HMP Berwyn prisoners claim thousands for bunkbed mishaps and 'injuries by staff'
Prisons can be dangerous places for inmates and not always for the reasons you might expect. Over the last five years, tens of thousands of pounds have been paid out at HMP Berwyn, Wrexham, in compensation for personal injuries such as animal bites and bunk bed mishaps.
Compensation figures were released amid growing concerns for the safety of both staff and inmates, with Britain's overcrowded prisons hitting record levels last year. Latest prison population statistics show there are only just over 1,000 spaces left in men's prisons.
Between 2020 and 2024, pay-outs worth more than £133,000 were settled at HMP Berwyn, Wrexham's Category C men's prison. A sizeable tranche was as a result of injuries caused by other prisoners (£48,918).
A further £31,603 related to prisoner injuries caused by members of staff. But the biggest category was 'other personal injury', which could include asbestos, food contamination and bunk bed scrapes. At Berwyn, the largest prison in England and Wales with a capacity of 2,106 inmates, this amounted to £53,300 over the five years.
Freedom of Information figures obtained by Legal Expert revealed that, across all of the UK's prisons, bunk beds resulted in the biggest personal injury claims, with £4.5m being paid to inmates since 2022. Next most costly were slips, trips and falls.
At Berwyn, claims across all categories peaked in 2022 when £47,514.74 was paid to prisoners. Since then, annual settlements have amounted to £29,564 in 2023 and £32,124 last year. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now
According to Legal Expert's figures, Berwyn's staff-on-inmate claims were among the highest in UK prisons. Pay-outs in this category were bigger only at HMPs Pentonville, Nottingham, Liverpool, Leeds, Aylesbury, Highpoint and Highdown.
At two UK prisons, the compensation claims ran to millions. Topping the list was HMP Chelmsford (£5.57m over five years), largely due to substantial prisoner-on-prisoner pay-outs.
Second was HMP Leicester (£3.21m over five years), nearly all of it relating to 'other personal injury' claims.
In terms of the overall compensation rankings, the Wrexham prison was outside the top 10, with a total bill of £133,821. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
Reform of the prison system has been promised but until this happens, compensation pay-outs to prisoners are likely to continue, said Legal Expert solicitor Lucy Parker. In the last five years the UK bill came to an eye-watering £9.8m.
She added: 'Prisoners, like anyone else, have a right to their safety while incarcerated. We have seen many different cases over the years of prisoners suffering injuries during their incarceration, from accidents in workshops and kitchens to incidents with staff.
'When they are injured due to negligence, whether it's at the hands of an officer, a slip and fall, or inadequate safety measures, they have the right to seek compensation and to get legal advice on their case.'
By the end of last year, the prison population in England and Wales was more than 85,000, having increased by more than 40,000 since 1993. A review of the justice system is being led by former justice secretary David Gauke, who published an interim report in February warning prisons were overcrowded and "on the brink of collapse".
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "Our jails are overcrowded, have been neglected for too long, and our hardworking staff are over-stretched. By addressing this crisis, we can begin the work of improving prison conditions to reduce the need for compensation claims and ensure taxpayer money is spent more effectively.
