James McEwen has been appointed as the new Chief Executive
Officer of His Majesty's Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS).
James joined the Ministry of Justice in 2016 and currently serves
as Chief Operating Officer. He brings extensive experience from a
career spanning multiple government departments including the
Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Energy and
Climate Change.
In his new role, James will oversee the operational delivery of
prison, probation and youth custody services across England and
Wales. He will lead work to fix the prisons capacity crisis,
reduce pressure on probation, improve youth custody, and ensure
that punishments handed down to offenders cut crime and streets
are made safer as part of the Plan for Change.
James succeeds CB, who is leaving the agency
after a distinguished 35-year career that began when he joined
the Prison Service as a prison officer in 1990. He has
served as Director General Operations of HMPPS since August
2022 and took on interim responsibility as Chief Executive
Officer at a crucial time in April this year.
Throughout his career, Phil has held numerous leadership roles
including Governor of HMP Frankland and Director General of
Prisons from 2019 to 2022 before becoming Director General of
Operations. He has brought extensive operational experience
across both prisons and probation services to his leadership of
HMPPS.
James will take up the position as Chief Executive Officer from
13 October 2025.
