Latest news with #IndependentMonitoringBoard
BBC News
4 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Rise in assaults on Holme House prison staff
Assaults on staff at a prison were "considerably higher" in 2024 than the previous year, inspectors have said. The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) said staff at HMP Holme House in Stockton were assaulted by prisoners 90 times in 2024, compared to 40 such incidents in said nine of the assaults last year were considered to be "serious". The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has been approached for comment. In a report published on Thursday, the IMB said there were 324 incidents of violence among prisoners in 2024 compared to 298 the previous year. 'Substance misuse' Inspectors also found that force was used by staff on prisoners 856 times in 2024, compared to 468 times in 2023 and 268 occurrences in 2022. They also said seven prisoners were each subject to force on more than 10 occasions that year, with force used on one particular prisoner 21 times that IMB also found a number of prisoners "under the influence of illicit substances" on each day of its inspections. "Substance misuse continues to be a significant problem in the prison," the report any one time, almost half of the prison population is being helped by a non-clinical drug recovery programme, the team report revealed that of the 1,350 prisoners released from the site last year, 112 individuals had no arranged accommodation for the night of their release.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Prison's provision for dementia inmates 'poor'
Prison inmates with dementia are being held in normal cells without extra accommodations, inspectors have said. The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) said facilities at County Durham's HMP Frankland for elderly frail prisoners, as well as those with dementia, were "quite poor". It also said both staff and prisoners had required hospital checks following exposure to fumes from the drug Spice. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said it was "clamping down" on drugs at the prison using detection dogs. In a report published on Tuesday into its monitoring from December 2023 to November 2024, the IMB said there were 21 wheelchair users at the prison, which holds about 800 people, during that time but only 14 adapted cells available. It said the number of older prisoners at the site was growing. "Much of the prison is not designed for an elderly population," the report said. According to latest statistics, as of March 2025 there were 52 people aged 70 and over at the prison. It also held about 261 prisoners aged between 50 and 69 at the site. The inspectors said they considered HMP Frankland to be a "generally safe environment" and that wings often appeared to be "calm and settled". It also noted that the prison had recently initiated a "dementia pathway scheme" to provide extra support to prisoners with the disease. The report comes after the Manchester Arena bomber Hashem Abedi threw hot oil at officers and stabbed them with makeshift weapons at the prison in April. The IMB said drone sightings above the prison had increased and that more postage to the site was testing positive for drugs. The report said the availability of illegal drugs at the prison was a "significant concern". It said about 112 prisoners were on the caseload of the site's drug and alcohol recovery team. The MoJ said it was pleased inspectors had recognised the prison as "generally safe" despite the "challenges" that came with running a high-security prison. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Prison has mould and 'mushrooms' growing on walls Manchester Arena bomber attacks prison officers HMP Frankland Independent Monitoring Board
BBC News
10-04-2025
- Health
- BBC News
'Overcrowded' Durham Prison with rising assaults told to improve
An "overcrowded" prison where violence is on the rise needs to improve, a watchdog has Independent Monitoring Board's (IMB) latest report said HMP Durham had seen assaults on staff and between inmates go up by 52%, with self-harm also Durham chair Dr Therese Quincey said that despite the "negative" findings, the board believed staff were dedicated and "committed" to meeting Ministry of Justice has been contacted for a comment. The IMB is made up of unpaid volunteers, who operate in every prison in England and Wales to make sure inmates are being treated fairly and humanely and receive the support they for their latest report on HMP Durham was gathered between 1 November 2023 and 31 October this time, there were 5,436 new 746 of them did not receive a crucial first night healthcare assessment - which was a "significant risk" to their health, the report IMB also stated assaults on staff and prisoner-on-prisoner assaults had increased by 52% since the previous year and self-harm incidents were up by a third, from 596 last year to 798."The board continues to have the view that the level of overcrowding in HMP Durham contributes to increased levels of self-harm and violence," the report said. 'Unhygienic and undignified' The IMB said it had reported "for several years" on overcrowding at the facility, with prisoners sharing a cell in wings that were built more than 200 years ago for one added there was "no privacy" and some cells had a curtain around the toilet which was "unhygienic and undignified"."The prison is non-compliant with the requirements of HMPPS national standards for the Cleanliness and Physical Decency of Prisons, October 2020, particularly regarding the minimum 'kit' entitlement for clothing, towels and bedding," the IMB kitchen and the prison clergy were praised and the board said it believed prisoners were overall treated "fairly and humanely".It added all prisoners were offered a range of part-time education programmes, with a service helping them get work growing "considerably" over the the board said it was "concerned" that up to one in three prisoners was released Quincey said HMP Durham presented "a number of major challenges" including rising levels of violence, self-harm and drug use. "High levels of prison occupancy, combined with continuous arrivals and departures, compound the challenge," she said. "Even in the light of some negative findings; from the board's observations, we believe that the governor and staff perform their duties with dedication and are committed to reach required standards." Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Watchdog calls for better end-of-life care at jail
