Visiting the Western Massachusetts Women’s Correctional Center: What’s Different

Before you can enter the secure perimeter at the Western Massachusetts Women's Correctional Center (WCC), there's a registration step that catches people off guard. If you're 18 or older, you'll need to review the WCC visiting rules and regulations, then complete both the initial registration Visiting Form (available online or in person) and the Request to Visit Form. These are legal documents - be accurate and thorough. False information can get you turned away and may result in a suspension of your visiting privileges.

WCC has an extra approval layer for some visitors. Better to know now than after you've made the trip. If you're an ex-offender, you must be approved by the Central Review Board before visiting. There's also a firm restriction: anyone convicted and incarcerated within the past year who isn't immediate family cannot visit. Even immediate family members need approval - handle that process before planning your visit.

ID Rules

• ✓ Current/valid or temporary driver’s license
• ✓ State-issued non-driver photo ID (from the Registry of Motor Vehicles) with date of birth
• ✓ State-issued welfare card
• ✓ Valid passport
• ✓ Current/valid military ID
• ✓ Current/valid school picture ID (local area schools) with a birth certificate
• ✓ Pistol permit

Visits at WCC are structured with clear limits. Up to three visitors can attend at once, and children under 17 count toward that total. Each visit lasts one hour, with two visits allowed per week.

1. Talk with your loved one about what you’re requesting - additional visitors and longer visits have to be requested on their end, not yours.
2. Have them submit the special request at least one week ahead - WCC requires the inmate to submit any special request for additional visitors or for a two-hour visit one week prior to the visit.