HMP Lewes battling rising violence, watchdog finds

Prisons watchdog described Lewes Prison as being in "a concerning state"

Lewes Prison is "trapped" in a cycle of rising violence, self-harm and drug problems, an inspection has found.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons found the East Sussex jail had a "serious drug problem" and violence and self-harm were "notably worse" than at other reception prisons.

The report said "very poor provision of purposeful activity" was fuelling the demand for drugs.

The Prisons Service acknowledged there was "much more to be done".

The latest inspection at Lewes took place between 5-16 February.

Charlie Taylor, HM chief inspector of prisons, said in his report: "The new governor of Lewes has made some real improvement since our last visit.

"But the jail remained trapped in a cycle of staffing shortfalls, boredom and drugs driving rising violence and self harm."

The report stated that only a third of prisoners were engaged in education or employment and while the institution had "clear plans to improve", many inmates spent just two hours a day out of their cells or as little as 90 minutes working.

The Prison Service said in a statement: "The new governor is already delivering significant improvements at HMP Lewes but we know there is much more to be done.

“We’ve recruited new staff specifically to combat drugs entering the prison, while ramping up mandatory drug testing and increasing time out of cells so more offenders can get the education and training they need to turn their back on crime.”

'Concerning state'

The latest inspection follows a damning report in April 2023 which described conditions at the facility as "squalid". It said there had been a "worrying lack of overall progress" since the previous inspection in 2022.

HMP Lewes is a Category B reception and resettlement prison with 578 men held there at the time of the inspection, 316 of whom were receiving support for substance use.

The prison watchdog said it had taken an "unusual step" in informing HMP Lewes ahead of its latest inspection in a bid to "drive more urgent improvement".

It added Lewes had been "a concerning state" at its previous two inspections.

Concerns were also raised about the impact of the government's early release scheme, a challenge not unique to HMP Lewes.

The report found that release dates for some high-risk prisoners had been brought forward at short notice, putting pressure on resettlement agencies and in some cases forcing prisoners into homelessness and reoffending.

In one case, a high-risk prisoner with a significant history of drug misuse and self-harm was released to homelessness despite serious concerns about public safety and appeals for the decision to be reversed.

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