Inspection finds increase in violence, self-harm and drug use at HMP Lewes

Violence, self-harm and drug use is on the rise at a prison, inspectors warned.

The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) at HMP Lewes, East Sussex, raised the concerns when it published its report on Friday.

The body said there was a “significant increase in prisoner-on-prisoner violence” while “high levels of self-harm and the availability of drugs” were all “major issues”.

Of particular concern is the recorded violence between inmates, which rose from 165 incidents to 278 in 2018/19, an increase of 68%, the report said.

There were 579 instances of prisoners identified as being at risk from self-harm or suicide, according to the IMB.

And the availability and usage of drugs in the prison remains high, it said.

Searches by the prison included 106 occasions of drugs being found and the average failure rate of prisoners from random drug testing between April and November 2018 was more than 20%.

Mary Bell, chairman of the IMB at Lewes Prison, said: “The board also considers the residential accommodation at HMP Lewes is often not of a high enough standard.

“Increased efforts are needed to improve the accommodation conditions, including the timely replacement of furniture, and that cleanliness is made a higher priority.”

She said there were still “major failings in that men who do not go to work or education are likely to be locked up for more than 22 hours a day”.

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