Campaigners have said HMP Wandsworth remains "grim and dysfunctional" after a new report found prisoners are still being held in "inhumane conditions". The Wandsworth Prison Improvement Campaign (WPIC) is continuing to press for improvements at the South London prison, including decent cells and showers, more time out of cells, support for foreign nationals, mail delivery and access to family phone numbers.
In a report published in October, HMP Wandsworth's Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) found persistent issues with heating and hot water resulted in a "loss of service" in November last year, which meant an extra 1,500 coats, 1,000 blankets and 2,000 instant noodles had to be ordered for inmates. The IMB said the problems would continue until the prison's plumbing and heating systems were fully replaced.
Report highlights overcrowding and staff shortages
The IMB's report for 2025/26 found that while many initiatives had been introduced to improve the way the prison operated and make life better for inmates, they were still living in "unsafe, overcrowded, unsanitary and squalid conditions" in the Victorian buildings. It said on average one third of staff were absent or unavailable every day, affecting the number of prisoners able to take part in activities and education, with staffing levels often "dangerously inadequate".
WPIC told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that while it welcomed improvements found by inspectors, the prison remained "grim and dysfunctional". WPIC said any progress highlighted in the report "must be seen against a background of continuing overcrowding, ageing infrastructure, poor management of repairs and refurbishment and unacceptably high levels of sickness and unauthorised absence amongst the staff".
Recent scandals at the prison
It comes after a series of scandals hit the category B men's prison. In September 2023, Daniel Khalife escaped from the prison by clinging to the underside of a food delivery van. A "catastrophic inspection" in 2024 found the prison in chaos and inmates in greater despair than HM Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor had ever seen. In January 2025, former prison officer Linda De Sousa Abreu was jailed for 15 months after being filmed having sex with an inmate in a cell.
WPIC said the IMB's latest report laid bare continued "shocking failures" at the prison. This included taking six months to replace a dishwasher, the Nightingale healthcare unit being unable to offer dentistry as the door could not fit a dentist's chair and a wing being closed for refurbishment for 20 months with little sign of progress.
Campaigners call for action
WPIC said: "The IMB does not cover the experience of families, who tell WPIC how difficult it is to get information about their partners and sons and how they are treated during visits, including dirty lavatories in the visits hall. Families can help reduce reoffending but they need basic respect and support."
"While raising a few questions to the governor, the Prison Service and the minister, in a report that is already nearly 6 months old, is all well and good, every year the IMB is fobbed off with either no response at all or an answer so anodyne to be worthless. In WPIC's view the IMB should be working alongside WPIC to press hard for improvements in basic issues such as time locked in cells, clean clothes, delivery of mail (sometimes important legal documents), missing property and access to family phone numbers. We have a common goal in shedding light on what happens in Wandsworth and trying to make change happen there."
The IMB's report found men at the prison were often locked in their cells for up to 22 hours a day, with nearly 40 per cent allocated to no activity. It said violence levels fell overall, with incidents of self harm falling from 726 in 2024/25 to 530, prisoner-on-staff assaults dropping from 354 to 222 and a reduction in use of force from 1,705 incidents to 1,286.
Matthew Andrews, IMB chair, said: "The commitment of a strong senior management team and a core of dedicated staff was commendable and meant the prison had a relatively good year. This was achieved despite the ongoing and chronic staff shortages. However, in a remand prison where almost half the prisoners were foreign nationals and also many men had mental health problems, this ensured that significant management challenges remained."
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "We inherited prisons on the brink of collapse but we're pulling every lever to restore order. While this report recognises signs of progress at HMP Wandsworth we know there is more to do. That's why former Home Secretary Amber Rudd is leading an independent review to deliver safer prisons, keep the public safe, and cut reoffending."
