Prison Service Tilt first worked within
Her Majesty's Prison Service, as an Assistant Governor, in 1966. He served as Governor of
HM Prison Bedford and
HM Prison Gartree. Following the removal of
Derek Lewis, Director General of the Prison Service, Tilt became acting Director General in October 1995, and was formally appointed Director General on 1 April 1996, retiring in 1999. Tilt was a member of the Sentencing Advisory Panel from 1999 to 2002. Tilt gave evidence to the inquiry into the death of Ulster loyalist
Billy Wright, regarding the validity of a decision to house imprisoned individuals of the
Loyalist Volunteer Force and the
Irish National Liberation Army together within
HM Prison Maze, giving this evidence on 10 December 2008.
National Health Service and Social Security He served as chairman of the following
National Health Service trusts and authorities: In 2000, Sir Richard Tilt chaired a review (the
Tilt Review) of security at the three high-security hospitals in England (
Ashworth,
Broadmoor and
Rampton). The Tilt Review suggested increased security measures, and altogether made 86 recommendations, all of which were subsequently accepted by the government. Following a critique of the Tilt Review by Tim Exworthy and John Gunn in the
British Journal of Psychiatry, Tilt published a response in June 2003.
Internet Watch Foundation Tilt was appointed Independent Chair of the
Internet Watch Foundation in January 2012. ==Other responsibilities==