'The Government is investing in prison maintenance and security, and prisoners who are violent towards staff or other prisoners will face the full consequences of their actions.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Glasgow Times
5 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
Glasgow council 'fails to enforce law' on dump site years on
The railway cutting in North Glasgow, behind Claddens Street, has been a fly-tipping site for more than two decades, causing a headache for locals. Emails obtained exclusively through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request revealed that the council has been in communication with Reigart Contracts Ltd - the owner of the site - since September 2017. Kenny Nisbet and Dorothy McFarland (Image: Colin Mearns) Glasgow council fails to enforce law on dump site years on (Image: Newsquest) (Image: Colin Mearns) The local authority first threatened to enforce Section 59 of the Environmental Protection Act of 1990 on February 8, 2018, saying it would make the move the next week. According to this law, the council can serve a notice to the occupier of the land to clean up the waste. Four days later, a Reigart representative called this action "unnecessary" and asked for a phone call. After this, there was a discussion between the parties about a cleanup. However, those who live in the area claim this never happened. The emails also revealed that council employees repeatedly admitted the dumping had "become an issue" and locals were pushing for action. Throughout this exchange, officials also stated they are keen to "maintain positive dialogue" with the firm. Since then, the local authority has also attempted to get in touch with the company multiple times without success. Residents are outraged at the lack of follow-through and say the emails are an "absolute waste of time and money" without any results. Parkhouse Community Council member Kenny Nisbet said: "It's just ridiculous. For 20 years, we have been going on about this. "We have been trying for a long time but they kept refusing to do it. "The maddening thing is, the company is not even based in Glasgow, they are from Coatbridge." In 2024, in an email to Mr Nisbet, an environmental health officer said the team has "taken the decision to also look at alternative solutions to enforcement for the disused railway". READ NEXT: We visited a notorious fly-tipping site - it's shocking what we found there 'It's appalling': Residents fume at lack of action on historic fly-tipping site (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) The community council has been asking for a proper cleanup for decades and said they feel like "hitting their heads off a brick wall" trying to force the council to serve the notice, which they are legally entitled to do. Mr Nisbet, a resident of more than 50 years, confirmed he has submitted several complaints to the council about the handling of the case and has contacted six local politicians and several public health groups and organisations. A major worry of the group is that, along with household items such as wardrobes, garbage and pieces of furniture, unknown and potentially dangerous substances are also being left at the site. When the Glasgow Times visited the area, which is a former railway cutting, it was littered with dumped objects, including an ironing board, a scooter, Christmas trees and more. (Image: Colin Mearns) (Image: Colin Mearns) A council spokesperson said: 'Fly-tipping has unfortunately been a long-standing issue at this disused railway line in the Parkhouse area. 'It appears that a number of residents in adjoining properties dump waste from their gardens into the former railway cutting and waste is also fly-tipped at other points along this space. 'Due to the steep embankment and the thick overgrowth, removing fly-tipped waste from this site raises highly challenging health and safety risks for staff. 'However, we have previously worked with the major owner of the site to remove waste from the railway line and would do so again in future. 'We understand the ambition of the major owner is to develop the site for housing but we are unaware of any proposals at this stage. 'We will continue to engage with residents to ensure their waste is disposed of properly. 'Where evidence is secured that identifies those responsible for any fly-tipping incident, including eye witness accounts, we will take enforcement action.'
Daily Mirror
19 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Harrowing moment hiker saw friend 'freefall 65ft to death' on dangerous mountain
