HMP Lowdham Grange's coronavirus outbreak in September was 'one of the biggest' in a prison at that time, according to HM Inspectorate of Prisons report

HMP Lowdham Grange dealt effectively with a serious covid-19 outbreak in September 2020, in which hundreds of prisoners and staff tested positive, according to a report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said one prisoner had subsequently died with covid-19-related symptoms.

“This outbreak was one of the biggest in a prison at that time,” Charlie Taylor said.

“The leadership team had worked effectively in partnership with health care providers and an outbreak control team to bring it under control.”

Inspectors who visited in January and February 2021 found that prison leaders had identified lessons to be learned from the September outbreak and had taken a robust approach to minimising the risks of transmission, which meant that a smaller outbreak just before before HMI Prisons’ scrutiny visit was well managed and swiftly contained.

Communication with staff and prisoners about restrictions was effective and social distancing was well promoted in the prison, which held around 880 men – the majority serving ten years or more.

The prison had invested in technology, such as proximity sensors, to alert staff who inadvertently breached distancing protocols.

Mr Taylor said front line staff were clearly visible when cells were unlocked, and inspectors observed good relationships between staff and prisoners.

However, while violence between prisoners had reduced between July and December 2020, compared with the same period in 2019, violence towards staff had increased. Prison leaders felt that this was due to growing frustration with regime restrictions.

Living conditions were reasonable and nearly all cells contained telephones and many also had integral showers.

Work to promote equality had continued throughout the pandemic period, although a promising race equality taskforce, established as a response to wider concerns raised by prisoners around Black Lives Matter, had to be suspended due to the September outbreak of covid-19 in the prison.

Healthcare provision was reasonably good, though GP waiting times were too long and some prisoners had excessive waits for transfer to mental health hospitals under the Mental Health Act, the report said.

The prison had introduced a tier system to support prisoners to have longer periods out of their cells.

Most prisoners still spent prolonged periods locked in cells and, Mr Taylor said: “Many prisoners raised concerns about the impact of restrictions on their well-being.”

Prisoners’ access to the library was poor, which was concerning given the need to promote in-cell activity to improve their well-being.

Education leaders recognised they had been too slow to reinstate a broad curriculum, while it was good that the proportion of prisoners engaging in education had increased.

Mr Taylor said: “This is an encouraging report. The prison had learned from the serious covid-19 outbreak, and partnership working between prison and health leaders was a real strength.”