Latest news with #IMB
BBC News
6 hours ago
- General
- BBC News
Derwentside immigration centre phone problems continue
People at a women-only detention centre continue to struggle with poor mobile phone signal despite the Home Office previously saying that finding a solution to the problem was a "priority piece of work".The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) said there had been "no progress" in improving phone reception at Derwentside Immigration Removal Centre in Consett, County Durham, since first detailing the issue in problem affected the women's contact with their family and friends as well as their legal cases, the IMB Home Office has been approached for comment. In 2024, 1,130 women arrived at Derwentside and, while the majority left detention within 14 days of arrival, there were examples of detainees staying at the facility for several months. More than 60% of the women released from Derwentside IRC were granted bail, the IMB said. 'Difficult and frightening' The watchdog said residents were "frequently noted to be hovering by open windows or outside" while waiting for or taking part in calls, "regardless of the weather and temperature".It said it had been more than two years since the Home Office said it was looking to introduce the ability for detainees to make calls via wi-fi, rather than mobile signals, as a potential solution to the site's poor government had called it a "priority piece of work", the IMB said, though this technology has "not yet been introduced", Dr Helen Groom from, the No To Hassockfield campaign group which seeks the closure of Derwentside, said this issue was particularly significant because many of the women were from other parts of the country so relied on phone calls to stay in touch with loved ones. The IMB report also said Derwentside was "generally safe" and there were few incidents involving violence or the use of the overnight transfers to and from the site still remained "too high", the board IMB said women at the site may have been trafficked and experienced "difficult and frightening" journeys in the past, so long overnight trips may contribute to their "anxiety and fear".It said about 24% of the women sent to the facility in 2024 had arrived overnight, which was an improvement on the "limited information" it had been given about overnight transfers in 2023. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Telegraph
Violent prisoners taught philosophy
Prisoners have been taught the philosophy of stoicism under schemes that have reduced violence and conflict behind bars. Watchdogs at Wayland Prison in Thetford, Norfolk, have revealed the inmates have been undergoing classes based on the works of Socrates and Zeno of Citium. The theories behind stoicism were developed by Socrates, the Greek philosopher, while Zeno is credited with having developed the concept and founded the stoic school of philosophy, which he taught in Athens from about 300 BC. Stoicism, which was taken on by the Romans, teaches individuals to focus on what they can control – their thoughts and actions – and to accept what they cannot, such as external events and outcomes. Stoics strive to develop virtues such as wisdom, courage, justice and temperance to achieve a life of tranquillity and virtue. The classes at the category C prison are said by its watchdog, independent monitoring board (IMB), to have been so popular that they have been scheduled throughout the year to meet demand. The IMB said the innovative approach was proving an effective remedy to combat drug use at the jail and contributing to a decline in the amount of violence. Data published by the watchdogs showed that assaults on staff and other prisoners had decreased. 'It is this sort of effort, which distances itself from both punitive and simply educative approaches and, instead, seeks to increase a prisoner's inner resilience, which we would encourage and were recommending in our commentary on the 2024 prisoner attitude survey,' said the watchdogs. 'We therefore recommend to the governor that the prison takes the success of this course and examines how additional resilience and prevention training could be introduced as an expanded weapon in its war on the evils of drugs and the rehabilitation chances of its prisoners.' The move follows research by Manchester Met University into the impact of regular sessions on Descartes, Aristotle, Plato and other thinkers on prisoner's ability to trust and cooperate with other inmates, including some of the most dangerous Category A prisoners. Dr Kirstine Szifris, a researcher in the Institute of Criminology at the University of Cambridge, said the initial interactions were characterised by 'bravado, one-upmanship and competition' with the men not having any respect for any of their criminal counterparts. She led the prisoners through a series of philosophical problems to illustrate ideas such as Plato's ideal society, the Stoic philosophy of the Greeks and Romans, and the Socratic method of inquiry. One scenario led them to imagine they were shipwrecked on a desert island with other survivors and asked how they would organise their new society. She found that through an emphasis on philosophical conversation, the inmates began to appreciate the importance of listening to each other. 'They learned that working together to understand what Kant, Descartes or Plato were saying was more fruitful than trying to outdo each other,' she said.
