Prison officers will use pepper spray against teenage offenders
Prison officers will be given new powers to use pepper spray against teenage offenders in a crackdown on violence in youth custody.
Young offenders' institution staff will be trained to use PAVA, a synthetic pepper spray, against inmates in cases of serious violence towards prisoners and staff.
Figures revealed the rate of assaults in public youth offender institutions is around 14 times higher than in adult prisons.
More than 500 assaults took place in young offenders' institutions, secure schools and training centres between October and December last year, an increase of 23 per cent compared to the same period in 2023.
According to the new figures released by the Ministry of Justice on Thursday, more than 370 different children and teenagers were involved in these incidents as assailants or fighters.
It emerged that staff had been assaulted 248 times in the course of their work over the same period, a jump of almost a quarter compared to the same three months the previous year.
A criminal justice source warned that a young person in custody could be killed if staff were not given additional tools to tackle the rising violence.
A 'vital tool' against 'serious violence'
Prison officers in adult jails have also made demands to help them tackle violent prisoners as they requested Tasers and stab vests.
The calls came in the wake of the 28-year-old terrorist Hashem Abedi's assault on four prison officers at HMP Frankland in County Durham. He used two homemade knives and hot oil in the attack in a prison kitchen on April 12.
PAVA is a synthetic pepper spray currently used in adult jails and by police officers that can temporarily incapacitate individuals.
Staff will be selected for specialist training on how to use the spray from this summer, and will be required to report when it is deployed.
It is expected that it will be used in cases of serious violence, for example when inmates are using improvised weapons, several teenagers are involved, or there is an imminent risk of violence.
Each incident will be reviewed and data made available to ministers, who will decide in 12 months whether to continue its use in young offenders' institutions.
Sir Nic Dakin, the minister for youth justice, said the spray was a 'vital tool to prevent serious violence' and that the violence faced by staff had reached 'unacceptable levels'.
'Vicious cycle of conflict'
The average age of incarcerated young offenders in England and Wales has increased, with the majority of those in custody being teenage boys between 16 and 18.
Over two-thirds of all young people in jails are serving sentences for violent offences, such as murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm.
Last year, a report by Charlie Taylor, the Chief Inspector of Prisons, said most young offender institutions 'were unable to break out of a vicious cycle of conflict leading to children being locked in their cells for long periods of time'.
A criminal justice source admitted the young offenders' estate needed 'change' and that improvements were being made, but that it would take time.
They said: 'It doesn't happen overnight, and overnight, we could have that serious incident that manifests in somebody losing their life, and that's why we have to take this action.
'This is not a panacea solution. This is part of us mitigating the risk whilst making effective change to improve the system overall.'
PAVA is currently authorised for use in the most severe incidents within young offenders' institutions. However, its deployment is restricted to nationally based tactical response officers, which can result in response times of up to one hour.
Sir Nic said: 'This government inherited a criminal justice system in crisis. The unacceptable levels of violence faced by our brave frontline officers in young offender institutions is yet another symptom of that.
