A nurse has apparently been left blind in one eye after he was punched by a young inmate at a youth jail in Rochester.

The health professional, who has not been named, was allegedly attacked as he went into the cell of a young inmate at Cookham Wood Young Offenders Institution in Sir Evelyn Road, last Friday.

It is understood the male nurse was due to give the young inmate some medication after he was transferred to the facility, which houses 178 young men aged 15 to 18, from another juvenile centre elsewhere.

A source who didn’t want to be named, told KentOnline the nurse was punched in the face by the teenage inmate and as a result is now blind in his left eye.

A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Justice said it could not comment on the incident as the police were investigating it, but said it was an isolated incident which involved just one offender and added that violence against staff was not tolerated at the site.

The source who revealed the incident said the offender who carried out the attack was just 16.

He added: “The nurse is now blind in one eye. It’s terrible what happened.

“This inmate was moved in from another facility after misbehaving and was put into segregation for three days but then was put on the normal wing.

“The nurse went into his cell to give him some medication and he jumped up and punched the nurse in the face, he’s now lost his sight in that eye.

“Assaults on staff are happening on a daily basis, not usually as serious as this, but yes, the alarm bells go off every single day and sometimes, on a bad day it can happen about seven or eight times.

“Staff are struggling to keep control it is getting worse and worse.

“Over the past few years someone had their back broken in an assault and someone had to retire early under medical grounds after being injured in the head and they had to have about 30 stitches in their head.

“Another staff member was scolded with boiling water as they walked through a door and staff get verbally abused all the time too.

“These youngsters have no fear of the justice system or coming into prison, they just don’t care.

“The public just don't realise how it is and what goes on, it is unbelievable.”

A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said: “We do not tolerate any violence against the dedicated staff who work with our offenders.

“Safety in custody is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system. When incidents like this occur we work closely with the police to push for the strongest possible punishment.

“This incident is now being investigated by police therefore we cannot comment further at this stage.”

A teenager has been charged with grievous bodily harm.

A police statement said: "The boy, who is an inmate at the institution, appeared before Medway magistrates on November 15.

"He will remain in custody and appear in court again on a date to be determined."