Don't forget about Wandsworth, Mr McEwen

The Prison Service, HMPPS, has appointed a new CEO, James McEwen, who was previously Chief Operating Officer at the Ministry of Justice. To make sure that Wandsworth remains at the top of his priority list and encourage greater transparency, we have sent him the following letter.

The Wandsworth Prison Improvement Campaign is an informal group, based in the local community, campaigning to improve conditions for prisoners, staff and visitors. 

We have corresponded in the past with your predecessor, Mr Copple.  Specifically, we sought from HMPPS details of the contracting processes and the final contracts relating to three projects in Wandsworth prison.  We sought explanations as to why the healthcare centre, due to open in October 2021 did not in fact see its first patient until May this year.  We also sought information and explanations in relation to the costs, timescales and specifications of two projects outlined in the Action Plan in response to the Chief Inspector’s Urgent Notification in May 2024.  These were the plans for shower refurbishment costed at £13m and for window replacement costed at £22m. 

We were met with a reluctance to provide any detail or explanation; the opposite of the transparency that is a prerequisite for accountability and public understanding.

We very much hope that HMPPS under your leadership will be more open and transparent, and willing to provide explanations to reasonable and important questions.  There is a great deal of work required to improve our prisons, and we believe that the best way to achieve this change is a healthy and constructive dialogue between all those who are concerned with achieving this improvement.

Ongoing Issues in Wandsworth Prison

We all know that, at the time of the Urgent Notification, a great deal of improvement was urgently required to make Wandsworth Prison a humane, decent and safe environment for prisoners and staff.  Some improvements have happened, in significant part through the conscientious efforts of Governor Davy.  We welcome these.  No-one could deny that there is still a considerable way to go before the prison could be said to be functioning in a way that is reasonably likely to enable prisoners to change their lives for the better.   

In her letter to the Chief Inspector of Prisons, responding to his letter issuing an Urgent Notification, the then Justice Secretary acknowledged that improving Wandsworth to an acceptable level would require a long-term commitment.  She stated that, “Your letter acknowledged the time, effort and resources it will take to turn around HMP Wandsworth and I am determined that we will succeed in that endeavour. We will take whatever steps are necessary to effect long-term, sustainable improvement at the prison and I will monitor progress very closely until I am satisfied that we have achieved that aim."

To achieve further necessary and urgent improvements, Governor Davy will need strong support from HMPPS, in terms of planning, financing, recruitment, procurement and contracting.  All these functions are predominantly the responsibility of and emanate from HMPPS.  Please can you inform us, so that we can inform supporters and the wider public, what HMPPS’s plans and commitments are in relation to the following areas requiring action.  We have constructive communication with Governor Davy, who keeps us informed of actions that are being taken by him to improve the prison.  The issues that we raise below are matters that require addressing at the level of HMPPS.

Staffing

Despite a welcome initial reduction in the roll of 150 men, Wandsworth still does not have sufficient staff to enable its staff to carry out their obligations diligently, thoroughly, and with adequate attention to the needs of prisoners.  Governor Davy has significantly reduced the number of staff absences.  However, it remains the case that, partly through a still high number of staff absences, there are not sufficient staff to allow for the running of a genuinely decent and humane regime.  The allowance made for “non-effective” staff, whether sick or receiving training, in relation to necessary staffing levels, is simply not realistic or sufficient.

Most fundamentally, there are still not sufficient staff to ensure that all prisoners have a reasonable (say at least four to five hour) period of time out of cell daily, every day.

Governor Davy has very helpfully and constructively arranged for us to visit the prison, to see what progress is being made.  Most recently, we visited on 22 July and saw ongoing encouraging signs of conditions starting to move in the right direction.  However, we witnessed a number of areas where inadequate staffing levels were significantly limiting the consistent running of an acceptable regime:

·       We visited the library and were informed that the average total number of visits by prisoners per week was 40.  This tiny number of visits was due to insufficient staff to escort prisoners to the library.

