The partner of an inmate at Nottinghamshire prison has raised concerns over the wellbeing of people behind bars. Remie Jackson, of Mansfield, expressed worries over an alleged lack of access to mental health support and the employment of young agency staff at HMP Lowdham Grange.
The prison said that the safety and welfare of its staff, prisoners and visitors remain its "top priority". Ms Jackson, 26, whose partner David Gregory, 42, is serving an 18-year prison sentence for firearm sales, claimed the prison was a worse place to be since it changed hands from Serco to Sodexo in February.
"There's a big staff turnover, it's mostly young agency workers. Nineteen-year-olds can't keep a regime in place. They are fully grown men who have not got the best temperament," she told Nottinghamshire Live.
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"There's a lack of any sort of mental health support in the prison. It's got so much worse. At the end of the day they're humans, they're humans no matter what they've done wrong. Their punishment is being away, they deserve mental health treatment.
"If they don't it's never going to change them. They will probably get out and go to the same jail again." Her concerns come after the deaths of three inmates within three weeks - all of which are being investigated by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman PPO.
Lowdham Grange holds nearly 900 male prisoners and has around 500 staff. "[David] wants to move, he told me 'I'm not staying here'," continued Ms Jackson. "It's gone to s**** since the takeover. It's bad, there's fighting every day."
A HMP Lowdham Grange spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individual prisoners. The safety and welfare of our staff, prisoners and visitors remain our top priority.”
Dr Sue Elcock, executive medical director of Nottinghamshire Healthcare, which provides mental health support at the prison, said: “Nottinghamshire Healthcare is commissioned to provide mental health, physical health and substance misuse interventions at Lowdham Grange as part of an integrated multi-disciplinary team.
"All prisoners have access to healthcare and can self-refer when needed. We work with our prison colleagues, the National Probation Service, other healthcare providers and criminal justice system partners to identify where people might need mental health support and have robust processes in place to assess and treat offenders with mental health needs, reducing health inequalities and improving health outcomes.”
A PPO spokesperson said: "The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman is investigating the deaths of three prisoners at HMP Lowdham Grange in March 2023. We offer our condolences to their families and friends. We are unable to provide further comment as the investigations are now live.
"The final investigation reports will be published on our website after the inquests have concluded."
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