HMP Forest Bank: Prison's education and exercise regimes criticised

A spokeswoman for the jail said it was making "steady progress" on improving

A prison where inmates were locked in their cells for most of the day has been found by inspectors to be "unable to fulfil its role successfully".

HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) found Salford's HMP Forest Bank to have an "inadequate" education system and a "poor" exercise regime.

However, it had made "noticeable" improvements, inspectors said, after previously seeing hundreds of attacks.

A spokeswoman for the jail said it was making "steady progress" on improving.

In 2021, the director of the prison, which is run by facilities firm Sodexo, stood down after it was given a 45-day improvement notice.

It housed more than 1,350 inmates at the time of the February inspection - a figure which was nearly 300 above its baseline capacity.

'Encouraging'

HMIP inspectors found the "provision of purposeful activity" at the prison was "severely lacking", while leaders "showed limited ambition to improve this situation".

They found that while violent attacks had been reduced by 25%, it "remained the fourth most violent prison in the country" and staff were "disillusioned" with officer retention rates poor.

HM chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said it was "a prison in transition", which was "still dealing with some significant weaknesses".

However, he said HMIP's findings were "encouraging", as "decisive action" had been taken to improve the jail.

"It was clear to us that the decline in living conditions had been arrested, sensible priorities identified and that there were some very hopeful signs of stability and improvement," he added.

The prison spokeswoman said the jail had "come through a difficult period over the last couple of years", but was continuing "to make steady progress with significant investment and additional support".

"We are pleased that the inspectors noted that decisive action had been taken and that there had been a noticeable recent improvement," she added.

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]