England’s prisons are war zones. Unless austerity ends, things will get worse | Dev Maitra

I have witnessed the proliferation of gangs and violence, and the rock-bottom morale of staff. The need for funding is now desperate

" Dev Maitra is a criminologist and ethnographer

The last time I was in a prison was in the summer of 2016. Within the first day there had been two assaults on the wing where I was based. The following day there were two further "incidents", one which involved a prisoner attacking several prison officers, and another serious disturbance which ended in physical violence. By the end of my week at the prison, I had become used to alarm bells ringing, regular violence and general chaos. It was not always this way.

Related: Violence and self-harm in UK prisons continue to surge

Related: Early release won't cure a prison service that has become a national disgrace | Ian Acheson

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