Life In Britain's Biggest Jail 'Demeaning'
Conditions for prisoners at Britain's largest prison have been branded "demeaning", "unsafe" and "below what could be classed as decent" by inspectors.
A new report has said the safety of inmates at Wandsworth jail in south west London was "of serious concern".
Nick Hardwick, the chief inspector of prisons, said: "I hope the prison service management will now act decisively to reverse the prison's decline."
Staff interactions with prisoners were "frequently indifferent and sometimes abusive", the report said, adding that bullied inmates were not given adequate protection.
It warned that managers seemed unwilling to acknowledge or address the concerns at the category B Victorian prison.
"Wandsworth compared badly with similar prisons facing similar challenges and we were concerned by what appeared to be unwillingness among some prison managers and staff to acknowledge and take responsibility for the problems the prison faced," the report said.
"We were also concerned that poor staff-prisoner relationships, the lack of a predictable regime, deficiency of association, and insufficient activity contributed to feelings of isolation and alienation that might have led to self-harming behaviour."
Inspectors found that some prisoners were out of their cells for just two hours per day.
Others who were trying to kick drugs or alcohol were transferred out of a unit where they could be closely monitored before the process was complete, a situation described as "potentially dangerous".
Underlying reasons for the behaviour of prisoners transferred to the segregation unit were also not examined, inspectors noted.
Geoff Dobson, deputy director of the Prison Reform Trust, said: "With Government talking about creating working prisons, the chief inspector has exposed an establishment that was in some respects close to a warehouse, leaving many of those in its charge more damaged than when they were taken in through its gates."
An inspection in June 2009 at the same prison was marred when "difficult" prisoners were moved between Wandsworth and Pentonville prisons so they were not present in either jail during the inspections.
Michael Spurr, chief executive of the National Offender Management Service, said action had already been taken to address the inspectors' recommendations.
"Managers and staff at the prison are in no doubt that they must improve
performance.
"I visited the prison last week and I am satisfied that improvements are being made. We will continue to monitor progress and will deliver the improvements required."
