Peter Lazenby
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INSPECTORS who made an unannounced visit to a Hampshire prison found drug use, debt, rising violence, self-harm and men locked in their cells for up to 22 hours a day.
HMP Winchester is a reception prison holding up to 649 newly convicted or remand prisoners awaiting court appearances.
Inspectors found conditions were so bad that the Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood was issued with “urgent notification” giving her 28 days to produce a plan to improve the prison.
Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said: “Violence had increased since our last inspection and was very high.
“Serious assaults against staff were the highest, and serious assaults against prisoners the second highest, of all reception jails.
“The rate of self-harm had increased and was now the third highest of all reception prisons.
“Many prisoners were also frustrated by a lack of activity, insufficient mental health support and an inability to contact their families.”
Andrea Coomber KC, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “This is one of the worst reports on a prison that I have ever read, and the photographs of filthy toilets, broken windows and mouldy walls tell their own story.
“A truly squalid, overcrowded Victorian jail — even to the point that some cells do not have electricity.”
She said “things have gone from bad to worse” since a 2022 report.
Prison Officers’ Association (POA) general secretary Steve Gillan said: “My members work hard at Winchester in totally intolerable conditions. This needs to be addressed now.
“I know the Labour government has inherited this mess but it is in government now and needs to deal with this crisis with resources and investment.”
Lord Timpson, Minister for Prisons and Probation, said: “The dire situation at Winchester highlighted by the Chief Inspector is yet another symptom of the prison crisis we inherited.
“We are supporting the prison and its staff who are working hard to deliver improvements in challenging circumstances. This action plan will ensure they have the support they need.”
