A damning assessment of Chelmsford Prison means the Government has been called to take immediate action and tackle concerns at the site.

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor has issued a rare Urgent Notification (UN) which requires action from the Secretary of State for Justice within 28 days.

Inspectors visited the jail earlier this month and identified numerous ‘significant concerns’ about the treatment and conditions of prisoners.

Performance at Chelmsford has been assessed as ‘deteriorating’ since 2014.

The prison has been dubbed one of the country’s most violent, so here is why inspectors delivered their damning verdict and the key concerns they raised following their visit:

Safety

Mr Taylor said Chelmsford had “sadly failed in its responsibility to keep prisoners safe.”

Inspectors found it to be one of the country’s most violent local prisons.

Data shows there has been eight self-inflicted deaths since 2018 and a further four non-natural deaths in three years.

In addition, self-harm had continued to rise for the fourth successive inspection.

A negative staff culture

Mr Taylor’s findings stated that although some staff were committed and constructive, many others described “very low morale, disillusionment and disengagement”.

Many staff reportedly fail to respond to even basic requests from prisoners and” too many were dismissive” in their dealings with prisoners or showed “limited empathy”.

Almost half of the prisoners claimed that they had been victimised by staff, particularly prisoners with disabilities and mental health problems.

Lack of accountability and management oversight

Inspectors said this issue enabled poor performance and behaviour to go “unchallenged”.

They were told staff had witnessed poor behaviour among their peers and too few took responsibility for the duties to which they had been deployed.

Emergency cell bells were reportedly only answered after long delays.

A poor daily regime

Prisoners have been locked in their cell for almost 23 hours a day.

Although this was partly due to the coronavirus pandemic, evidence suggest prisoners spent 22 hours a day in their cells back in 2018.

Inspectors said plans to reintroduce a meaningful regime were “limited and being implemented far too slowly”.

In a letter outlining his findings, Mr Taylor said: "HMP & YOI Chelmsford is a violent, unsafe prison in which conditions for prisoners have declined disturbingly over recent years, despite attempts by HMPPS to support improvement.

"Many failings stem from a negative and demoralised staff culture which results in little apparent concern for (or attention to) the welfare and basic needs of a complex and, at times, vulnerable population.

“Chelmsford will not improve without a sustained drive to make sure that all staff members take responsibility for ensuring safety, decency and engagement with training and education in a meaningful regime.

"This will require strong, consistent leadership at all levels within the prison and much more effective support from HMPPS than the approach it has taken in recent years, which failed completely to arrest the drift and decline which must have been obvious to the service.”

A new governor was appointed at Chelmsford prison after it was placed in special measures in 2018.

Inspectors said it was too early to tell if a proposed Prison Performance Support Plan (PPSP) has worked at the prison following this month's visit.

The Chelmsford Urgent Notification is the ninth time the protocol has been used since it was introduced in 2017.