·       We visited the new healthcare centre.  We were told that there had been 60 appointments booked for that day. (Which, in itself, seems to us a low number for a healthcare centre with at least six consultation rooms.)  We were told that, in the event, 40 prisoners attended that day.  It was indicated to us that the shortfall of 20 was due to insufficient staff to escort prisoners to the healthcare centre. 

·       We met the person in charge of the workshop.  He was full of enthusiasm and proudly explained that prisoners working in that workshop did real repairs around the prison.  This sounds like a great initiative.  Just two prisoners were signed up to work in the workshop.  It was explained that it was difficult to sign prisoners up – not least because they, understandably, needed to be vetted before getting access to tools.  It is difficult to conclude other than that a shortage of staff to progress the vetting and organisation expediently is a significant cause of the very low number of prisoners able to access meaningful activity – we were told about 10%.

We regularly attend inquests relating to deaths in Wandsworth. A consistent theme is wholly inadequate monitoring of vulnerable prisoners, including failures to comply with the provisions of ACCTs or to answer emergency bells speedily, which can, and do, all too often lead to tragic consequences.  Before the coroner, it can often appear that the staff on the ground take the blame for these failures.  Too little emphasis, we consider, is placed on the responsibility of HMPPS for not ensuring that there are sufficient staff on duty to ensure that staff are able to carry out necessary checks and ensure the safety of prisoners.

At the recent inquest into the death in Wandsworth of Mr Rajwinder Singh on 20 June 2023 evidence was heard of failure to answer cell bells promptly and to carry out required checks.  The coroner found that this was neglect which contributed to Mr Singh’s death.  The court was told that on the night of Mr Singh’s tragic death there was only one member of staff on Mr Singh’s wing and he was an Operational Support Grade, not a prison officer.  Evidence was given that, at one time that evening, 81 emergency bells were going at the same time.  The failure to answer bells in a timely fashion was clearly not a failure of the OSG, but the result of totally inadequate staffing. 

What plans does HMMPS have for ensuring that Governor Davy has sufficient staff to consistently enable all aspects of the regime to function safely, decently and humanely?

Connections with Families

It is widely accepted that maintaining contact with family and friends is vital for prisoner wellbeing and also contributes ultimately to a reduction in the risk of reoffending.  It is therefore beholden on any prison to facilitate visits, with the visitors being welcomed and treated with respect.  We speak to families who visit and it is apparent that there is a great deal of work still to be done in this respect. 

It is similarly vital that prisoners are able to maintain contact by phone with family and friends outside.  We continue to be told by families of their family members having difficulty sorting out PINs so that they can make contact, in particular in the crucial period when newly arrived at the prison.  We are extremely concerned about the monetary cost of calls for prisoners, which remain, even after the recent cost reduction, very high relative to what most people not in prison pay.  What should be an overwhelming priority is ensuring that no prisoner is left without funds to use the phone and unable to contact anyone.  Adrian Usher, speaking at our public meeting in May this year, referred to the distressing regularity with which it transpires that prisoners taking their own lives had no funds left on their phones, such that they were unable to speak to anyone. This is the other cost – a life being lost.

There is a related matter in relation to phones which we have recently written to Lord Timpson about, with the express approval of Adrian Usher.  We are aware that there are services available that provide families with a landline number which diverts to their mobile phone. This service enables prisoners to get charged the cheaper landline rather than mobile rates, even if they don’t have a landline phone at home.  Our understanding is that these redirection services are not permitted by Wandsworth, although some prisons do allow them, or at least turn a blind eye to their use.  We have been told by the Wandsworth Safer Custody Governor that the practice is prohibited for safety reasons, but we do not understand what these reasons are.  Please let us know what HMPPS’ policy is in relation to these redirection services.  Their being allowed could make a vital contribution to prisoner wellbeing and could be a life saver.

