsUrbanBike’

“An innovative idea to provide a healthy distraction for our children while in custody and build bonds for release,” the social media post added.

A report on the prison by Charlie Taylor, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, said there were ‘few opportunities’ for offenders to get out.

He wrote: ‘A large cycle path has been constructed, but children were disappointed that there were few opportunities to use it.’

It is believed that a lack of manpower and problems with the bikes have led to the circuit being underused.

Prison chiefs wrote on X last November: ‘We’ve opened our brand new BMX track, in partnership with @LeedsUrbanBike.

‘An innovative idea to offer our children a healthy distraction during their captivity and build bonds before release.’

There are hundreds of pump tracks – with bumps, dips and jumps, as well as tight turns – in Britain, often used by BMX riders, skateboarders and scooter riders.

However, it is believed that only a few sessions have been held since then, due to limited time outside the cell, lack of manpower and problems with the bicycles.

A report on the prison by Charlie Taylor, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, said there were ‘few opportunities’ for offenders to get out.

A spokesperson for the Youth Custody Service said the trail was ‘part of our work to rehabilitate children’

A former inmate at HMP Wetherby wrote in prisoner magazine Inside Time that the BMX track was a waste of money.

Complaining that it is ‘never used’, he added: ‘I just think of the other things the prison service could have spent the money on, such as deep cleaning of some cells.

‘Yes, I know it won’t go on like this, but it might help make my life better a little. Or even give us better food.”

A spokesperson for Inside Time said: ‘The BMX track will open in November 2023. It was paid from a fund earmarked for education and purpose-driven activities at YOI Wetherby.”

A spokesperson for the Youth Custody Service said the song was “part of our work to rehabilitate children so they turn away from crime, get jobs on release and become law-abiding adults.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice does not want to say how often the track has been used.