Chile Prisons

HLM were appointed by Sodexho as consultants to support the Geotechnica team based in Santiago Chile, and provide masterplanning and concept designs, prison design specialist advice, PFI experience and presentation material.

The three projects which the team won in PFI competition were at Alto Hospicio, Rancagua and Iqueque, the sites being spread through a number of climatic zones between the far north and central Chile. Each prison was for a total of 3,000 prisoners which in each case contained a wide mix of different prisoner groups.

Separate houseblock communities were developed, each having education and training included. Research into existing Chilean prisons revealed particular security challenges generated by the culture of bringing large groups of visitors deep into the body of the prison. The need for shared worship areas for prisoners and their families, the practice of workshop areas being used by outside contractors employing prisoners in commercial ventures, and the prisoner's right to conjugal visits all required the development of innovative circulation patterns and security solutions to maintain the integrity of the prison.