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Yoga, spin bikes & slap-up grub in jail for footie coach who abused 22 children
PAEDOPHILE ex-football coach Barry Bennell is in a cushy prison where inmates are offered yoga, acupuncture and trendy spinning workouts.
The jail even boasts football and cricket pitches for lags, plus a state-of-the-art gym with Peloton-style exercise bikes.
The former Manchester City scout is serving 34-years for abusing 22 boys in his care. The actual number of victims is believed to be more than 100.
Danielle Boxall of the TaxPayer’s Alliance said: “Inmates should be given the chance to exercise, but ratepayers shouldn’t have to rob a bank to pay for it
“Prisons must cut back on these lavish luxuries and put a stop to lags living it up in lock-up.”
Bennell is banged up in sex offenders’ nick
HMP Littlehey, Cambs, where the regime is more relaxed than top-security nicks like Wakefield and Frankland in County Durham.
The prison has recently been kitted out with exercise bikes.
And cons at Littlehey, the largest sex offender jail in Europe, can also take part in indoor bowls.
Bennell, 67, preyed on boys at Manchester City and Crewe Alexandra in the 1970s, 80s and 90s and was described as the “devil incarnate” by a judge.
Eight of the men who claimed they were abused by Bennell have started a High Court damages fight after suing Manchester City.
The men, now in their 40s and 50s, say they were targeted at youth teams linked to City and coached by Bennell between 1979 and 1985.
City denies the claims and say he was not employed by them at the time of the alleged offences.
Bennell’s life behind bars is in contrast to the suffering of his now middle-aged victims.
Experts are drafted in to give acupuncture to men’s ears and lay on meditation classes to help them stay calm.
This Christmas he will tuck into a lavish spread consisting of turkey, chicken, trout, vegan nut roast or veggie vol au vents, left, with Yorkshire puddings, stuffing and roast potatoes, sprouts, carrots and gravy topped off with Christmas pudding and custard.
A report by the jail’s Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) revealed the list of diverting pastimes available to the 1,000 cons.
The IMB said: “Plans were made during the period for a new focus on older prisoners with the creation of an afternoon social club involving exercise, bowls, chair-based exercise, yoga and remedial PE.
“Positive plans have been put in place for new developments, and new spinning bikes were purchased to introduce this.
“New cardiovascular and resistance machines were purchased to aid prisoner fitness.”
The prison also holds sessions in “auricular acupuncture and meditation”.