Maria Eftimova, 28, was out hiking in the Welsh mountains with pals when she suffered the fatal fall on the 3,000ft high Tryfan mountain in Wales' Snowdonia National Park A hiker has told of the heart-stopping moment he watched his friend fall 65ft down a notorious mountain peak to her death. Maria Eftimova, 28, was out hiking in the Welsh mountains with pals and suffered the fatal fall on the 3,000ft high Tryfan mountain in the Snowdonia National Park. At an inquest into her death, a friend who was with her at the time described the harrowing moment Maria was "in freefall", and had passed over him as she fell from the popular but dangerous scrambling route. The former University of Salford student died of severe head injuries on February 22 this year, with a coroner ruling that her death was accidental. Maria's friend Harry Jones told the inquest how they were a group of seven hikers out of 20 who had decided to take a more challenging route to the summit of Tryfan, along with fellow hiker Neil Oakes. Neil had led the hikers in the front, followed by Maria and finally Harry, with the group proceeding methodically up the mountain, North Wales Live reports. "We travelled in single file, moving from ledge to ledge, once the person in front had vacated it," Harry said. "I could see on one particular ledge Maria stopped in order to get a handhold to pull herself up. I was six feet below her, to the left. "She swung her right leg up to pull herself up. I asked 'Got it well?' and she said 'I think so'." Harry then saw Maria "flying over me", adding he "completely froze". Neil was above, and looked away as he saw her falling so he wouldn't see the impact. He said: "I turned and saw Ms Eftimova tumbling through the air below me. She was already in freefall. I knew there was going to be an impact on the rocky outcrop below so I turned away for a split second. "I was shouting 'No, no, no, no.' When I turned back she was on the ledge below. I knew that it was serious. (Another hiker above) said 'What?" and I said 'She's gone. She's fallen'. I was in shock." Maria was helped onto a more secure ledge by other hikers, who then called 999 as one administered CPR until emergency services arrived. A Mountain Rescue Team and helicopter arrived to take Maria to OVMRT base - but she tragically succumbed to her injuries and passed away. Consultant histopathologist Dr Muhammad Zain Mehdi carried out a post-mortem examination and concluded Maria died from a laceration to the brain, due to a fractured skull due to a fall. Her dad Rosen Eftimov paid tribute to his daughter, saying that she had "snowboarded intensely" as well as running marathons and surfing. She also trained in intensive swimming, practised pole dancing, and had even undertaken a glacier climbing course in Norway. Kate Robertson, senior coroner for north west Wales, concluded Maria's death was accidental. The inquest heard she was born in Sofia in Bulgaria and was a British citizen. She had graduated from the University of Salford and lived in St Helens. Senior coroner Ms Robertson said: "It seems that Maria was scrambling with others when she has unintentionally and unexpectedly fallen and during the course of that fall she has sustained the injuries which have sadly led to her death." Ms Robertson passed on her sincere condolences to her family, who were on a link and had a Bulgarian interpreter, and friends for the death of Ms Eftimova whom she described as "bright and conscientious". Tributes were paid online to Maria via a JustGiving fundraiser launched to raise £15,000 to bring her back to her family in Bulgaria. In a post on the fundraiser, which has raised almost £20,000, organiser Victoria Critchley said: "Maria was an ambitious, bright and cherished 28-year-old, whose vibrant personality, energy and aura touched and uplifted all around her. She had a passion for engineering, having studied civil engineering at the University of Salford and a love for extreme sports. "Her biggest passion being snowboarding, which she was super excited for and looking forward to doing again on her upcoming trip to Austria. She had an insatiable thirst for life and exploring our world's beauty. Tragically, she was taken from her family far far far too soon!"
Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
Man has life-threatening injuries after being found on carriageway of major road
Man has life-threatening injuries after being found on carriageway of major road The A55 was closed in both directions, near junction 20 at Colwyn Bay, as emergency services rushed to the scene to help the casualty The A55 was closed at Colwyn Bay following an incident (Image: Aaran Lennox ) A man is fighting for his life after being discovered 'severely injured' on the A55 carriageway last night, June 10. The road was shut in both directions near junction 20 at Colwyn Bay, at around 8pm, as emergency services hurried to the scene. The individual was initially rushed to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, Bodelwyddan before being airlifted to the Royal Stoke University Hospital, which houses a major trauma unit. Police are now appealing for witnesses, reports North Wales Live. A spokesperson for North Wales Police stated: "Police were called at 20:00hrs last night (Tuesday, June 10th) following a call regarding a male who had been found severely injured on the live carriageway of the A55 near junction 20 at Colwyn Bay. "The emergency services responded, and the road was immediately closed." For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here Article continues below The spokesperson added: "The male was taken by ambulance to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd but he has since been transferred to hospital in Stoke with significant, life-threatening injuries. The road re-opened at 9pm. "Anybody who may have witnessed the incident or who had travelled along the A55 in the Colwyn Bay area and who may have dashcam footage is urged to contact North Wales Police via the website or by calling 101, quoting reference number 25000477200."
