HMP Risley improves efforts to limit sex offender risk

Inspectors say there have been improvements at a prison where work to limit the risk of sex criminals re-offending was not happening.

HMP Risley in Cheshire was told to take immediate action after 14 risks were found during a visit last July.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) said the "critical" sex-offender work programmes were now happening.

But while leadership and conditions had improved, self-harm rates remained "stubbornly high".

Risley held 1,032 prisoners when initial inspection took place in March last year.

A major concern raised in the inspection was that convicted sex offenders were being released without completing offending behaviour work specific to their risks.

HMIP team leader Hindpal Singh Bhui told BBC Radio Merseyside a severe shortage of staff and lack of investment was partly to blame for the courses not happening.

"One of our major concerns last time was that this is a prison with a high number of sex offenders, and one thing that should be absolutely critical for this particular offending group is access to offending behaviour programmes," he said.

He added that it was good to see that staff were now in place to run the programmes, which meant prisoners "came out having done the work that was on their sentence plans which should make them less likely to reoffend".

One of HMIP's concerns was that inmates were locked up for 22 hours a day in a prison that had "not created enough places in work or education".

The most recent inspection found living conditions were better, all prisoners now had more time out of cell, and a broad range of activities was well-attended.

"Substantial and measurable progress" had been made against all 14 concerns raised, the report added.

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