A violent outbreak at a young offenders’ institution has left prison officers needing medical treatment.
About 14 staff at HM Prison Feltham in west London, which is home to about 100 boys and young men aged between 15 and 21, were taken to hospital after the disturbance at lunchtime on Friday.
The Ministry of Justice said there had been no serious injuries, and that the situation had been brought under control within 25 minutes. It is not known how many prisoners were involved.
A Prison Service spokesman said: “An incident at Feltham young offender institute was quickly resolved by our brave and diligent prison officers. We will never tolerate violence against our staff and will punish those involved.”
It comes after the chief inspector of prisons called for an urgent intervention at Feltham in response to a review that uncovered a steep rise in levels of violence and self-harm.
Peter Clarke said the inspection of Feltham A, the unit for boys aged 15 to 18, had identified an extraordinary decline in safety and care for inmates. It prompted the government to halt placements at the unit.
The MoJ said there had been a sustained reduction in levels of assaults on staff, self-harm and the use of force between the start of May and the end of August, but that there were no plans to return the establishment to full capacity.