'This is not a decision we have made lightly, but our overarching duty is to keep staff and young people in custody safe. This spray is a vital tool to prevent serious violence, helping staff to focus on rehabilitation as part of our Plan for Change.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
a day ago
- Telegraph
Record number of terrorists behind bars
The number of terrorist prisoners has reached a record level amid a growing concern over Islamist gang violence in jails in England and Wales. Some 266 people convicted of terror-related offences were held in jails across England and Wales at the end of March 2025, 20 prisoners more than in 2024. That is the highest number since records began and nearly three times the number incarcerated a decade ago. Of these, nearly two thirds (61 per cent) were classed as Islamist extremists, 30 per cent identified as 'extreme Right-wing', and the remaining 9 per cent holding beliefs in other ideologies. The figures follow a series of violent attacks on prison officers, including by Hashem Abedi, the brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, who is serving life for his role in the murder of 22 people. Abedi inflicted serious injuries on three officers in a separation unit in the high security HMP Frankland jail in County Durham when he attacked them with two home-made knives and boiling cooking oil. In May, Axel Rudakubana, the Southport killer, allegedly threw boiling water over an officer at the high security HMP Belmarsh prison in south London. Jonathan Hall, the independent reviewer of terror legislation, is conducting a review on whether there should be a tougher regime for segregating Islamist and other dangerous prisoners. There are three separation units in prisons in England and Wales that were introduced to hold Islamist prisoners to prevent them radicalising other inmates. But they only have spaces for 28 offenders, which are currently under-used. Prison officers have warned of the rising gang tensions between Islamists and other inmates. The number of Muslim prisoners involved in attacks on officers has more than doubled in four years to nearly eight a day, official figures revealed. The data from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), published in the wake of the stabbing of three officers by Abedi, showed there were 2,916 attacks on staff by Muslim prisoners in 2024, up from 1,393 in 2020. Ghaffar Hussain, a former officer in the Prevent counter-terrorism programme, said: 'Overcrowding, understaffing and resulting stress create an environment where radical ideologies can thrive. Islamist gangs exploit these conditions, offering protection and a sense of belonging to vulnerable inmates. 'The rise in Muslim inmate numbers, driven by both sentencing and conversions, has been linked to the influence of these gangs. The erosion of authority within prisons allows these groups to enforce their own rules, sometimes through makeshift Sharia courts. 'Staff intimidation and corruption make the problem worse, with some wardens bribed to smuggle contraband or overlook illegal behaviour.' A 2023 report by the terrorism watchdog said the prison service had failed to recognise the dangers Islamist gangs posed in prisons. It added that prison staff were so concerned with being labelled as racist that Muslim terrorists had been able to seize control of wings and set up sharia courts behind bars. One in five terror suspects in England and Wales were under the age of 18, figures showed, confirming the growing threat of children being radicalised on the internet by the wide availability of terror and extremist material. In December, the Five Eyes security alliance of Britain, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand called for a 'whole society response' to the threat of the radicalisation of children towards violent extremism. A record 3,026 children aged under 15, including nearly 300 under 10, were referred to Prevent last year.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Jail bosses investigate video showing 'prison governor walking out of city centre brothel'
An investigation has been launched into a video allegedly showing a prison governor walking out of a brothel, MailOnline can reveal. Footage shows a man dressed in a grey suit and a white shirt walking out of a door between two shuttered shopfronts in Sheffield. He briefly glances to one side before walking out of view of the camera, which appears to be on a vehicle dashboard. MailOnline has shared the video with the Ministry of Justice, which confirmed the incident is 'currently under internal investigation'. If criminals became aware a prison governor had visited a brothel they could use this information for blackmail, one former governor warned today. The premises, GFE, describes itself as a 'premier massage parlour' that offers 'the best choice of girls, all excited, fun and guaranteed to offer you satisfaction'. When a MailOnline reporter visited the seedy establishment, he was told to go into the waiting area. Three skimpily dressed women then appeared from behind a curtain and offered their services. A receptionist confirmed they all provided GFE - girlfriend experience - in which sex workers perform intimate acts. The other male customer then selected one of the women. At this point, the reporter left. The premises shown in the video is at one end of a row of shops and next door to a massage parlour. The man was seen walking out of the door seen here behind the white car The video has emerged at a time the behaviour of prison staff is under intense scrutiny following a series of affairs between officers and inmates. There is also an increased focus on the deteriorating security situation in British jails after several serious assaults on guards. MailOnline knows the name of the prison governor who is alleged to be in the video. One insider at his jail said: 'This video was the talk of the town when the video emerged. Everyone was saying is it him or isn't it him? 