Young offenders in Kent kept in their cells for 23 hours a day

Following an announced inspection of Rochester Young Offender Institution (YOI), Nick Hardwick, chief inspector of prisons, said the situation meant the establishment was failing to engage young people in work and meaningful activities.

The findings come ahead of the government announcement on sentencing reforms — outlined in the sentencing green paper and expected imminently — which emphasised the importance of improving rehabilitation prospects in youth prisons and the community.

The YOI, which holds young men aged 18 to 21, was found to have taken initiatives to minimise violence and had used exclusions from activity and restrictions on movement to keep prisoners that are a threat to, or at risk from, others apart.

But this disrupted the prison’s more positive objectives, with inspectors finding that too many prisoners were locked in their cells during the day — some having as little as one hour a day out of their cell.

Activities on offer were described as "undemanding", with repetitive and mundane work, low achievement in many education courses and poor punctuality and attendance.

The impact of security measures was "in some cases too restrictive and risk averse", and although prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm were generally well cared for, some had been held in segregation or in a special cell, which inspectors found to be unsuitable environments.

However, inspectors did find that despite a rise in violent incidents, most prisoners said they felt safe in the prison and drug use was low, while relationships between staff and prisoners were mostly good.

Hardwick said: "Rochester needs a greater sense of ambition for the young people it holds so that they are encouraged to benefit from work and education and greater use is made of the potential resettlement opportunities the prison provides.

"To do that it also needs to strike a better balance between the demands of security and the requirements of a positive regime."