'Totally out of control' - stats show increasing number of assaults in London prisons last year
Safety at some London prisons has reached a crisis point, new figures suggest. It comes as a workers' union has warned the increase of violence in prisons across England is "totally out of control". Figures from the Ministry of Justice show hundreds of assaults were recorded at London prisons in the year to September – with some seeing increases on the previous year. The figures included prisoner-on-prisoner assaults and assaults on staff.
Across England, the rate of all assaults in prisons increased by 14 per cent last year, while the rate of serious assaults rose by 13 per cent. The latter was partly driven by a 22 per cent increase in the rate of serious assaults on staff, with nearly 1,000 incidents recorded. A serious assault is a violent incident that causes serious physical or psychological harm. It includes concussions, fractures, stabbings, and sexual assault.
Steve Gillan, general secretary of the Prison Officers Association, said the figures "speak for themselves" and warned the increase in the number of incidents is "totally out of control".
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Mr Gillan said the rise results from staff shortages, "with high percentages of staff leaving the job due to the increase in violence and unsafe staffing levels". He added: "Austerity measures are to blame with vicious budget cuts to a vital service that can only be described as financial vandalism. POA members have a difficult job to do on behalf of society and we need the tools to do that job safely."
Mr Gillan called on the Government to focus on retaining existing prison staff by improving pay and working conditions, and to "safely" reduce the number of prisoners while increasing the prison workforce. He added the criminal justice system is "totally broken", and that "it is left to my members to pick the pieces up from failed policies over the last 15 years".
Three London prisons saw fewer assaults in the year to September 2024 compared with the previous year, including 11 fewer at Brixton, 28 fewer at Wormwood Scrubs, and 173 fewer at Wandsworth - although Wandsworth still had the highest number of assaults overall, with 859. Every other London prison saw an increase in assaults overall.
Number of assaults in London prisons
Belmarsh - 334 (215 prisoner-on-prisoner, 122 on staff)
Feltham - 362(236 prisoner-on-prisoner, 147 on staff)
Brixton - 287 (199 prisoner-on-prisoner, 93 on staff)
Pentonville - 717 (473 prisoner-on-prisoner, 259 on staff)
Isis - 527 (381 prisoner-on-prisoner, 172 on staff)
Wormwood Scrubs - 346 (209 prisoner-on-prisoner, 149 on staff)
Thameside - 721 (518 prisoner-on-prisoner, 201 on staff)
Wandsworth - 859 (397 prisoner-on-prisoner, 474 on staff)
The rate of self-harm in prisons across England was also found to be rising, increasing by 11 per cent in the year to September.
Ellen Green, deputy CEO at the Prison Advice and Care Trust, said these figures are "deeply worrying" and "demonstrate the scale of the crisis" the Government faced when it took office last year.
Ms Green added: "It’s a crisis that results from political decisions stretching back decades. Prisons have endured years of funding cuts whilst locking up more and more people for longer and longer. It’s extremely difficult for hard-working prison staff to create places of rehabilitation when self-harm and violence are at such high levels."
She said the Government has started taking "much needed steps" to address prison overcrowding, but called for sustained investment to tackle the lack of safety in jail and ensure prisoners are "offered an opportunity to make a fresh start when they leave."
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "These shocking statistics clearly illustrate the prisons crisis this Government inherited last summer. There are far too many attacks on our hardworking staff and deeply concerning levels of self-harm. We’ve already taken difficult but necessary immediate action to stop our prisons from collapsing."
They added the Government has "already taken difficult but necessary immediate action" to tackle the issue, and is implementing lasting measures to increase prison capacity and limit reoffending and crime.
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