Prisons crisis and chaos at HMP Wandsworth laid bare in wake of Khalife’s escape

Daniel Khalife’s jailhouse interruption shone a airy connected the “shocking” level of chaos astatine HMP Wandsworth and brought the situation successful prisons crossed England and Wales to the fore.

The prisons watchdog described the scandal-hit Victorian jailhouse arsenic “symbolic of the problems that characterise what is worst astir the English situation system”.

Khalife made his flight successful September past year, portion being held connected remand implicit spy charges, by strapping himself underneath a nutrient transportation lorry.

It emerged successful tribunal that 2 guards checked the motortruck with a torch and reflector and, with nary evident lockdown already successful place, allowed it to permission the prison, contempt telling the operator idiosyncratic was missing.

Earlier this twelvemonth inspectors said the turmoil they recovered astatine the class B south-west London situation was the effect of “sustained diminution permitted to hap successful plain presumption of leaders” and warned however situation guards did not ever cognize wherever prisoners connected their wings were, contempt an concern of astir £900,000 since the escape.

The jailhouse was “severely overcrowded” erstwhile inspectors visited betwixt April and May, holding much than 1,500 men erstwhile it lone had capableness for 979.

Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor was truthful acrophobic astatine the “systemic” problems found, and the fears that the situation was not cutting the hazard of reoffending arsenic a result, that helium called for HMP Wandsworth to beryllium enactment into exigency measures.

Writing to past justness caput Alex Chalk to contented a alleged urgent notification, Mr Taylor, who antecedently suggested the jailhouse should beryllium closed, said the situation was “still reeling” from Khalife’s “very high-profile” flight and that information remained a “serious concern”.

At the time, the Prison Governors’ Association (PGA) national said the improvement would beryllium “of nary astonishment to the Government”, arsenic the politician Katie Price resigned during the inspection and unit astatine the jailhouse were successful an “almost intolerable situation”.

Detailed inspection findings, published successful August, described however grounds keeping astatine the jailhouse was “so poor”, with unit displaying an “inability to relationship for prisoners during the moving day”.

More than fractional of the men inspectors spoke to said it was casual to get clasp of drugs, portion the watchdog’s study said the odor of cannabis was “ubiquitous”.

The findings concluded that “inexperience” crossed each people of unit was preventing them from “bringing astir overmuch needed change”.

While the overcrowding situation “compounded the pressures”, Mr Taylor said troubled Wandsworth’s problems “did not look overnight”.

Although hard-working unit “persevered”, the situation had intelligibly been identified arsenic “struggling”, helium said arsenic helium called for “comprehensive, semipermanent solutions”.

Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said this was the “reality of a situation strategy successful crisis”.

She stressed the Government’s determination to tackle the problems and acceptable retired however the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) would nonstop successful specializer unit and redirect £100 cardinal from crossed the situation work to walk implicit 5 years to “deliver urgent improvements” astatine the jail.

Since November 2022, the prisons watchdog has issued an urgent notification connected 9 jails, including Wandsworth.

Government figures published successful July showed the show of much than 40% of big prisons successful England and Wales were rated of “concern”, arsenic levels of unit and self-harm soared.

Out of the 119 big prisons, conscionable implicit 4 successful 10 (42% oregon 50) were rated of “concern” oregon “serious concern”, according to PA quality bureau investigation of the information for the twelvemonth to March.

Wandsworth was among 15 prisons considered to beryllium of superior concern. The fig of prisons fixed this standing accrued by six since the erstwhile 12-month period.

An audit carried retired successful the aftermath of Khalife’s flight recovered a raft of information failings astatine the jail, different study published successful August said.

HMP Wandsworth’s Independent Monitoring Board (IMB), made up of volunteers tasked by ministers with scrutinising conditions successful custody, said “81 points of failure” were identified successful the reappraisal carried retired successful November past year, and resulted successful “long overdue” upgrades being made to CCTV cameras which had not worked for much than a year.

The incidental led to aggregate reviews and action, including “previously unavailable funding” being recovered for information improvements and “significant investment” successful a bid to halt “illicit items” being taken into the prison, according to the IMB.

Another interior reappraisal completed successful December made 39 recommendations for improvement, according to the IMB.

The MoJ is yet to people those documents, outline their findings oregon corroborate whether immoderate disciplinary enactment against unit astatine the situation has been taken.

Mr Chalk antecedently committed to detailing the findings of the MoJ’s investigations, ordered successful the aftermath of Khalife’s escape, erstwhile his proceedings concluded.

But the authorities section is yet to corroborate whether Ms Mahmood has agreed to bash the aforesaid present she is successful post.