Prison guards were injured after being attacked by rioting inmates at a North East young offenders' institution.
Four prison officers were injured at HM YOPI Deerbolt, near Barnard Castle, County Durham , when inmates took over the C wing.
A 'Tornado team' of specialist officers were called to the disturbance.
Ian Carson, the North East representative of the Prison Officers Association, told The Guardian the incident was symptomatic of a crisis in the prison system that is "fighting a losing battle".
In the past two months, he said, three prison officers across the country had taken their own lives.
He added: "We are seeing inexperienced staff brought in and handling situations they aren’t yet equipped for, a lack of management support and the people who have been recruited leaving in droves because of the levels of violence.
"We are receiving ministerial edicts demanding the service to regain control and reduce violence instead of trying to understand what is at the root of these problems. The rehabilitation revolution just isn’t working."
A spokesperson for Durham Constabulary confirmed they were called at 7.45pm on Wednesday following reports of a riot at the prison and the incident was resolved just after midnight.
The officers injured during the riot are not thought to have sustained any serious or life-threatening injuries.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: “Violence and disorder in our prisons is not tolerated and those responsible will be punished for their actions.
"We are investing £2.75bn to improve our jails and make them safer – creating 10,000 additional prison places and introducing tough airport-style security to clamp down on the illicit items which fuel violence.”
