England’s worst prison to be taken over by the Government

A DAMNING inspection has found that violent inmates have effectively seized control of England’s worst prison.

HMP Birmingham will be the first privately run prison to be taken over by the Government today after it emerged “fearful” staff, targeted by inmates, have taken to locking themselves in offices.

The Victorian prison, which has been run by G4S since 2011, will be taken over by the Government for up to a year with a new governor and management team installed. G4S, rather than the taxpayer, will foot the bill.

However, it will lead to questions about the future of the 14 privately run prisons in England and Wales, amid increasing concerns that they are overcrowded and struggling to cope.

In the week of the inspection, an arson attack on a “secure” car park outside the jail destroyed seven vehicles

belonging to staff, who said that they were “anxious and indeed fearful” for their own safety.

The Chief Inspector of Prisons disclosed that three in 10 inmates were on drugs, which were openly taken and trafficked at the time of the visit.

Six prisoners have died this year at HMP Birmingham, where inmates have taken to locking themselves in their own cells to avoid being assaulted.

The inspectors said that they were “greatly concerned” about the release of 50 high-risk offenders over the next three months, including paedophiles and rapists, amid concerns that they received little or no intervention in prison.

Rory Stewart, the prisons minister, said: “What we have seen at Birmingham is unacceptable and it has become clear that drastic action is required to bring about the improvements we require.” Ministers took the drastic step of taking over the prison after a two-week unannounced inspection last month. Peter Clarke, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, said that HMP Birmingham was in an “appalling” state.

He accused G4S of an “abject failure of contract management and delivery”. Mr Clarke said: “The inertia that seems to have gripped both those monitoring this contract and delivering it on the ground has led to one of Britain’s leading jails slipping into a state of crisis that is remarkable even by the low standards we have seen in recent years.”

The report disclosed that prisoners and staff “frequently” required hospital treatment, and seven in 10 inmates felt unsafe. “There were no formal or structured means of confronting violent prisoners and many did not even face sanctions,” the report said. “As a result, those perpetrating the violence could do so with near impunity.”

Even prisoners who stayed in their cells for 24 hours a day to avoid being assaulted were intimidated, with inmates squirting urine and throwing faeces through broken observation panels.

Inspectors discovered one inmate sitting “on some scruffy material on the springs of his bed” after his mattress was stolen by other prisoners. The incident had taken place three days earlier.

Another inmate, who had personal hygiene issues, was targeted in his cell by inmates using a fire hose. Inspectors said that the use of cannabis and psychoactive substances was “blatant”.

“I have inspected many prisons where drugs are a problem, but nowhere else have I felt physically affected by the drugs in the atmosphere – an atmosphere in which it is clearly unsafe for prisoners and staff to live and work,” the inspector said.

The privatisation of Birmingham prison has proved highly controversial from the start, when staff lost the keys within a month of the contract being awarded to G4S. The wider record of private prisons is now under scrutiny as the Government considers whether to extend competition further or to abandon plans for privatisation.

Four big jails are being built to cope with a predicted 2,000-inmate rise in the prison population by 2022

Jerry Petherick, the managing director of G4S Custody & Detention Services, said: “The well-being and safety of prisoners and prison staff is our key priority and we welcome the six-month step-in and the opportunity to work with the Ministry of Justice to urgently address the issues faced at the prison.”