Criminals have been accidentally released or illegally placed beyond the date of their release in “horrific terms” inside a chaotic and inside a chaotic Squalid gelA guards have warned.
Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of jails, has released one Immediate notification The government in the position of moderate security HMP Pentonville.
Crowd Victorian Jail In North London, where most prisoners share cells designed for a person, infected with mice and cockroaches.
Inspectors discovered that 10 prisoners in the B -Jail category were released early in “error” between July 2024 and June 2025 as the employees failed to calculate the sentences correctly “. The jail has a wide range of criminals, including prison for some violent offenses.
Another 130 prisoners – 20 percent of the people eligible for release – were illegally held after their release date in the last six months.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood was written, the Chief Inspector said that the first night of the new prisoners in North London Jail was “chaotic and frightening”.
Men were missing bed, furniture, telephone and pillows in dirty cells, while the Watchdog said, while most of the prisoners were locked in their cells for more than 22 hours.
Inspectors took emergency action after overseeing the prisoners at the risk of suicide and self-loss was “shocking poor”, a jail officer found sleeping while sleeping that they were sleeping. Monitor risk prisoners.
Despite three self-inspired deaths in the prison in 2025, two books were found reading and another “completely absent”.
Mr. Taylor said: “Pentonville is a congested, internal city, Victorian Jail with a record of poor performance over many years.
“Many of its employees have become disillusioned with their potential for improvement or their ability to influence change. Yet many of its shocking failures are firm in the control of leaders.”
A survey by prisoners also revealed that 44 percent felt insecure at the time of inspection, which is the highest figure recorded during Mr. Taylor’s tenure as the chief inspector.
Pentonville is the tenth prison to be issued with an immediate notification since November 2022, after the Exeter, Kukham Wood Young Offerndar Institution, Woodhill, Bedford, Wandesworth, Rochester, Manchester and Winchester jails.
The Howard League described the findings as “new low” for the system of prisons for punishment.
The campaign director Andrew Nielsen said: “The details emerging from this inspection are frightening and derogatory, and they represent a new low for a congested and under-release public service that is on the verge of collapse.
“While the government has inherited a serious condition of cases in jails, it is more than a year to bring changes. As report cards go, such a strict account of dysfunction in Pentonville assumes a little confident that ministers have the grip of the situation.”
Pia Sinha of the Jail Reform Trust said that the damming report should serve as a rally crying for action.
He said, “After the prisoners were illegally released, or others should have been released early in error, weakened the effective sentence plan more and erased the public’s trust,” he said.
“This immediate notification must be a rally cry for immediate action – fix the failed infrastructure, improve staff training, and treat prisoners with dignity.”
Jail Minister Lord Timson said: “This is a deep report and shows the crisis that has held many of our jails for a very long time.
“Yesterday, I visited HMP Pentonville and met with employees. The team is already working to address the concerns raised by the Chief Inspector. We will publish an action plan to support them in these efforts in the coming weeks.
“This government will eliminate the inherited chaos in its jails. We are building 14,000 new jail places and sentencing so that our jails are reduced again, cut crime and keep the victims safe.”