BBC News
4 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
HMP Leeds suicide rate 'concerning', says watchdog
The number of suicides at HMP Leeds is still at a "concerning" level and has been made worse by a lack of funding and resources, a prisons watchdog has Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) questioned whether enough was being done to reduce the number of self-inflicted deaths at the category B men's IMB said a lack of investment was "exacerbating an already very difficult situation caused by overcrowding and the reliance on infrastructure mainly built nearly 180 years ago".The Ministry of Justice said it fully acknowledged the challenges at HMP Leeds and was taking steps to address the issue. A spokesperson said: "We have taken steps to address the number of self-inflicted deaths at HMP Leeds, including improved staff training and new specialised cells which ensure constant oversight of prisoners who may be at risk." Cramped cells The IMB report noted there were eight deaths in custody between January and December 2024. Six were self-inflicted and two were from natural number of deaths at the prison in 2023 was the same, although three were report said it was "alarmed" that checks on prisoners known to be at risk of self-harm and suicide may not have been accurately logged in all said prisoners continued to share cramped cells in which they ate, slept, washed and used the toilet, and the cells tended to be too hot in summer and too cold in added that there were many prisoners with severe mental health problems who may not be prioritised for transfer to secure mental health facilities, because prison was perceived by the NHS to be a "safe" environment."On regular occasions over the course of the year it was necessary to curtail the daily regime because of staff shortages," the IMB said."This resulted in prisoners having less time out of their cells to associate and access work and education."Social justice charity Nacro said cramped and overcrowded cells were "not acceptable", in particular for people with acute mental health executive Campbell Robb said: "As the IMB at HMP Leeds rightly points out, prison is not - and should never be mistaken for - a safe alternative to proper mental health care."The staff at HMP Leeds are clearly doing what they can, but without urgent investment in both infrastructure and staffing, these efforts will always be undermined." Despite this, the watchdog reported that there was a reduction in the number of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) prisoners in HMP good mental health and wellbeing has also been prioritised, with the introduction of "check on a mate" schemes to encourage prisoners to check in on each other, particularly on those who may be and prisoner relationships were observed to be generally positive, particularly in smaller units within the IMB chair John Cleland said: "HMP Leeds has one of the highest levels of self-inflicted death in the prison estate."Whilst the local prison leadership and staff are actively seeking to address this, we are concerned that a lack of investment is exacerbating an already very difficult situation caused by overcrowding and the reliance on infrastructure mainly built nearly 180 years ago."All deaths in custody are investigated by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) who report their findings."They make recommendations on what steps could be taken to reduce deaths in the future. These recommendations are accepted by the prison management." If you have been affected by this report, you can find further support via the BBC Action Line. Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
BBC News
08-07-2025
- BBC News
Lewes Prison sees rise in assaults on staff, report finds
Assaults on prison staff by prisoners at Lewes Prison have risen despite better living conditions, a report has involving prisoners attacking staff rose by 15% in the space of a year to 79 assaults over 12 months, with prisoner self-harm also increasing by 5% to 651 cases during the same the report from the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) also found that prisoner-on-prisoner violence fell by 16% to under 200 incidents between February 2024 and January 2025.A Prison Service spokesperson welcomed the progress highlighted in the report but said it is "ramping up efforts to tackle the root causes of violence". An IMB spokesperson said issues persisted despite better living conditions at the prison, with prisoners spending more time out of their cells and more opportunities for education and Fairclough, IMB Lewes vice-chairman, said there was "clear evidence that the prison has become a better place".He added: "However, the board is still concerned about high levels of violence and rates of prisoner self-harm, though we welcome some recent signs of improvement."Prison officers also felt required to use force against prisoners in 25% more incidents, amounting to 721 cases, the report found. 'Significant challenges' The IMB added it was concerned about the high proportion of cases involving force against younger prisoners and prisoners from minority ethnic backgrounds.A third of incidents involving force were against prisoners from a Caribbean, African or other black background but there was no evidence of bias or prejudice, the report with heating and hot water supply meant that the prison had at times been "unacceptably hot or cold" for prisoners and staff alike, the report issues in the report included a lack of CCTV in areas of the prison and "significant challenges" with illicit worth more than £1.5m including drugs and mobile phones were intercepted at the prison, with 35% more weapons and nearly double the amount of "illicitly brewed alcohol" also with mental health were also raised, with the prison having no psychiatrist for most of summer 2024, the report Prison Service added: "We are pleased the IMB has recognised the progress being made at HMP Lewes."But we know more needs to be done and are ramping up efforts to tackle the root causes of violence including through landmark sentencing reforms to reduce pressure on our prisons."A report in May 2024 from HM Inspectorate of Prisons said HMP Lewes was "trapped" in a cycle of rising violence, self-harm and drug report stated that only a third of prisoners were engaged in education or employment and while the institution had "clear plans to improve", many inmates spent just two hours a day out of their cells or as little as 90 minutes working.
BBC News
08-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Detained migrants deprived of medicines, report says
The health of detained migrants is put at risk because their medication is confiscated at ports and airports, a report has Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) inspected facilities at Bristol and Cardiff airports and at Newhaven, Poole and Portsmouth ports, where migrants can be detained for up to 24 for assessing and treating health conditions at all sites was inadequate, the South and West Short-Term Holding Facilities IMB Border Force, which runs the units and has refused to comment, was found by inspectors to be treating those in detention well. In their annual report, IMB inspectors said: "The current arrangements, where possession of medication is not allowed... may present risks to health."On one occasion, a new arrival at Bristol Airport was prevented from taking post-operation antibiotics, they holding unit had no hot water or soap, while the one in Poole had no heating at all, inspectors Bristol, there were no plans to expand the detention unit in line with the approved increase in the number of airport passengers, they IMB said Border Force (BF) had sometimes hampered the work of said: "BF have consistently failed to give the IMB access to detention records, primarily at Poole and Cardiff."In addition, during the year the IMB access to the offices at Poole was withdrawn."The board's chair, Di Askwith, said: "People in immigration detention can be anxious and vulnerable and may have had a challenging journey to reach that point."Our observations indicated that people in detention were being treated well by Border Force. However, we would like to see more consistent record keeping and for the IMB to be able to access all records."Bristol was the busiest site in the year to the end of January, with 356 detentions for longer than two were 63 detentions in Portsmouth, 12 in Cardiff, eight in Newhaven and two in number was lower than the previous year when 582 people were detained, according to Border Force.
