A report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons in 2025 discovered each the HMP Liverpool and HMP Altcourse had been battling violence, organised crime teams, medication and failing infrastructure
Investigations into two Merseyside prisons have discovered excessive volumes of drug use and focused organised crime teams, reporting by the Liverpool Echo confirmed.
Issues at United Kingdom prisons will not be new and have been well-documented, together with overcrowding, crumbling infrastructure, lack of rehabilitation and poor residing circumstances.
In early 2025, sources of the Liverpool Echo raised considerations over the HMP Liverpool, the place jail officers had been struggling to cope with a rise in violence. One officer had her head cut up open after being assaulted with a faucet.
Within the second half of 2025, focus turned to privately-run HMP Altcourse. Headlines had been flooded with the story of a former inmate who shot lifeless jail officer after an inside dispute years earlier, the Echo reported.
The Merseyside’s prisons had been visited by HM Inspectorate of Prisons this yr and inspectors discovered each had been battling violence, organised crime teams, medication and failing infrastructure.
Inspectors discovered that prisoners on the HMP Liverpool had been “mendacity on their beds watching daytime TV and taking medication to cross the time”. The jail was additionally discovered to have the best constructive drug check fee of any jail of its type throughout the nation. Virtually 50% of checks yielded constructive outcomes.
The jail was discovered to have been “repeatedly focused” by organised crime teams who had been delivering medication into the power by way of drone. The illicit drug community was discovered to pose “an ongoing menace to the security and stability of the jail”, the report stated.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson stated it was investing £40m in new safety measures this yr alone to clamp down on the contraband that fuels violence behind bars. The spokesperson stated that £10m can be spent on anti-drone measures equivalent to exterior netting and bolstered home windows.
Inspections on the HMP Altcourse additionally discovered a big quantity inmates had been utilizing medication and prone to gang-related violence. The ability additionally was discovered to have one of many highest drug amongst comparable jails within the nation. Medication had been discovered to have resulted in a “main menace” to security and safety.
Prisoner-on-prisoner assault had elevated steadily over the previous two years. This was largely fuelled by debt assortment, the Echo reported, and virtually three quarters of prisoners felt debt was the largest driver of violence.
Different points discovered by investigators included self-harm, dilapidated buildings and excessive workers illness at HMP Liverpool. HMP Altcourse was discovered to be going through an increase in self-harm charges and points round debt-collection throughout the jail.
Positively, inspectors discovered that workers retention at HMP Liverpool was significantly higher than different jails. At HMP Altcourse, inspectors discovered that relationships was a power, with prisoners commenting the assist they felt. These resulted in a lot decrease charges of workers assaults than comparable jails.
