Wormwood Scrubs is ‘badly affected by the ingress of drugs’ and a ‘lack of oversight of the use of force’ according to the latest inspection of the prison.
Inspectors noted that staff corruption was a serious concern, in particular considering gate security was inconsistent and the body scanner at the entrance of the prison was not always used. A third of random drug tests performed on prisoners showed a positive result and 17 members of staff were dismissed last year following work from the security team.
Problems at the prison were compounded by insufficient activity spaces in education, skills and work. Unemployed prisoners are on average only out of their cells for 1.5 hours per day. The latest report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) also noted routine failures by staff to wear or activate body-worn video cameras, as well as a lack of governance concerning the use of force. Shockingly, ‘the available footage showed inappropriate and offensive language directed towards prisoners, and we were concerned to find that in some cases cameras were deactivated mid-incident.’
Recommendations for improvements range from rigorous oversight and accountability in relation to the use of force, to the effective assurance of well-being for prisoners – with records showing that the issue of multiple prisoners being held in cells designed for one person, still persists.
Issues with the complaints system run rife, with inspectors noting that the prison still needs to work on investigating prisoners’ lack of confidence in the complaints system and the reasons for the large numbers reporting that they have been prevented from complaining.
