- Author, Yasmine Rufo
- Role, BBC News
A young offenders’ institution in west London has the highest levels of violence of any prison in England and Wales, an inspection has found.
HMP Feltham A prison, which holds children aged 15 to 18 on remand or sentenced, has seen incidents of disorder triple since the prison was last inspected two years ago.
An investigation by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons in March found that conditions had deteriorated significantly and that self-harm and violence were increasing.
The report concluded that there had been “a deterioration in standards, with levels of violence now the highest of any prison in the country”.
The center accommodates around 80 children, with more than 260 different instructions to prevent children from mixing.
Inspectors were concerned that these instructions would affect children’s access to education: rather than being placed in classes with similar abilities and interests, boys were assigned to classes based on who they could mix with without fighting.
In the summer of 2023, the educational block was forced to close from August 22 until early September due to a dramatic increase in the number of reported assaults and serious incidents.
Another major concern during the inspection was the prolonged separation of some children from their peers: seven detainees had been separated for more than 50 days, while two had been separated for more than 100 days.
The inspection also found that the use of force, usually in response to violence, had increased by 68%.
‘Very concerned’
The situation was so volatile that some children said they did not want their families to visit them in case violence broke out in front of them.
Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said he was “very concerned” about the deteriorating situation, but added that it was “to the credit of the governor and his management team that there are signs that they have succeeded in arresting this decline”.
“The frontline staff, for their part, have been a real asset to the prison and have managed to maintain incredibly positive and supportive relationships with even the most difficult children in their care, despite the violence around them,” he added.
In 2019, an inspection of the same facility found that safety levels had fallen to an “appalling” level.
The Youth Detention Service said at the time that “immediate” changes had been made.
The new report said it was “disappointing” to see these deteriorated standards given that in 2022 it “attributed some of the best results to healthy facility tests achieved in recent years.”
