self harm

There is an urgent need to address serious issues that adversely affect the safety and decency of our prisons, the opportunity they offer for rehabilitation and their contribution to reducing reoffending, says the Chief Inspector of Prisons.

Seven prisoners had taken their own lives since the last inspection, three of these in the previous 12 months.

Inspectors found the level of violence was still very high, and self-harm had increased dramatically since the previous inspection.

The Chief Inspector of Prisons has called on the Secretary of State for Justice to intervene urgently in Feltham A Young Offender Institution after an inspection disclosed an “extraordinary” decline in safety, care and activity for the children held there.