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Vanessa Frake’s Role as Justice Adviser Tests Reform UK’s Crime Agenda

Reform UK has clarified that her calls for individualized risk assessments of trans women in women’s prisons exceed official party policy.

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LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 04: Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage attends a press conference on law and order on August 4, 2025 in London, England. Nigel Farage continues to hold weekly press conferences introducing Reform UK policies. Today, he promises that a future Reform UK government would immediately detain and deport migrants who arrive in the UK via small boat. He also introduces the party's new prison Czar, Vanessa Frake, a former prison governor who oversaw the detention of prolific serial killers like Rose West and Myra Hindley. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 4: (L-R) Reform UK councillor George Finch, Leicestershire Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews, Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage and Former head of security at HMP Wormwood Scrubs, Vanessa Frake (R) attend a press conference on law and order on August 4, 2025 in London, England. Nigel Farage continues to hold weekly press conferences introducing Reform UK policies. Today, he promises that a future Reform UK government would immediately detain and deport migrants who arrive in the UK via small boat. He also introduces the party's new prison Czar, Vanessa Frake, a former prison governor who oversaw the detention of prolific serial killers like Rose West and Myra Hindley. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Overview

  • Reform UK appointed former governor Vanessa Frake—who oversaw inmates such as Rose West and Myra Hindley—as its justice adviser on August 4.
  • Frake warned that prisons have become “warehouses” fostering violence, drugs and reoffending and urged major investment in rehabilitation programs and new facilities.
  • She advocated case-by-case risk assessments for transgender women’s placement in women’s prisons, rejecting a blanket exclusion.
  • Party leader Nigel Farage and a Reform UK spokesperson have distanced the party’s platform from Frake’s positions, with Farage deferring placement decisions to expert risk assessments.
  • On August 5, Frake signaled she was open to reopening debate on the death penalty, reigniting discussions over capital punishment within Reform UK.