Inspectors in damning report on Moors' jail

OVERCROWDING, A LACK OF EDUCATION AND DRUG ISSUES

- CARL EVE

THE government’s prison watchdog has released a damning report into HMP Dartmoor after inspectors carried out an unannounced visit.

Inspectors from HM Inspectorate of Prisons found little to cheer about the pre-Victorian-era Category C prison in Princetown. The prison was earmarked for closure as far back as 2013 and expected to shut for good in 2023, but won a reprieve in 2021 due to ongoing population pressures across all the prisons in England and Wales.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said many problems highlighted in the report “stem from the costly failure by the prison service to plan adequately for this situation and, on this inspection, it was disappointing to see the doubling up of cells that were designed for, and at our last inspection held, one prisoner.”

He said the “older age” of Dartmoor’s population, combined with the “long sentences” many were serving and the “already inadequate numbers of work, training and education places” he said the HMIP would be “very concerned if the number of prisoners increases further.”

He added: “At our last inspection in 2017, we described a prison that was decaying fast with damp cells and buckets strategically placed underneath leaking roofs. This failure to invest in the infrastructure meant the prison had not had some of the improvements that we have seen elsewhere, such as the introduction of in-cell phones, electronic kiosks, or fit-for-purpose health, education, or laundry facilities.

“Given the state of the jail, the leaders had done well to keep the prison clean and there had been refurbishment of some showers.”