Too many prisoners are being held in ‘unacceptable’ conditions according to a new report, which reveals that overcrowding, poor sanitation, deteriorating infrastructure and long delays to essential maintenance are causing persistent problems across the prison estate.
The report analysed inspections of forty prisons and more than 6,400 prisoner surveys. Around half of the prisoners surveyed lived in accommodation built before the 1980s that had never been significantly refurbished since its construction. Conditions were often particularly poor in the older, Victorian reception prisons, where population pressures and high turnover made it difficult to carry out repairs and improvements. Mould, broken windows, inadequate ventilation, damaged flooring, and a lack of basic furniture and storage were common.
A small number of prisons still relied on night sanitation systems, requiring prisoners to be unlocked one at a time to use toilets during the night, and often resorting to using buckets or bags in their cells instead. In many jails, in-cell toilets were next to prisoners’ beds and were broken, lacked lids and offered little privacy. Shower facilities were frequently in poor condition, with mould, damaged cubicles and inadequate screening common in older accommodation.
In some jails prisoners could frequently not get clean clothing or bedding, and laundry facilities were not always adequate for the size of population, with washing machines regularly breaking down. Worn, damaged mattresses were not always replaced, and inspectors found some prisoners spending their first night in dirty cells without basic items such as bedding and pillows.
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, commented:
“The provision of decent, clean, well-maintained accommodation is a fundamental test of a prison system, but this report shows that standards fall short of acceptable in many jails. Improving procurement and maintenance systems, reducing overcrowding and upholding basic standards of decency must be priorities if prisons are to be places that rehabilitate rather than simply warehouse prisoners.”
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