Warning: The prisons inspector said staffing at Parc was 'too low'

New staff at the jail at Bridgend - which has suffered a series of inmate suicides - will include 10 officers to work directly on supervisory duties, with the remaining four jobs involving helping and advising prisoners on resettlement.

Earlier in May, HMP Parc was criticised by Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers who said staffing levels were "too low" and as a result the safety of inmates and prison officers could not be guaranteed.

She said: "Additional staff are urgently needed to ensure that levels of safety are maintained."

A Parc prison spokeswoman stressed that this criticism had now been addressed with the creation of the 14 new prison staff posts.

The news comes on the day the Securicor group - which owns Parc under the company's Justice Division - announced profits of �35m for the six months to March 31.

Since 1997 there have been a series of suicides at Parc

Also making a major contribution to that profit is Securicor's Aviation Division, which recently gained the security contract at Cardiff International Airport.

Post September 11 and the US terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre, heightened security measures have been taken at Cardiff and other airports in the UK.

Costing �82m to build, the 800-inmate Parc Prison, has suffered a number of high-profile problems since it opened in 1997, including inmate suicides.

Chief Prisons Inspector Anne Owers, in her report, praised the "impressive commitment and motivation" of the staff and commented on the respectful and relaxed staff-prisoner relationships.

Airport's security

Parc was the first prison to be designed, constructed and managed under the Government's Private Finance Initiative, and was awarded a 25-year contract by HM Prison Service in 1995.

A Category B local prison, it houses remand and convicted male adults and incorporates a Young Offenders Institution for remand and convicted young offenders.

The 447 employees are mainly recruited locally. Of this number 287 are operational personnel who work solely with prisoners and the remainder are teachers, administrative, catering and other support staff.

Securicor Aviation, Cardiff airport's security contractors, delivered up-beat figures with a turnover rising to 10% over the previous year.

In the half-yearly financial report, Securicor chairman Lord Sharman concluded that it was clear there was a weakness within the larger world economies with customers either cutting back on services or delaying purchasing decisions.