Prisons and Defence: what’s funded, what’s urgent, and how projects stay on track

Budgets across the prisons estate and defence are real and active through to 2030. Capacity growth, safety obligations, housing quality and decarbonisation are all pushing projects forward quickly. The short version is that capital is committed, deadlines are set, and estates teams are moving.

Prisons: the funding picture and pressure points

Government policy aims to add 14,000 prison places by 2031 and that plan is already visible on the ground. HMP Millsike opened in 2025 as a 1,500 place, all-electric facility, and thousands of additional places have been delivered since mid-2024 as part of the wider buildout. Announcements at the end of 2024 confirmed further money for prison construction within a longer programme to modernise the estate.

Condition risks are shaping priorities. The National Audit Office reported that around 23,000 occupied places do not meet current fire safety standards. The maintenance backlog has doubled to about £1.8 billion. NAO’s estimate is that several billion more over the next five years would be needed to lift the estate to a fair condition. That’s why many schemes are starting with fire strategy, compartmentation and fabric issues before touching anything cosmetic.

Decarbonisation also has a deadline. The Ministry of Justice’s Net Zero Carbon Strategy removes coal and fuel oil heating by 2030, with new prisons designed around sustaionability from day one. That choice forces plant replacement, electrical upgrades and roof-level work across older sites this decade.

At the same time, operational pressure is being managed in other ways. Electronic monitoring is being expanded, with up to 22,000 extra tags a year and new funding behind it. That helps capacity, but it does not replace the need for new places or major refurbishment.

What this means on the ground for prisons

Expect parallel workstreams. New houseblocks and new sites proceed while existing wings undergo safety remediation, services upgrades and decarbonisation works. Teams will need reliable information on plant rooms, distribution routes and roof layouts to phase upgrades inside live, secure environments. This means logistics plays a major part, with works planned around daily operations, with clear access and segregation. Using security-cleared contractors who can work without escorts reduces friction and saves time at sensitive locations.

Defence: policy, people and the estate

The spending path is clear. The UK will raise defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, with an ambition to reach 3 percent in the next Parliament. A large share of current focus is on people and the places they live. The Strategic Defence Review confirms significant new investment in accommodation, including more than £1.5 billion of additional funding to improve family housing quickly, and a wider package that takes total spend on family and single living accommodation above £7 billion across this Parliament.

Reform is structural. The Modernised Accommodation Offer updates entitlements and lifts standards for Single Living Accommodation. That translates into a steady pipeline of refurbishment and targeted new builds, not just quick fixes. Behind that sits the long term plan too. The Defence Estate Optimisation portfolio is a multi-billion programme running to 2040. It aims to modernise infrastructure, reduce the size of the built estate and recycle savings into better assets. The new funding is designed to tackle damp, heating failures and basic habitability, which means near-term works as well as long-term renewal.

What this means on the ground for defence projects

Housing and Single Living Accommodation will keep moving. Expect rapid upgrades to existing blocks, infill new build where it unlocks performance, and staged renewals tied to the optimisation plan. Access and phasing are central. Many projects take place in occupation, so weekend windows, decant plans and movement routes matter as much as design intent. Information standards and handover are tightening across accommodation and infrastructure programmes, which raises the bar on models, condition data and asset records so they can be reused across portfolios.

Why early survey data changes outcomes

Across both portfolios the pattern is consistent. The main risk is delay inside live, secure environments. Projects move faster when the baseline is right. That means getting measured building information in place for fire safety and fabric decisions, locating utilities to the right standard before breaking ground and monitoring movement and environmental impact where works could affect sensitive structures. Align the information to programme standards so approvals and handovers stay clean. Plan for secure access with the right clearances and you remove one of the biggest sources of avoidable rework.

How Survey Solutions can help

We work inside secure MoJ and MoD environments with security cleared surveyors who can operate unescorted. We mobilise fast across the UK, including weekends and out of hours where sites allow. Plans are built around live operations so prisons and bases keep running safely, with clear phasing notes and practical access plans. We are a carbon neutral company too and design our approach to support client sustainability goals. Where it cuts risk and carbon, we can use drone UAV surveys, mobile mapping and remote processing to reduce site time and emissions.

If you have any further queries or would like to get in touch about your latest project, please contact us through the enquiry form below and we’ll be more than happy to help.