Feltham youth facility 'is most violent prison in the country'

A young offender institution has been identified as the most violent prison in the country, with teenage inmates refusing family visits to keep their relatives away from danger, a watchdog has found.

- Rajeev Syal , Peter Walker

HMYOI Feltham A in west London, which holds 84 boys aged 15 to 18, registered 320 incidents of disorder in the year to March, up 300% on the previous 12 months, said the chief inspector of prisons, Charlie Taylor.

A report released today said prison authorities had found 343 weapons during the year, compared with 122 the year before. The use of force by staff, usually in response to violence, rose by 68%.

The report comes as the Prison Service in England and Wales is under intense scrutiny. On Friday the justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, announced that thousands of prisoners would be released early from September because of an overcrowding crisis in adult jails.

Inspectors found that children held in Feltham A booked fewer than half of the allocated visitor sessions to meet their relatives. "In our interviews, some children said they did not want their families to visit because of the risk of violence breaking out in front of them," the report said.