Violence still a problem at struggling Exeter Prison

The latest report into life behind bars at HMP Exeter paints a depressing picture. Some improvements have been made but progress in key area remains fragile, says review by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons

Exeter Prison continues to have the highest rates of violence between inmates in the country, a damning new report says. Rates of self-harm also remain stubbornly high at the Victorian-era jail and managers have been slow to address concerns highlighted in previous visits by the prison watchdog.

The findings are contained in an independent review of progress published by the HM Chief Inspector of Prisons. Previous inspections resulted in the HMP Exeter receiving an Urgent Notification in which the Inspector raised serious concerns about the safety of men held there.

The latest report follows a catch-up visit in November of last year to see what, if any improvements, have been made.

It says the new governor at the jail has a clear vision and is visible on the wings. There have also been improvements to governance and risk management processes and care for individuals in crisis is better.

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But rates of self-harm remain high, and a further self-inflicted death has occurred since the last inspection. An action plan to address the concerns in these areas was in place, but managers have been slow to address the issues. Overall, progress remains "fragile" and some effective staff members were only temporary appointments.

Key areas of the prison’s CCTV remain poor and the prison continues to be overcrowded.

The last full inspection at the prison took place in November 2022. Inspectors were so alarmed at some of what they saw that the Urgent Notification process was invoked. It was the first time the watchdog had repeated the protocol in consecutive inspections - having also done so in 2018.

In 2022 levels of self-harm were the highest of all adult men’s prisons and there had been 10 self-inflicted deaths. Arrangements for monitoring those most at risk, such as new arrivals, were poor. Other issues raised during previous visits included instability of the senior leadership team.

Improvements were demanded in a number of key areas of concern. The latest report says there has been "reasonable progress in three areas and insufficient progress in four, two of which had been identified as priority concerns".

Charlie Taylor HM Chief Inspector of Prisons says in the report: "There had been a full year between the last inspection and this review, and overall progress against our concerns was mixed. The new governor had focused the leadership team, providing staff with clear instructions on what was required to address the concerns identified following the Urgent Notification.

"In 2022, I noted that the prison needed a period of leadership stability, with adequate staffing – there were now signs of stability and while it is right to acknowledge that some progress has been made, much of it felt precarious.

"There were clear links between progress and staff resources. However, much of the additional resource was temporary and needed to be guaranteed for the longer term to make sure efforts being made led to improvements across all areas of the prison."

The areas where insufficient progress has been made are:

• National leadership
• Managing behaviour
• Daily life
• Time out of cell

The reports paints a bleak picture of behaviour. It says there has been good to address the reasons for violence but "recorded rates of violence between prisoners remained the highest among all adult male prisons."

It adds: "The prison had not been helped by overcrowding and the closure of one wing meaning that prisoners could not be separated. In the six months before this visit, the rate for prisoner assaults had increased by 78%, compared to the same period up to the full inspection.

"Although violence against staff had declined, it too remained among the highest in the adult male prison group."

Reasonable progress has been made in areas of safeguarding, staff-prisoner relationships, health well-being and social care.

Inspectors found three examples of positive practice during the latest visit. These included a well-organised prisoner safety summit for staff, a detailed A-Z guide on safety, and the good work by the substance misuse service manager.

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