GEOAmey to be replaced as prisoner transfer firm in £400m contract

Contractor GEOAmey will be replaced next year as the firm tasked with transporting prisoners around Scotland, the Scottish Prison Service has announced.

In 2024, GEOAmey managing director David Jones apologised for failings in the transportation of prisoners, meaning some had missed hospital appointments and funerals, with the former chief inspector of prisons accusing the company of breaching the human rights of inmates.

Despite improvements in performance, Mitie has been handed the contract to provide the service, taking over on January 27 next year.

GEOAmey did not bid for the new contract.

The contract will run until April 2035 at a cost of £415 million.

Scottish Prison Service chief executive Teresa Medhurst said: “It is important that, working together, we deliver a prisoner escort contract that meets the needs of those in our care, our justice and health partners, and Scotland as a whole, while also ensuring best value for the public.

“I am confident that this contract will do that by building on the recommendations made by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons in Scotland and the Public Audit Committee, and having listened to the voices of those with lived experience of the service, and learning the lessons of past experience.”

Mitie will control a fleet of 133 vehicles tasked with transporting prisoners to and from court, medical and other appointments, with vans fitted with real-time trackers, live-stream CCTV cameras and duress alarms, while staff will wear body-worn cameras.

The vans will also boast “sensory internal lighting” designed to reduce stress.

Justice Secretary Angela Constance said: “Court custody services and prisoner escorting are integral to the effective operation of the whole criminal justice system, and I am grateful to the hundreds of frontline prisoner custody officers who play their part in that every day.

“Today’s announcement marks the conclusion of a robust and competitive procurement exercise which delivers a new and improved contract offering better value for money for the taxpayer, and a new supplier of these services in Scotland from January 2027.

“I am grateful to the Scottish Prison Service for their rigour and diligence in this process, and I am confident that with the committed support of all criminal justice partners, this new contract will deliver substantive improvements in this crucial service.

“This contract ensures we continue to deliver essential services while securing the best possible outcome for the public purse.”

A spokesman for GEOAmey said: “GEOAmey made the very difficult decision not to participate in the Justice Partners Escorting and Court Custody Service procurement process, we therefore did not submit a bid to continue providing this service into the Scottish market.

“Having completed a full assessment of the newly proposed contract, we felt that the risk/reward profile fell below that deemed necessary to make this highly complex and demanding contract an attractive proposal.

“We will work diligently to ensure that we continue to deliver a high standard of service to our customers in Scotland for the remainder of the contract term, and work closely with the justice partners and the new provider to assist with a seamless transfer of responsibilities.

“Our hard-working employees are at the heart of our business, and we will ensure through Tupe regulations that their employment remains protected at the point of transfer, with their rights and service intact.”