Inspection rules prison facing rising level of violence

An inspection has found that HMP Birmingham, otherwise known as Winson Green Prison, is in the grip of a drug-fuelled violence epidemic leaving many inmates feeling unsafe.

In the first official report since disorder broke out at the site in December, inspectors found a rise in fighting on wings which was all to often triggered by easy access to "problematic" new psychoactive substances.

Half of the prisoners surveyed also told inspectors it was "easy to getdrugs", with one in seven said they were becoming addicted to drugs while serving time.

The inspection also found the use of mobile phones and drones to arrange and deliver contraband,like the highly addictive Spice, over the Victorian jail's high walls was also "a significant threat".

However, Her Majesty's chief inspector of prisons Peter Clarke said hisfindings should not be considered as the cause of the riots last year.

G4S, which runs the prison, called the report "a fair assessment of the veryreal challenges" it faced, which had also highlighted staff and managers'determination "to move on" and improve.

Rioting at the Winson Green jail was some of the worst in years at a UKprison as four wings were still out of action for repairs when inspectors arrived in mid-February.

500 inmates were transferred to other sites following the fighting, leaving a population of just under 1,000.

Mr Clarke said the reasons for his unannounced inspection was to make sure the jail was still safe and secure - and to establish a baseline for improvement.

He has tabled four chief recommendations for the governor, including aclear strategy to reduce violence.

G4S was also told to improve staff-prisoner relationships and inmates'behaviour, provide "a decent regime" of learning and work, and encourage as many prisoners as possible to take up activities.

Mr Clarke has also called for an integrated approach to reduce the supplyand demand of drugs.

The inspection, which asked prisoners what they thought, found that highlevels of violence and drugs were two key concerns for those behind bars.

A survey of the population found 59% of prisoners felt unsafe at some timeduring their stay in Birmingham and over a third felt unsafe at the time ofinspection.

Mr Clarke also found the riots had a profound effect upon many members of staff"and there was still a palpable sense of shock at the suddenness and ferocity of what had happened.

However, he said prison bosses were committed to tackling the problems and did not want to be defined by the disorder.

Turning to the problems, Mr Clarke added that the high level of drug availability which often lead to debt, was one of the primary triggers of violence.

Routine testing, cell finds and medical incidents had also showed that newpsychoactive substances (NPS) had become problematic with the use of Spice, a particular issue.Mr Clarke said:

The report also concluded violence had increased substantially since aprevious inspection, with 187 assaults recorded on staff and 218 attacks onprisoners between June and November last year.

Mr Clarke cautioned against reading anything into the causes of the damaging riots from his latest report, and said "to attempt to use it in that way would be a mistake."

He added that he had seen many positive interactions between staff and prisoners and, in general, relationships were respectful.

The jail had what G4S called a "complex" mix of inmates, some as old as 90, and a high turnover with 500 new arrivals every month and an average stay of six weeks.

The director for HMP Birmingham, Richard Stedman - who was appointed in April 2017 to replace Pete Small said more staff had been recruited, adding:

Michael Spurr, HM Prison & Probation Service chief executive, said:

Frances Crook, Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: