An M.E.N. investigation into Forest Bank prison - which uncovered allegations of widepread drug use and inmates who 'run the wings' - has prompted an MP and Salford's mayor to write to the government to demand an 'urgent' review.
Our revelations included a call from Salford and Eccles MP Rebecca Long-Bailey for the Ministry of Justice to cancel a billion pound contract it has with Sodexo to run the troubled jail.
Now in the wake of our story she, and Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett, have written a joint letter to new justice secretary Alex Chalk to demand an 'urgent investigation' and, if this confirms the allegations in our report, for the privately-run prison to be 'brought under Government control with immediate effect'.
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Our investigation, based on allegations from a whistleblower, an ex-prisoner and his father and the family of a grandfather who died in his cell, exposed what Ms Bailey branded a 'culture of lawlessness' at the jail.
We revealed that:
- Drugs are rife, smuggled in via 'legal letters' and inmates are 'off their tits a lot of the time'
- Inmates brew their own hooch
- Violence is commonplace and inmates 'run the wings'
- Staff feel 'unsafe' and a lone guard can be 'left to guard 100-plus inmates'
- Staff have to buy 'their own uniform because of cost-cutting'
- A desperate father paid off a drug dealer on his addict son's wing because 'staff didn't protect him'
Sodexo's contract to run the prison ends on January 19, 2025. Back in 1998, it was awarded a deal worth £1,006,771,964 to design, build and run the prison built on the site of the former Agecroft power station under a private finance initiative to house a maximum 1,064 inmates. The deal was to last 25 years, before being extended.
The facilities management giant, founded and based in France, runs six prisons in England and Scotland, and last year recorded revenues of 21.1 billion euros, including 'underlying operating profit' of more than a billion euros, up 83 per cent.
Highlighting the key points of our investigation, the joint letter from Ms Long-Bailey and Mr Dennett to Mr Chalk said: "HMP Forest Bank is the only reception and resettlement prison in the Greater Manchester area.
"Previously, in May 2022, the independent HM Inspectorate of Prisons concluded the prison is unable to 'fulfil its rote successfully'. On inspection, it was operating above baseline capacity, education provision received the lowest possible Ofsted grading of 'inadequate', additional needs were not being supported, and the prison at the time remained the fourth most violent prison in the country, with the violent incident adjudications process being overwhelmed by the number of cases.
"Indeed, the inspection fast year resulted in an action plan requiring urgent implementation (with many of the concerns mirroring those recently highlighted by the M.E.N investigation).
"Following the subsequent 45 day improvement notice, management previously said the prison was making ‘steady progress’ in the wake of the inspectorate report, but we are sure you will agree that this new investigation lays bare concerns.
"We are writing to request an urgent investigation into these reports of mismanagement with resultant report to be made publicly available. We also request a formal response on how much of the action plan referred to above has been implemented and if it has been fully implemented a detailed explanation as to why these issues seem to persist?
"We would also be grateful if you would meet with us at the earliest opportunity to discuss what action the Government is taking to ensure the immediate safety of staff and inmates.
"Further, if the recent reports are indeed confirmed by your investigation, then it would In our view be prudent for the prison to brought under Government control with immediate effect."
Over the years, the Manchester Evening News has consistently reported on issues at the prison; including how the prison vowed to crackdown on the use of smuggled phones in the prison after we reported how prisoners captured shocking acts of drug-fuelled cruelty inside the prison in 2016, including inmates pretending to be fighting dogs.. A guard resigned in the same year after he was caught watching porn on a wing computer. We also reported how a prison officer was jailed for smuggling spice into the prison and two other guards were imprisoned for stealing electronics from the prison workshop, both in 2021, and how inmates used illicit phones to shoot a rap video earlier this year.
And, in May last year, a damning report by the chief inspector of prisons concluded the jail was 'unable to fulfil its role successfully' following an unannounced visit three months earlier.
The scathing conclusion came despite the Ministry of Justice slapping the prison with a 45-day improvement notice the previous year. But the troubles at Forest Bank haven't put the government off rewarding Sodexo. Although no decision has been made on any new contract at Forest Bank, Sodexo will take over from G4S to run HMP Altcourse in Merseyside in June on a ten-year deal worth £260m.
Management have previously said the prison was making 'steady progress' in the wake of the inspectorate report - but our investigation lays bare serious concerns.
In our expose, a Prison Service spokesperson told us: "Privately-run prisons are among the best performing across the estate and have been consistently praised by independent inspectors."
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