A TARDEBIGGE prison previously labelled "dirty, dangerous and drug-ridden" has made improvements – despite four suicides in two years and a higher level of self-injury since its last inspection, the prison watchdog has said.

Inspectors who visited HMP Hewell said level of violence at the jail was still "far too high". In just six months there were 49 fights, 47 assaults on staff and 159 assaults on prisoners, some serious enough to result in hospitalisation, HM Inspectorate of Prisons said.

The report published on Monday, January 9 found overcrowded and filthy cells, that the availability of drugs remained very high, and broken toilets – with one inmate feeling forced to urinate in a cup.

Redditch Advertiser:

However inspectors did find the open part of the jail, called The Grange, was "successful", describing it as "safe, respectful with reasonably good work, training and education opportunities".

The closed site still "faced many challenges" and there were some areas of "serious concern", said inspectors.

Previously, the prison has been under fire for its suicide rate, which in November was judged among the highest in England and Wales, and the report which said levels of self-harm had increased and four prisoners had taken their own lives, stated the prison had not yet sufficiently implemented recommendations from the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman following investigations into these deaths.

Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, said it was "alarming" that recommendations to prevent further tragedies have not been implemented with "sufficient rigour".

"No one should be so desperate while in the care of the state that they take their own life," he said.

"Allowing the prison population to grow unchecked while cutting resources has created a toxic mix of violence, death and human misery."

He added that the report made clear the need for "urgent reform" of the prison system.

Redditch Advertiser:

Chief inspector of prisons Peter Clarke said that "very big challenges operationally, managerially and in terms of resources" needed to be addressed.

He also said that "outcomes" for prisoners at the closed site were "very poor".

But he added: "We found improvements in many areas and examples of good practice. At the time of the inspection, the deputy governor was in temporary charge and the prison was awaiting the arrival of a new governor. But this uncertainty had not led to lack of leadership; the management team was focused, innovative and committed to tackling the prison’s problems."

Michael Spurr, chief executive of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), said: "I’m pleased that the Chief Inspector has acknowledged the progress at Hewell which is to the credit of the former governor, his deputy and their team.

"There remains more to do, particularly on safety, but the strong foundations that are now in place will allow the prison to address the recommendations in this report and drive further improvement over the coming months."