Rising drug use and deterioration at prison

An unannounced inspection to a prison found it was being targeted by organised crime gangs.

A report into HMP Birmingham, published on Monday by HM Inspectorate of Prisons, found that drones were being used to get large quantities of drugs and contraband into the prison.

It also said that illicit drug use was high, with five deaths linked to it - as were rates of violence and self harm.

Cells were found to be cramped and poorly equipped, with many prisoners lacking essential items such as a pillow and curtains.

The report said that a recent change in policy by the police meant "acutely mentally unwell men, including those who were having psychotic episodes" were not being diverted to mental health services and ended up in the prison.

The report said the prison was "a wholly inappropriate place for such vulnerable and risky men to be housed."

The inspection, carried out in October, also found that living conditions had declined.

Inspectors described some communal areas as "grubby", with rubbish left uncollected and vermin a "serious" problem.

Many cells lacked basic items including pillows and curtains, while 43% of inmates were sharing cells designed for one person.

The report said most toilets were unscreened, leaving prisoners to improvise privacy.

Showers were often in a poor state of repair, and access to clean bedding or cleaning materials had worsened since 2023.

Prisoners without jobs in the jail, who made up 40% of the population, got very little time out of their cells, said the report.

A refurbishment of three of the Victorian wings, commissioned after an inspection in 2018, was found to have stalled since the contractor went into administration.

The report said it meant large parts of the jail were out of use and building materials, including a giant crane, dominated much of the site.

The report said: "Tens of millions of pounds had been squandered on this shambolic project, and I would be amazed if it is completed before 2028."

Prisoners said they lacked regular access to clean bedding every week and one survey by inspectors found that only 65% could shower every day - a decrease since the last inspection.

The report also found that while some showers had been refurbished, others were in a very poor condition.

But inspectors also identified some good practices, including weekly inter‑wing football tournaments that improved morale, and innovative remote monitoring of medicine storage, which made the pharmacy more efficient.

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