British prisons are hiring “unsuitable” recruits who can’t unlock cell doors, a top-ranking guard has warned.
In damning new comments, Mark Fairhurst, national chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association trade union, described the current hiring process as “simply not fit for purpose” – and said some people being put forward for new roles cannot carry out basic responsibilities expected of them. This included one member of staff who was allegedly sent back to training college because it was found they were physically not able to lock and unlock cell doors. The latest warning follows a damning inspection of two major UK prisons which found that drugs and weapons are being routinely delivered to inmates by drone after guards effectively “ceded” control.
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Mark Fairhurst, national chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association trade union, said some new recurits were ‘not capable of locking or unlocking cell doors’
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BBC)
According to the MailOnline, Mr Fairhurst told the Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee: “‘We recruited a person before Christmas who got sent back to their establishment from the training college because they were not capable of locking or unlocking cell doors, they were incapable of controlling restraint training and they were incapable of conducting a rub down search. That governor has had to dismiss that member of staff because he discovered that that staff member had been recruited and has cerebral palsy.”
Responding to Mr Fairhurst’s comments, a spokesperson for the Prison Service said: “Our prison officers undergo robust assessments and an extended period of training before they work in prisons. We also continuously review our recruitment process to ensure our officers are best suited to their role and have strengthened vetting procedures to root out applicants who fall below our high standards.”
Earlier this week, Charlie Taylor, chief inspector of prisons, warned that guards had effectively “ceded the airspace” around HMP Manchester and HMP Long Lartin to gangs dropping contraband over the fences using drones. A recent inspection of both prisons uncovered a “thriving illicit economies” of drugs, mobile phones and weapons, with protective nets and CCTV found to have fallen into disrepair. It was found that some inmates had burned or smashed holes in windows to receive their drone deliveries. Warning that the situation posed a potential risk to national security, Mr Taylor said: “It is highly alarming that the police and prison service have, in effect ceded the airspace above two high-security prisons to organised crime gangs which are able to deliver contraband to jails holding extremely dangerous prisoners including some who have been designated as high-risk category A.
“The safety of staff, prisoners and ultimately that of the public, is seriously compromised by the failure to tackle what has become a threat to national security. The prison service, the police and other security services must urgently confront organised gang activity and reduce the supply of drugs and other illicit items which so clearly undermine every aspect of prison life.” A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said the Government had inherited prisons “in crisis” but said they are “working with the police and others to tackle serious organised crime” and “building more prison places to lock up dangerous criminals”.