AYJ Comment: Despite signs of progress, children in Feltham still face the most dangerous conditions in the country

The latest inspection of HMYOI Feltham A by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, Charlie Taylor, once again paints a bleak picture for children held there.

Despite some tentative progress under new leadership, inspectors found outcomes remained poor for both safety and purposeful activity. Levels of violence, though reduced in recent months, were still the highest of any prison in the country. In the past year, there were over 1,400 incidents of use of force, and 70% of children reported they had been restrained - the highest of any YOI. Children were often confined to their cells for 20 hours a day in “enforced idleness”, with some let out for less than an hour, and education was so disrupted that many received only half of their scheduled lesson time. Staff shortages and sickness undermined basic stability throughout.

Taylor concluded that Feltham “remains a troubled institution that is still not nearly safe enough”.

 Jess Mullen, Chief Executive of the Alliance for Youth Justice, said:

“Feltham has long been emblematic of the failures of child custody. While it is right to acknowledge small signs of progress, the fact is that this remains the most dangerous institution in the country for children. With more than three-quarters of the children there from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds, these failings fall hardest on those already facing systemic inequality.

That significant safety concerns have now been raised at Feltham, the Oasis Restore secure school, Werrington and Oakhill in a single month highlights that the youth estate is not fit for purpose and cannot provide the care and nurture needed by highly vulnerable children. With the Sentencing Bill due to return to Parliament after recess, these reports underline the urgent necessity to carefully consider the children’s sentencing framework - not to address any crisis in capacity, but a crisis in safety.”