Prison guards at UK 'super prison' fear they will be killed amid surge in abuse
Prison staff working at the UK's first "super prison" said they fear "someone is going to get killed" as inmates run riot at the state-of-the-art facility.
Officers at HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire have claimed they have a lack of equipment and colleagues to help keep them safe while violence has increased towards staff. They allege inmates spit at them and hurl "urine and faeces" in their face at the category C prison.
HMP Five Wells, which was built between 2019 and 2021 across 36 acres of land, is worth around £253million. Critics have previously branded it a "budget hotel" due to the extent of amenities on offer. Inmates each have a tablet PC and have access to a gym, sports pitches and snooker or tennis tables.
The rooms feature blue and white interior with a bed and equipment (PA)The facility is run by security firm G4S and was constructed with X-shaped blocks with shorter corridors which were meant to make it easier for guards to control inmates, reports Sky News. Despite this, one staff member said: "We’re lacking equipment… We’re lucky if we get a radio to go on to the landings. And we’ve got a very limited amount of bodycams that work. It’s like a lucky dip raffle."
The man said that prisoners can tell when their bodycam has stopped working and explained that he had seen an officer get stabbed in the head with a metal spike. He warned someone will get hurt and added: "And it will be a prison officer. I love my job, but what’s it going to take? Is it going to take for someone to be killed in that place before someone says, we need to do something about this?"
Man in 30s dies after being stabbed in park sparking police probe
The prison has sports pitches on offer (PA)Another officer stressed: "My fear is something major is going to happen there. Someone’s going to get stabbed, or somebody is going to get murdered within that prison, be it a staff member or a prisoner. An officer got stabbed a few weeks ago. We get punched, kicked, tripped up, hit with pool cues. Something like that happens on a daily basis." A third officer said staff sometimes go weeks without being searched and said there are never searches at night. She claimed: "I do believe some staff have been placed in there by prisoners because it’s easy to get a job in there."
G4S told the publication that staff have sufficient radios, bodycams and alarm buttons that can be pressed for support. The firm confirmed in September that an officer sustained a minor superficial injury to his temple and two to his back. However, it denied that an officer was stabbed.
There are no bars on the windows or cells (PA)A spokesperson for G4S told The Mirror: "The safety of staff and prisoners is our number one priority, and we do not tolerate violence. Managers take swift and robust action when serious incidents do happen. Such incidents are then referred to the police to support further prosecution.
"We have sufficient levels of staffing to run a stable, consistent and safe regime. We continue to drive recruitment to increase our staffing numbers which will enable us to broaden our current prison regime.
"The majority of our employees have more than 12 months’ prison experience and we have a large group of officers on secondment from other G4S prisons, providing additional support and experience. We are further increasing the number of First Line Managers to provide additional guidance and to mentor newly recruited staff.
"Our dedicated officers work tirelessly to detect, intercept and confiscate contraband through a range of measures including the use of patrol and drug detection dogs, joint operations with Northamptonshire Police and HMPPS counter-corruption colleagues. We understand that working in a prison is a very rewarding vocation but can also be challenging and we are committed to supporting and caring for our staff."
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