A jail for sex offenders should have an end-of-life care centre, a watchdog report says. The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) has released its latest findings for HMP The Verne in Portland, Dorset. The annual report revealed prison officers spent more than 13,000 hours on bed watch duties between 2023-24. An end-of-life facility in the prison would help "given the ageing population" held in the prison, the report explained. Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust is responsible for healthcare at the prison and has been contacted for comment. The report highlights the "excellent, high-quality care" provided by Oxleas, but explained 33% of the 600 prisoners were over 60 years old. It said: "A more elderly population means that many of the prisoners have complex health and social care needs. Some have multiple diagnoses of long-term or terminal illnesses." The board said the current healthcare building is in a "deplorable state" and a new facility needs to be provided. In September 2023, a 16-bed social care suite was opened in the prison, with care workers on shift 24 hours a day. The board said the beds in this suite have been "fully occupied ever since the unit opened". It continued: "Although the care suite is a most welcome addition to the prison, the board still feels that there should be a place for an end-of-life care suite that is staffed by a trained nurse 24 hours a day." Figures included in the report show prison officers spent a total of 13,386 hours on bed watch and there had been six prisoner deaths in the report year. A statement from The Verne IMB co-chairs said: "The board would welcome the provision of a dedicated end-of-life facility, which we feel would not only be a cost-effective addition to the existing provision, but provide sufficient care from appropriately trained medical staff to those with terminal illnesses." You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X, or Instagram. Care of frail sex offenders not humane, says report Sex offenders' behaviour not challenged at jail Plans for extra prison places approved Inmates need more purposeful activity, report says Five prisoners died during Covid outbreak - report The Verne Prison Independent Monitoring Boards
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Yahoo
The Secret Prisoner: At long last, I've gone to trial – and the jury has spoken
As Britain is gripped by a prisons crisis, The Telegraph is publishing dispatches from an inmate at a Category B jail – the second highest level of security – to discover what life is really like inside. Recently, the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) found the jail to be chronically overcrowded and understaffed, with self-harm and drug use rife. The inmate, a British professional and entrepreneur on the outside, is on remand awaiting trial charged with non-violent crimes, which he denies. To protect his identity, he is not named. Other names and nicknames have also been changed. Trial. Trial throws up one of the most brutal experiences of all: the punishing and exhausting experience of the daily prison transports. I am still getting over the experience. On trial days, defendants on remand at my jail are woken before six in the morning. You have time to make a cup of tea and shave in your sink but you can't shower on the wing. Twenty minutes later you are taken to reception. The process involves being deposited in a holding pen with other defendants, then led, one-by-one, to be strip-searched and to deposit documents (which you can't keep with you during the journey) and collect clothes held on your behalf. (If you do not organise a suit of clothes to be sent to the prison, you will appear in court in your grey prison fatigues: I had organised a blazer and tie weeks in advance, but on the first day of my trial reception failed to find them.) You are then left in a second pen for embarkation, where you wait with other prisoners. Thankfully, the reception orderlies (prisoners themselves) bring you each a cup of tea and two slices of toast. The embarkation pen is a bit of a circus. Everyone is anxious; everyone has a story to tell. A remand prison will serve many courts: prisoners alongside me were going to Crown Courts across southern England. I was going to Reading. Between about 7.30am and 8.30am we were all cuffed and led one by one by staff from Serco (the company which has the prison transportation and court custody contracts) to transport of various sizes, the biggest taking about 10 prisoners, each in a separate, secure seat cage of around 20 cubic feet. The transports are thoroughly searched before you leave – mirrors checked for under-vehicle escapees. In my case what followed was a long daily journey of several hours to Reading. Each evening, between 4pm and 5pm, I was loaded back onto a transport and made the return journey. The worst part was arriving back at jail. The transport is searched again, as are the Serco staff on board. Once on the internal reception forecourt, the prison unloads and processes each transport one prisoner at a time. If three or four Serco vehicles are in front you can wait up to two hours while up to 30 prisoners are brought in, one by one. The return process involves signing in, X-Ray scanning, visiting a nurse and getting food, then being taken to a secure holding pen, before an officer takes you back to your wing and cell. The experience was among the most psychologically and physically exhausting I have ever known, each 15-hour day comparable to a long international flight. What opportunity did I have to reflect on the day's evidence with my barrister, or develop the strategy for my defence? Very little. Was I fit and able to take the witness stand across a three-day period? Yes, just – but had my trial been longer, I wonder how I would have coped. Many defendants opt not to attend every day of a long trial. My own barrister had advised me to plead guilty on video link and again even on the first morning of my trial. But I never believed that a jury of decent-minded, reasonably alert English men and women would convict me. The evidence against me was malicious – the only witness for the prosecution lost his temper with my barrister three times while giving evidence, outraged that everything he said 'under oath' was not simply accepted as gospel. CPS arguments were exposed as almost laughably inconsistent during the course of the trial. I admit that I had to do a bit of the barristering myself while in the witness stand. I am not sure my barrister ever quite believed he was going to pull the whole thing off, though by the last day, even he was beginning to believe. What he found exceptional was that wonderful friends and employees attended every day to support me and, on the penultimate day, testify to my good character. Most defendants, not always through their own fault, lack such support. Thank God one thing works in our justice system – the jury. The one part which does not contain jaded and cynical legal professionals. It took the jury less than an hour, including a 30-minute lunch break, to unanimously acquit me. I can honestly say that I was perhaps the only person who was not surprised. There is a huge irony here: if I ever posed a danger to others in the past, which I do not believe, I am so incensed by what I have experienced – being imprisoned for so long, prevented from seeing my children and stripped of any means of supporting myself – that I believe I now possibly am prone to impulsive rage. How will I deal with this now I am a free man? This is the final Secret Prisoner diary. We understand that many readers will be keen to know the details of his identity and case and hope that we will be able to disclose these facts in due course. In the meantime the Secret Prisoner is keen to express his great gratitude to Telegraph readers who have followed his case in the months he spent on remand and so gave him a structure and purpose at a hugely difficult time. 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