'If it is him he has not really done any harm to anyone apart from his marriage, but one thing is for sure - he appears to have f****d up royally.' Ian Acheson, who worked for the Prison Service for over a decade and held a variety of senior roles, said the footage was concerning. 'By virtue of their huge discretionary power, prison governors are particularly vulnerable if their behaviour can be exploited by criminals,' he told MailOnline. 'Blackmail and corruption are the most obvious examples. An investigation shows that these unproven allegations are being taken seriously. 'The public rightly expect a very high standard of personal conduct from senior law enforcement officials. We should also respect due process in this case.' Reviews of GFE posted on Google. A Prison Service spokesman said: 'This incident is currently under internal investigation. It would be inappropriate to comment further until this has concluded.' A series of sex scandals that have rocked the prison service in recent years. This includes the case of prison officer Cherri-Ann Austin-Saddington, 29, who became besotted with a sex offender Bradley Trengrove after he was moved to HMP The Verne in Portland, Dorset. The pair embarked on a six month relationship which involved them often having sex in prison workshops while nobody was around. The female prison warden even got pregnant by Trengrove, although she later lost the baby. During the affair, Austin-Saddington smuggled a mobile phone into the Category C prison for her lover so they could communicate. The mother-of-three saved his name in her mobile under 'husband to be'. She received a suspended prison sentence and is now in a relationship with another man. Bradley Trengrove (pictured) was serving a 13 year extended jail sentence for raping a woman and having sexual activity with a child in 2013 and 2014 There have also been a series of serious security breaches inside jails involving attacks on prison staff. Last month, a male warden was taken to hospital with 'serious injuries' after being stabbed at HMP Long Lartin. It followed a string of other assaults involving prisoners, including Manchester Arena terrorist Hashem Abedi. Meanwhile, convicted murderer John Mansfield was killed during a brutal attack at a high security prison in April. The 63-year-old was hit in the head with a weight, MailOnline revealed at the time. Experts have warned of a 'collapse in security' across the UK prison system amid what the prison officers' union described as 'out of control' violence.
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Telegraph
Labour threatens to ban Serco over blunders
Labour has threatened to ban Serco from any new Government contracts after its blunders led to criminals going untagged for months. Lord Timpson, the prisons minister, said the global contracting giant could be blocked from future public contracts if there was 'another episode of similar poor performance'. It follows an undercover investigation by Channel 4 Dispatches, which found that criminals including a murderer had gone untagged for months under the £51 million-a-year contract Serco had with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). An undercover reporter hired to fit and monitor electronic ankle tags on newly released prisoners was repeatedly sent to the wrong addresses for criminals including a murderer and paedophile. The reporter also discovered that a murderer had gone without a tag for at least two months after claiming that his legs were too swollen for an ankle monitor. Another criminal was accused of taking off her tag to go on holiday and boasting about it to almost 200,000 TikTok followers. Another was overheard claiming that he had ripped his tag off and could do what he wanted. 'Serco could be excluded from bidding' At present, a total of 20,000 people are tagged, and the technology – which allows a freed offender to be tracked via GPS – is central to the Government's plans to expand the use of community punishments as an alternative to jail. The plans could see the number of people tagged more than double as thousands more prisoners are released early from jail. Up to 40,000 criminals convicted of lower-level crimes could also be spared prison in favour of community orders. In a letter to the Commons justice committee, Lord Timpson said new legislation – which came into force in February – would enable ministers to bar companies from being awarded contracts or securing procurements for up to five years. It also enabled public authorities to exclude contractors from bidding for contracts if they were judged to be unreliable in delivering work or where public confidence could be undermined by the 'honesty, integrity and probity' of suppliers. Lord Timpson said: 'In the event of another episode of similar poor performance [as defined in the Act] by Serco after the Act came into force, or a new occurrence of poor performance by Serco after the Act came into force, then Serco could be excluded from bidding or being awarded a future public contract through either the debarment or exclusion regimes.' In a statement to Channel 4, Antony King, the managing director of Citizen Services at Serco, said: 'We are proud of the challenging work our people do, working with multiple partners across the criminal justice system in delivering an essential and critical public safety service, often with complex and ever-increasing requirements. 'Our performance continues to improve, which the MoJ recognise, and we continue to monitor record numbers of people in the community supporting our colleagues in probation and the Home Office.'
