'Ingrained dirt' found in courts' custody suites

Oxford Crown Court was one of those assessed in the Thames Valley

Some custody facilities in Thames Valley's courts were "poorly maintained", with many found to have "ingrained dirt" on floors and stains on walls, inspectors said.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) found toilet facilities across the region were "unpleasant" and many lacked seats and dispensers for toilet paper and soap.

Detainees remanded in custody or sent to prison were often subjected to "significant delays" before they were moved on and agencies responsible failed to address why.

The Ministry of Justice runs the facilities and Serco, which provides prisoner escort and custody services, said it recognises there is "more to do" and will work to improve.

The inspection covered 94 cells at crown and magistrates' courts in Oxford and Reading, Aylesbury Crown Court, Amersham Law Courts, and other magistrates' courts in Slough, High Wycombe and Milton Keynes.

Other than one facility, inspectors found all cells lacked natural light and said debris was found on floors, with some detainees complaining about how cold and uncomfortable they were.

Cells were not routinely cleaned after they were used and too few were suitably adapted for people with disabilities.

HMIP found that following a previous inspection in 2018, two-thirds of recommendations had been fully or partially achieved.

But it said it found "complicated contractual arrangements or a lack of funding" stopped other improvements being made.

Serco "constantly recruited and trained new staff" and training was found to be good but the company suffered a high attrition rate, the report said.

The staff were found to be "a real asset" but they were routinely boosted by officers from other areas.

When detainees were taken from prison vans at Oxford Magistrates' Court, staff were found to do "too little to protect them and maintain their privacy and dignity".

A Serco spokesperson said the company is pleased that the inspection recognised progress made since 2018.

"The report highlights the work undertaken by our custody staff who are a real asset and who carry out a demanding role in a challenging environment with great professionalism," they said.

"At the same time, we recognise there is more to do and we will be working with our customers and partners in order to help us improve further."

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We recognise the concerns raised in this report and have already acted on them by conducting deep cleans in all custody suites, reviewing measures to support detainees with disabilities and ensuring that detainees' privacy and dignity is never unduly compromised."