Peter Lazenby
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A YOUNG men’s prison in Kent has been found to be vermin infested, with many unscreened toilets, violence, illicit drugs and a high staff turnover.
Young Offenders’ Institution/HMP Rochester was built in 1870 as an experimental Borstal for young offenders. Modern extensions have since been added.
HMP inspectors monitoring the prison, which holds around 700 prisoners, said it had failed to make most of the improvements called for after previous visits.
Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said: “Our primary message, after 11 months, remains the same: ‘more could have been achieved.’
“We did not find evidence of good progress with respect to any of the concerns we had raised and reasonable progress in only one.”
The inspectors visited the prison in September, and said in their report that despite some improvements such as employing prisoners to repaint some cells, “on the other wings, conditions remained poor – cells had broken plumbing, poor ventilation, and damaged flooring.
“Toilets were not screened in single cells, which undermined prisoners’ dignity. Many prisoners complained about mice and, despite weekly pest control visits, the vermin problem had still not been resolved.”
Mr Taylor said: “There are considerable challenges at HMP/YOI Rochester, with its poor physical environment and problems in attracting and retaining staff.
“In addressing these challenges, leaders have focused on involving more prisoners in work and education, with some positive results, but in almost every other area about which we raised a concern in 2021, not enough has been done to give confidence that outcomes are likely to improve.”
The Ministry of Justice has been contacted for comment.
