More than a third of investigations into assaults against prison staff are dropped before the end of the process, according to Ministry of Justice (MoJ) data.
Speaking to the Observer, officers working in several different prisons said they felt management did not take abuse against them by inmates seriously and that they were frequently told to “grow up” and “deal with it”.
Since the start of last year, 36% of investigations into attacks on prison staff were not completed.
A number of officers said they felt there was “no point” in starting disciplinary actions because their cases could be thrown out. When they did report an incident that was dropped during the investigation process, they said it created even more conflict with the prisoner, who felt emboldened to continue abusing them.
Prison officers report attacks against them through an internal adjudication system.
Ian Carson, a former prison officer and national representative for the Prison Officers’ Association, said prison managers are increasingly reluctant to discipline inmates because of the large backlog of cases.
“It’s easier for them to just write off assaults and blame ‘natural justice’ because they took too long to do it,” he said. “They can … make it look like there’s less violence in the prison.”
Since 2010, budgets for prisons have been cut, the number of inmates has increased, sentences have become longer and staffing levels have plummeted.
According to a recent report by the criminal justice joint inspectorates, the rate of prison officers leaving each year is now at 13.4%.
Meanwhile, assaults against staff in prisons have almost tripled since 2005.
Former officer Sarah Nixon of Winchester University’s department of policing, criminology and forensics said: “When I was an officer – between 2003 and 2009 – you wouldn’t ever really get assaulted. I’ve been into prisons since, and it’s a whole different story. It feels unsafe – there’s just not enough staff.”
Prison officer Stephanie* was sexually assaulted by an inmate in his cell while trying to give him his medicine. She was never told the outcome of the disciplinary process. Her assault was not referred to the police, nor was she advised to contact them herself.
According to government policy on prison staff, “all sexual offences must be referred to the police” and “staff-victims” should be informed of outcomes “at the earliest opportunity”.
The prisoner allegedly continued to sexually assault more female members of staff until one of them did report it to the police, who opened a criminal investigation.
At no point did anyone from Stephanie’s prison tell her this. “I found out when the police contacted me for a statement,” she said.
Sexual assaults by inmates on prison officers have increased by 427% since 2005. The MoJ does not collect data on how many of those reports go through the disciplinary process or how often prisoners are found guilty of them.
If there is no prosecution, there are specific disciplinary charges for prisoners who have committed sexual offences against staff.
Hannah* was sexually harassed by an inmate for months while working in a wing for sex offenders. She captured one incident on camera and had testimony from another officer who had witnessed it, so she decided to report it.
“He [the prisoner] was in for sexual violence, so the abuse was to do with his offence,” she said. “It was important to me that he stopped being sexually aggressive [towards] female officers.”
Shortly afterwards, Hannah said her manager took her aside and reprimanded her for reporting it because, she said, it was not serious enough and so it would not be proceeded with.
“She made me feel really stupid and embarrassed,” Hannah said. “I wished I hadn’t done it, even though what he did was clearly against the prison rules. She made me feel like I was just being weak.”
The prisoner subsequently made a complaint against Hannah, alleging that she was racist and this was investigated. “It was completely ridiculous,” Hannah said.
The inmate mocked Hannah, saying that the governor would be “on his side”. Although his allegations were later dismissed, the events left Hannah feeling upset, frustrated and, she said, as if “his word was better than mine”.
The MoJ does not collect data on why investigations into assaults on prison staff are dropped. Governors are allowed to “not proceed” with a case for a range of reasons, including that the prisoner has been released without a further risk assessment.
Cases are also logged as “not proceeded with” when they are referred to the police if the Crown Prosecution Service decides to prosecute.
Multiple prison officers, including Stephanie, said that during and after the disciplinary process, their safety concerns were disregarded.
After she was sexually assaulted, Stephanie told her manager that she did not want to deal with that particular prisoner in his cell again, but she said she was told to “deal with it”.
Stephanie added: “It made me feel so angry. If I was another kind of frontline worker, like a doctor or a nurse, would that be allowed to happen?.”
At another prison, Graham*, an officer, was hit by a prisoner so hard that his jaw popped out. “It was traumatic,” he said. “It came out of nowhere.” The inmate was found guilty during the disciplinary process and put into segregation. But a few days later, Graham was asked to go to collect the prisoner by himself.
“I was really taken aback,” he said. “[The governor] knew he’d assaulted me because she did the adjudication, but she acted surprised when I reminded her.”
Graham’s instructions did not change, however. “So I just went and got him,” he said. “I didn’t feel comfortable, but no one else was going to. That’s how prison is.”
A spokesperson for the MoJ said: “This government inherited a prison system plagued by violence and overcrowding and is committed to reforming it to protect staff and cut crime.
“All assaults on staff are taken extremely seriously and are dealt with either through the adjudication process or through reporting to the police so that those responsible are punished.”
*Names have been changed
