Coronavirus Kent: Cookham Wood young offenders' institution inmates allowed out of cells for 40 minutes a day
15:09, 07 May 2020
updated: 15:42, 07 May 2020
Children at a young offenders' institution in Kent are locked up in their cells for almost 24 hours a day during the coronavirus outbreak.
Prison inspectors who visited Cookham Wood, near Rochester, found inmates were allowed out of their cells for only 40 minutes per day.
A report published today by the HM Inspectorate of Prisons highlighted the way inmates have been treated since the pandemic has "differed significantly" across the country.
It says institutions have generally responded well and managers had introduced "swift actions to keep children safe".
Inspectors went to Cookham Wood and two other institutions – Wetherby in Yorkshire and Parc in south Wales – last month to see how centres were managing during the virus outbreak.
More restrictive rules have been introduced across the board since the government announced the country's lockdown measures.
Young offenders locked up at Cookham Wood spent more time locked inside their cells and less activity time than children at the other institutions.
At Parc offenders had three hours out of their cells and at Wetherby it was just an hour.
They were separated into "family groups" of three or four inmates and were allowed to interact only with those specific people.
Inspectors found there was "enhanced in-cell activity" including games consoles, puzzles and in-cell workouts.
Education opportunities had been limited but were still being carried out as in-cell activities, inspectors said.
But managers at Parc planned two hours of out-of-cell education classes such as carpentry, PE and cooking.
Phone credit allowances increased by £20-a-week and all children had phones in their cells, meanwhile "weekly pocket money' payments continued and many looked after children received enhanced payments from local authorities".
"This report highlights the swift actions taken by managers at all sites to ensure children were held safely"
Despite meals being delivered to the cells where children then ate, inmates were forced to wait 16 hours between their evening meal and breakfast which inspectors said this "was too long".
But inspectors found Covid-19 had been effectively contained within the institution and communication with children was effective.
Social distancing has been working "reasonably well" but children had been seen plaiting each other's hair at Cookham Wood, the report states.
New arrivals at the institution have been separated from other inmates for 14 days since the outbreak, only spent 30 minutes a day out of cells for activities and could only speak to inmates who had arrived on the same day as them.
Inspectors found self-harming rates at Cookham Wood had remained stable during the outbreak and weekly welfare checks were carried out by staff. A safeguarding officer spoke to children who declined time out of their cell.
However, inspectors were concerned secondary mental health services had been reduced.
Other health services such as drug misuse and dentistry had been reduced too but children had been informed of new arrangements.
They were still able to receive face-to-face appointments with a triage system in place. GPs were also made available although "largely limited to essential care", inspectors noted.
Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said: “This report highlights the swift actions taken by managers at all sites to ensure children were held safely, which included significant regime restrictions.
"While a reduction in time unlocked was inevitable, the variation between establishments was a concern and raised the question of the need for, and therefore the proportionality of, the most restrictive regimes.”
