Ministers are ignoring serious concerns at HMP Wandsworth amid escalating violence and dangerously low staffing levels, a damning new report has found.
Living conditions at the major Category B prison in West London are “inhumane”, while the jail is unsafe, the report released on Thursday found - with particular concerns about the high levels of violence, and self-harm among inmates.
Access to contraband is also alarmingly easy with cell searches often finding phones, drugs, improvised weapons and illicit alcohol, the Independent Monitoring Board found.
The shortage of experienced staff has undermined attempts to make the prison run effectively, inspectors said, with staff absences often as high as 50%.
It has forced inmates to choose between exercise, showering, or other housekeeping during the brief periods each day when they are allowed out of their cells.
Inspectors also blasted the facilities inside the Victorian-era men’s prison, saying cells were built for single occupancy in 1851, with lags forced to share “appalling” cells that have broken furniture.
IMB Chair Matthew Andrews accused ministers of ignoring problems at the major prison, which has been beset with difficulties.
This includes the alleged escape of one prisoner last year, and the high-profile case of a married warden earlier this year being allegedly filmed having sex with an inmate.
“For HMP Wandsworth and the men whose treatment we monitor, this year has been as bad as any in our memory and, by many measures, worse,” said Mr Andrews.
His report came after a separate investigation by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons into HMP Wandsworth earlier this month.
That unannounced inspection condemned what it called "chaos" on the prison wing and "appalling conditions", stemming from "poor leadership at every level".
Mr Andrews added: “The recently released report from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons was highly critical but said little that surprised us.
“Many of the same issues had been raised in previous IMB annual reports and ignored by the Ministry of Justice”.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson pointed to a previously announced a £100m funding package over five years for the troubled prison amid the high profile concerns.
Labour Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood, said earlier this month: "This is the reality of a prison system in crisis", adding "we are taking immediate action at HMP Wandsworth to do what is necessary to protect the public".
“The new Government inherited a justice system in crisis and has been forced to take action and get a grip of the situation across the prison estate, so we can lock up dangerous offenders, protect the public and make prisons safer for hard-working staff,” said the spokesperson.
The additional funding will include refurbishing and repairing facilities, as well as deploying specialist security and drug staff, and the introduction of a new leadership team, ministers said.
It comes weeks after Labour ministers announced plans to temporarily reduce the proportion of certain custodial sentences served in prison from 50% to 40% in a bid to free up spaces in the prison estate.
