An inspection found cells at Bedford Prison were daubed with graffiti
By Gareth George & Flora Thompson
BBC News & PA Media
HM Chief Inspector of Prisons has dubbed conditions at a Victorian jail as “some of the worst he has seen” in a scathing watchdog report.
Charlie Taylor described a catalogue of problems at HMP Bedford as a “damning indictment of the state of prisons”.
Last year Mr Taylor called for the category B prison to be put into emergency measures.
The Prison Service said “urgent action” was being taken to improve safety.
HMP Bedford can hold about 400 inmates and has a history of problems, including riots in 2016.
Mr Taylor said many of the issues reflected wider problems behind bars throughout England and Wales.
He wrote to Justice Secretary Alex Chalk in November to issue an urgent notification for improvement when the unannounced inspection raised serious concerns about violence, living conditions and high rates of self-harm.
The Prison Service said extra frontline staff will be deployed to improve safety
Publishing his full report on Wednesday, Mr Taylor said the “neglected” jail needed “sustained support” in order to improve.
“Some of the accommodation in Bedford was the worst I have seen”, he said, adding: “The smell of mould in one cell was overpowering, with the walls damp to the touch, while the underground segregation unit, which held acutely mentally unwell men, was a disgrace.
“If our prisons are truly going to protect the public, then they must be able to play their part in supporting men and women to move on from offending.
“Penning people in squalor for 23 hours a day with no meaningful access to education, training or work, or to fresh air or exercise is not going to achieve that, as the levels of violence and self-harm at Bedford attest.”
Mr Taylor also highlighted graffiti-daubed cells with broken furniture, and infestations of rats and cockroaches.
He said levels of violence were “very high” compared with similar prisons, and assaults against staff were the highest of any adult male prison in England and Wales (410 per 1,000 prisoners), according to the report.
Governor Ali Barker, who had been in post since January 2023, had a “reasonable understanding of the many challenges facing the jail” but was “not visible enough” around the prison wings where conditions had deteriorated since the previous inspection in 2022, the report said.
A Prison Service spokesperson said: “The findings of this inspection are unacceptable which is why we’re taking urgent action to address the concerns raised.”
They added that extra frontline officers would be deployed to reduce violence and improve safety, refurbishment would improve living conditions, and offenders would get better access to education.
The Ministry of Justice has been contacted for comment.
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