HC Deb 01 November 1976 vol 918 c435W
Mr. Prescott

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what ratio of prison officer staff to prisoners exists in each of the dispersal prisons; and how this compares to the average ratio for closed prisons.

Mr. John

The ratio of prison officers class staff to inmates in each of the dispersal prisons at 1st October 1976 was as follows:

Albany … 1:1.03
Gartree … 1:0.92
Hull … 1:1.23*
Long Lartin … 1:1.13
Parkhurst … 1:1.14
Wakefield … 1:2.21
Wormwood Scrubs … 1:3.11
* At 1st September 1976.

The ratio at Wormwood Scrubs reflects the lower proportion of Category A prisoners to its total population.

The average ratio in other male closed prisons at 1st October 1976 was 1:3.02.