Heating and Ventilation

The building is very old.  The heating system and especially the boilers are very old.  The temperature within the prison can vary widely from cold to excessively hot. In 2021 Mr David Wise died from excessive heat in Wandsworth prison, in December.  All steps possible must be taken to ameliorate conditions and eliminate excessive temperatures.  We have been unable to find any specific minimum and maximum temperatures within prisons, below or above which a cell cannot be certified for use.  The Certified Prisoner Accommodation Framework Annex A provides that the heating system should not lead to the overheating of an individual cell and that accommodation must be adequately ventilated.  What is HMPPS’s policy on what constitutes too low or high a cell temperature for a cell to be certified for use?

As mentioned above, we have previously requested from HMPPS details of the planned window refurbishment.  What provision has been made to ensure that ventilation will be adequate when the new windows are installed?

A particular issue has come to our attention in relation to ventilation.  This is the matter of the vents in the roof and whether they can be opened to improve ventilation.  The governor is keen to have them open on hot days.  However, our understanding is that the vents are connected to the fire alarm system such that, if the boilers are on, then opening the vents triggers the fire alarms.  If the boilers are turned off, then there is no hot water for showering etc.  It seems to us that the intended purpose of the connection between vents and alarms is that if the alarms sound then the vents open, presumably to allow smoke out.  Can HMPPS work with Governor Davy and his staff to make it possible for the vents to be opened without the alarms sounding, whilst also ensuring that, if not already open, the vents open when the alarm goes off?

Refurbishment

We are aware that a substantial refurbishment project is planned ultimately for the whole prison.  We understand that the project is to be carried out wing-by-wing, starting with the three wings of the Trinity Unit. 

With a view to commencing this work, as well as alleviating overcrowding pressures generally, 150 prisoners were moved out of K wing by the beginning of this year.  Our understanding is that, whilst some essential preliminary works have been carried out, work on the main refurbishment work had still not commenced as at our visit in July.  Indeed, our understanding is that final contracts for the work still had not been signed.  This is very disappointing.

Please could you inform us of the following:

·       Whether final contracts have been signed for the refurbishment work on Trinity.

·       When the work on K wing is expected to be completed.

·       When the work on all three Trinity wings is expected to be completed.

·       Whether a separate contract, potentially with a different main contractor, will be necessary for the refurbishment of the five wings of Heathfield.

·       When it is expected that such contract for work on Heathfield will be signed.

·       When work on refurbishment of the Heathfield wings is expected to commence.

·       When refurbishment of all eight wings of the prison is expected to be completed.

As an old building, Wandsworth has hidden issues.  We understand that previously unknown issues have already been identified in the preliminary stages of refurbishing K wing.  Please can you confirm that the timetable for all the refurbishment work takes into account that currently unknown issues are bound to arise.

Pending HMPPS’s answers to the above questions, it seems apparent that essential refurbishment works across the prison will not be completed for a considerable time.  Please can you let us know what interim improvements are planned so that conditions for prisoners can be at least reasonably decent and humane pending refurbishment. As a specific example, please can you detail what measures are planned to ensure that all prisoners have regular access to working, hygienic showers with hot water.   Our understanding is that the shower refurbishment project announced in the Action Plan in response to the Urgent notification will, in fact, be implemented on a wing-by-wing basis as part of the overall refurbishment project.  The urgent need for improvement of all showering facilities must be addressed without delay.

We are aware of plans to convert a wing at Wandsworth into a ‘a little Scandinavia’ style facility.  This is an interesting and progressive step, which we welcome, especially with the planned input of the inspiring Natasha Porter, who spoke at our last public meeting.  Please could you let us know details of the timetable for this wing to come into operation.

Capacity

We are encouraged that the operational capacity of Wandsworth Prison was reduced by 150 at the beginning of the year.  In February, we received a commitment from Ian Blakeman that the numbers in the prison would be reduced by a further 150 men, amounting to a permanent reduction of 300 in total.  Please could you confirm when this further reduction will take place.

We look forward to your responses.  We would welcome any opportunity to meet with you, in the interests of improving conditions in Wandsworth Prison.