Prison governors attack Government over its 'perverse' mismanagement of jails after string of riots

Officials ‘devastated’ by ‘complete decline’ of the service

The Mount prison in Hertfordshire has been the scene of two distrubances in as many days (PA)

Jails in England and Wales are in crisis after “perverse” government reforms, the president of the Prison Governors Association (PGA) has said.

Andrea Albutt attacked the Government’s management of the service, saying prison governors were “devastated” by its “complete decline”.

The scathing comments, which came from a traditionally moderate voice, were published in an open letter after riot staff were called to a prison for a second day.

Armed prisoners remained in control of one wing of HMP The Mount in Hertfordshire until 5pm on Tuesday.

Meanwhile at Erlestoke prison in Wiltshire, a number of prison officers were taken to hospital – one with a broken jaw – after about 30 inmates became violent.

The Government said it has taken “immediate action” to increase prison officer numbers and has created a new body to push through reforms.

But Ms Albutt said: “The instability we are seeing is clearly linked to a poor regime.” She added that members of the association had told her “they had seen nothing tangible coming out of the [Ministry of Justice]” to improve the situation.

“The decision to separate policy from operations seems a perverse one and certainly not cost effective when we are given messages that budgets remain very stretched,” she said.

She added that the failures had led to prison workers facing “unacceptable stress and anxiety” on a daily basis.

“We know many prisons are in crisis and I deliberately use that term, because it can’t be dressed up in any other way,” she said.

The association head warned that an unforeseen rise in prisoner numbers meant there was “virtually no headroom” in spaces, while seasonal pressures were adding strain to limited staffing levels.

She added: “Further loss of accommodation, like those lost during the current, ongoing incidents at The Mount over the last couple of days, means drafts of prisoners are being moved across the country, compromising the Families Pathway and destabilising the receiving prisons as they try to maintain order amongst disaffected displaced men.

“This toxic mix does not have a quick fix and the future looks like more of the same.”

The governor said the issue of prison officer recruitment remained “critical”, with a net increase in the number of prison officers in 2016-17 of just 75.

But she also raised concerns that a drive to increase the number of officer numbers too rapidly may cause further issues.

Members of the PGA have warned that the selection process was allowing “many unsuitable people through” while training was of “poor quality”.

As part of its reform plan the Government has split operational control of offenders from policy decisions, with Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) taking the place of the National Offender Management Service.

According to the PGA there are currently 40 “prisons of concern”, of which 10 are “very concerning”.

A spokesman for the MoJ said: “We know that our prisons have faced a number of long-standing challenges, which is why we have taken immediate action to boost prison officer numbers and have created Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service.

“This will help to create a distinct, professionalised frontline service and will ensure that policy and operations are working closely together to deliver these much needed reforms.

“We need to create calm and ordered environments to help ensure effective rehabilitation, and we continue to work closely with the unions and all staff to help achieve these vital reforms and make prisons places of safety and reform.”

John Podmore, a former prison governor and inspector, said the system is “in a mess”.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We are where we are because of a fundamental breakdown in staff-prisoner relationships.

“Prisons run on cooperation and in many jails – not all, we have to say – that cooperation has gone.

“It’s about too few staff with too little experience, poor training, as Andrea has said, and uncompetitive pay.

“Staff are demoralised and prisoners are frustrated.”

PA