A NEWLY-OPENED Thamesmead private prison was put into 'lockdown' last year due to rising violence, an inspection has revealed.

Thameside, which opened last March next to Belmarsh, has been accused by the Chief Inspector of Prisons Nick Hardwick of one of the most restricted regimes his organisation had ever seen.

The Serco-run prison, which holds up to 900 prisoners, was visited nine months after it opened and the inspection report showed levels of assault were "too high" with prisoners lacking confidence in inexperienced staff.

In the six months before inspectors visited, there were 48 assaults reported on prisoners, many of them gang-related incidents involving younger inmates.

Mr Hardwick wrote: "In the autumn, and as an operational  response to rising levels of violence the prison had taken the unusual step of effectively locking down the prison, severely curtailing the regime and in particular prisoner access to time unlocked."

But he reported that the prison had not monitored the effectiveness or the range of consequences for prisoners.

The report stated: "The data on assaults, security report reports and use of force that we examined did not show any improvement from previous months and we were told that some prisoners got around restrictions by planning to attend activities so that they could become involved in fights."

Mr Hardwick said: "The prison’s regime was one of the most restricted we have ever seen. Time out of cell was very limited. We found 60 per cent of prisoners locked up during the working day, and some spent 23
hours a day in their cells."

Michael Spurr, chief executive officer of the national offender management service, said: "I am pleased that even in its infancy, the chief inspector acknowledges that progress is being made, with strong staff prisoner relationships, a high quality of accommodation and an innovative use of interactive technology.

"Decisive action has already been taken to address the concerns raised in this report and I am confident that Thameside is well placed to deliver a safe, secure and decent regime for the prisoners it holds."