Safety had deteriorated markedly over three years at HMP/YOI Portland, with very high levels of violence in 2017, according to a report on the Dorset prison by HM Inspectorate of Prisons. Ready supplies of illicit drugs were linked to bullying and violence.

Half the prisoners had felt unsafe at some point and levels of self-harm, often serious, were also very high. Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said his inspectors had reached the “serious and disappointing judgement” that Portland had declined from being a ‘fundamentally safe’ jail in a 2014 inspection to one where safety was poor in 2017.

HMP/YOI Portland is an historic, category C prison located on Portland Bill, Dorset. It was originally built in 1848 and, in May 2017, housed around 500 adult and young adult male prisoners. “In our survey,” Mr Clarke said, “half of prisoners said they had felt unsafe at some time, and one in four felt unsafe at the time of the inspection. The latter figure is double what it was in 2014.” There did not appear to be a coordinated strategy to deal with the violence and prisoners felt staff were not intervening sufficiently to stop bullying and violence.

Inspectors found the use of force by staff was higher than at comparable prisons. Baton use had increased to very high levels. Body-worn cameras, though available, were not routinely used and nor was their footage reviewed.

Portland also urgently needed to tackle illicit drugs. 64% of prisoners told inspectors it was easy to get drugs. Only one prison had returned a higher figure for this measure in the last year. One in five prisoners said they had developed a drug problem in the prison. It was clear that the ready availability of drugs was contributing to the levels of debt, bullying and violence. Inspectors were told that, following a smoking ban in February 2017, synthetic ‘spice’ was cheaper than tobacco – though the smoking ban appeared to be widely ignored.

Inspectors also found:

• For a category C prison, the prisoners were locked up for too much of the time. More than 30% of them were locked in their cells during the working day. Many cells were in poor condition. A senior staff member described a cell with sheets used as makeshift window and shower curtains as a “good cell.”
• Few prisoners had coats or waterproof jackets for wet weather. Inspectors watched prisoners walking between buildings dripping wet, some were using bin bags to keep dry, yet found hundreds of coats in the main stores.
• The health centre waiting area – which had a swastika still clearly visible under recently applied paint – was the worst such waiting area inspectors had seen in a category C prison.
• In terms of protecting the public, the prison had stopped notifying external probation services of forthcoming releases of higher-risk prisoners needing Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). Inspectors “could not, therefore, be assured that prisoners were released in the safest possible way.”

Despite these problems, however, inspectors did find that:

• Relationships between staff and prisoners seemed generally good, with many positive interactions.
• Prison workshops, in particular, were a good example of cooperative and collaborative relationships. Prisoners felt “as if they had left the confines of the prison” while they were involved in such activities.

Peter Clarke said:

“There were many good things happening at Portland, but we were left with the clear view that there was a need for effective leadership to take Portland into the future and to shake off many of the vestiges of the past. A new governor was appointed a few weeks before the inspection… The governor and his senior team now have an opportunity to seize the initiative and drive forward the improvements that are badly needed at Portland.

Michael Spurr, Chief Executive of HM Prison and Probation Service, said:

“As the Chief Inspector points out there is much positive work being done by staff at Portland, but this is undermined by the decline in safety. With a new Governor in place, the prison is already working to combat levels of violence and has reviewed its Violence Reduction Policy as well as putting in place a new strategy to tackle the behavioural issues created by the use of psychoactive substances. More prison officers are being recruited, and with these additional resources the Governor will be able to achieve the improvements required.”

Notes to editors:

1. A copy of the full report, published on 20 September 2017, can be found here
2. HM Inspectorate of Prisons is an independent inspectorate, inspecting places of detention to report on conditions and treatment, and promote positive outcomes for those detained and the public.
3. HMP/YOI Portland is a category C prison in Dorset housing adult and young adult male prisoners.
4. This unannounced inspection took place between 15 –19 May 2017.
5. Please contact John Steele at HM Inspectorate of Prisons press office on 020 3681 2775 or 07880 787452 if you would like more information.