Norwich prison is struggling to provide a safe environment with high levels of violence, use of force and self-harm amongst inmates, a report has warned.
Charlie Taylor, chief inspector of prisons, identified an inability to retain experienced staff as a “principal cause” of the prison’s difficulties.
Although new officers had been recruited this was failing to to keep pace with the numbers leaving the prison, he said.
His report, following two unannounced inspections in August and September, said inspectors found that violence was high, as was the use of force by staff.
“Safety outcomes were still not sufficiently good, a judgement informed to a great extent by the high number of violent and use of force incidents, and the rise in the number of segregated prisoners,” he said.
“Three prisoners had tragically taken their own lives since we last inspected and self-harm was higher than at comparable prisons.”
However he said some improvements were already in place to address these concerns as well as “other steps being taken to make the prison safer”.
The report said rehabilitation and release planning had also improved since the last inspection, with regular reducing reoffending meetings and almost all eligible prisoners having an up-to-date assessment of their risk and needs.
Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the prison reform charity Howard League for Penal Reform, said rather than providing productive sentences inadequate staffing was contributing to “an alarming rise” in levels of violence, self-harm and deaths in custody.
“Lack of sufficient staffing creates unsafe environments for both workers and people in prison,” he said.
“People in prison should be engaged in exercise, education, employment and training, which overstretched, understaffed jails are unable to provide. Instead, people are warehoused in unsafe conditions for hours on end with nothing to do.”
The prison has a high turnover of 700 inmates who are a “complex and diverse” mix of those serving sentences and those on remand.
Inspectors found that 65pc were locked up during the working day with learning and work-based activities operating well below capacity.
Mr Taylor said although the prison governor had “clear priorities” for improvements, some of which had been successfully delivered, “significant gaps remained”.
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