Conditions at Cookham Wood young offender unit deemed a scandal

An urgent notice for action has been issued to the justice secretary after conditions at a young offender institution were deemed "a scandal".

Inspectors found boys at Cookham Wood in Kent were improvising weapons out of scavenged metal objects, including kettles, because they felt unsafe.

A quarter were held in solitary confinement for days - two, who needed protecting, for more than 100 days.

The prisons minister said a review was under way and a new governor appointed.

Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor said: "Many of these children have committed serious crimes and have rightly been detained.

"Nevertheless, they are still children, many of whom have come from very difficult backgrounds."

He said: "We spoke to boys who'd had almost no human contact at all in days, and who had resorted to trying to stick up photos of home with toothpaste on the walls of the tiny cells that became their whole world.

"Such treatment of children is appalling. This is a scandal."

The notice to the government said this was the sixth inspection since 2016 and reports had chronicled a steady decline.

In 2021, inspectors had reported on "significant problems".

Mr Taylor said there had been a complete breakdown in behaviour management which led to escalation of poor behaviour to the point where there was widespread weapon-making - with 228 weapons recovered in six months.

He said nearly a quarter of children felt unsafe.

The prison relied on keeping boys apart or completely segregating them to maintain safety, inspectors said.

They found 90% of children were under "keep-aparts" and not allowed to mix, with staff managing 583 conflicts among 77 children.

Mr Taylor said solitary confinement had become "normalised".

He said education and other interventions were almost never delivered.

Many staff did not have confidence in leaders and managers, evidence of the acceptance of low standards was widespread, living units were dirty and equipment was broken, he added.

He said there were significant staffing shortfalls but inspectors were told 450 staff were employed at Cookham Wood, including 44 managers, 24 of whom were senior leaders.

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk must respond publicly with an improvement plan within 28 days to the notice issued on Wednesday.

Prisons Minister Damian Hinds said: "Cookham Wood is home to some of society's most troubled children, many with violent convictions, but the situation there is completely unacceptable as it is preventing us from helping these young offenders turn their backs on crime.

"That is why we have already appointed a new governor to provide stronger leadership and started a review into how children were being separated to prevent violence but it is clear further action is needed."

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