Watchdog brands children’s jail ‘most violent prison in the country’

A troubled children’s jail has been branded the most violent prison in the country by a watchdog.

Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said he was “very concerned” at how much Feltham A young offender institution (YOI) – which holds children aged between 15 and 18 – had deteriorated in the past two years after figures indicated there was six times more violence at the west London site than at one of the most violent adult prisons in England and Wales.

The watchdog found there were 410 violent incidents at Feltham A within a 12-month period from 84 children, equating to a rate of 488 incidents per 100 children.

By contrast, the latest inspection of HMP Bedford – one of the most violent adult prisons – found the rate of violence was calculated at 80.6 incidents per 100 prisoners.

We were very concerned to find how Feltham A had deteriorated in the past two years, but it is to the credit of the governor and her leadership team that there were signs that they had managed to arrest this decline

In a report published on Tuesday, Mr Taylor said: “It was disappointing to return to find there had been a deterioration in standards with levels of violence now the highest of any prison in the country.”

Inspectors found high levels of violence and rising self-harm when they visited Feltham A in March.

Incidents of disorder had “tripled” since the last inspection, with the latest report detailing the volatile situation the watchdog found behind bars.

There had been a “dramatic increase” in the number of assaults and serious incidents last summer which led to the education block being shut down for several weeks.

Rather than attending lessons with children who had similar interests and abilities, boys were assigned to classes based on which other inmates they would not fight with, according to the findings.

The watchdog also raised “major” concerns about the “worryingly prolonged” segregation of some of the child prisoners, highlighting how seven children had been separated for more than 50 days, and two of them for more than 100.

Mr Taylor’s report is the latest in a string of concerns raised about the high-profile YOI over the years.

The Government halted sending children to Feltham A in 2019 when the then chief inspector of prisons demanded immediate action over an “extraordinary” plunge in safety levels. It came after a report found a surge in violence and self-harm at the jail.

Mr Taylor added: “We were very concerned to find how Feltham A had deteriorated in the past two years, but it is to the credit of the governor and her leadership team that there were signs that they had managed to arrest this decline.

“Frontline staff, meanwhile, were a real asset to the jail and had managed to maintain impressively positive and supportive relationships with even the most challenging children in their care despite the violence around them.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “The criminal justice system is in crisis and as this report clearly shows, this is placing great strain on the youth estate.

“As the Chief Inspector recognises in his report, the governor and frontline staff are now making every effort to drive improvements and reduce violence. But we know there is much more to do and we are committed to increasing the support these children need to turn their lives around.”