A report by HMI Prisons, published following a visit to Cookham Wood last month (April), states that “it was clear that staff, including the governor, had not been aware of the decision until shortly before it was made”.
“New staff, including teachers and dozens of youth justice workers, had just started or were in training,” it adds.
Inspectors also highlight that investment in the YOI, including refurbishing residential units and installing new classrooms, was also in progress or had been completed very recently.
They described Cookham Wood as “an establishment in limbo” after the Ministry of Justice announced that the Kent YOI would be repurposed as an adult prison in March.
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