Thirteen prison officers had to be taken to hospital after being assaulted by inmates at a young offenders institution (YOI) over the weekend.
The prison officers were among about 20 staff who were attacked during the unprecedented outbreak of violence at the young offender’s institute in west London.
One officer suffered a broken nose during the sustained and prolonged attack on staff at the prison and another was concussed after being repeatedly punched in the head.
The Prison Service said the assaults were “completely unacceptable”.
Several members of staff were also bitten during the violence in the section of the YOI known as ‘Feltham A’ which accommodates 150 males, most of whom are aged 16 and 17.
A prison service minibus was used to drive injured officers to a local hospital.
The prisoners involved will now face adjudication hearings and could be referred to the police.
A Prison Service spokesperson told the BBC:
“We will never tolerate violence against our staff and will push for the strongest possible punishment, which could lead to them spending more time behind bars.”
It also offered its sympathies to the “hard-working and committed” staff who were caught up in the violence.
Mark Fairhurst, chairman of the Prison Officers’ Association (POA), said violence had been escalating at Feltham for a number of weeks partly due to changes in the way it deals with inmates who misbehave.
Until December last year, disruptive inmates could be locked in a cell in the segregation block, known as the Care, Separation and Reintegration Unit, which is located in Feltham B.
But after the High Court ruled in 2017 that a 16-year-old had been held unlawfully in the block, and inspectors described the regime there as “impoverished” and “punitive”, its use for younger boys was reduced and eventually stopped.
Mr Fairhurst criticised the decision saying the lack of effective punishments for the most challenging prisoners was putting staff at risk.
“We shouldn’t be afraid to use sanctions,” he said.
He tweeted that the POA would “support staff and push for prosecutions”.
His members held meetings outside the jail on Monday to discuss their concerns and had talks with the Governor.
As an alternative to segregation, a new section in Feltham A, known as the Falcon Unit, began operating in March to give the most challenging boys extra support.
The Prison Service said it would contain “calm down” rooms by the end of the month.
Editors Comment
When we were writing about this horrific incident, we could not help but notice that the inmates involved in this violence were being referred to as ‘children’ by some commentators and by some sections of the mainstream media.
Personally, I do not agree that they are ‘children’.

Prior to serving in the Met Police, I joined the armed forces aged 16. Did I consider myself to be a child when I joined up? Of course not.
Would the same people who are referring to these inmates as ‘children’ have regarded me as a ‘child’ if they saw me on the ranges with
Prior to joining the forces, some of my friends that I used to hang around with ended up on the wrong side of the law. Did they consider themselves to be children? No.
If aged 16, you are old enough to join the armed forces then you cannot be considered a child because that would mean that, as a child, then this country would have sent me to fight in a war.
I understand that some people will see these young men as ‘victims’ of ‘the system’.
But I would say to the people who hold these sort of views, as noble as they are, that if you was stabbed, shot or assaulted by a 16-year-old then you would probably not see your attacker as a ‘child’ owing to the extreme violence that some of these young men can and do unleash.
My thoughts go out to the incredibly hard-working prison officers who, on a daily basis, have to deal with the members of our society who, knowing the law, made a conscious decision to break it.
I am sure that some of the young lads at Feltham probably regret the decisions which got them in prison in the first place.
And hopefully, when they are released, they can have another shot a building a decent life for themselves.
But I find it hard to show any empathy towards the young lads who savagely beat the prison officers.
Got a story, video or one-off blog that you would like to share with us?
You can contact our team of former emergency services & armed forces personnel either through our Facebook page, via Twitter ( @ES_News_ ) or you can contact us via email: contact@emergency-services.news or call us on: 0115 888 0592
If you run or manage a ‘job’ social media account and you would like us to share one of your stories then send us a tweet or a message!
If you would like to write an article that you would like us to share (it can be about anything to do with the emergency services / NHS) whether you serve in the emergency services / NHS or whether you are a member of the public who has had a good experience with the emergency services, then feel free to contact our team; anonymously if you prefer.
We are proud to act as a voice for the emergency services, armed forces & health service, with over 500,000 people visiting our website each month.
Before you go...
WE NEED YOUR HELP.Here at Emergency Services News, we aim to tell you stories that the mainstream media are not interested in reporting. Whilst the MSM love to berate and ridicule the emergency services, who is there to report on the realities of serving on the front line?
Emergency Services News is currently a loss-making entity. But our team of volunteers, all former emergency services personnel, do not do it for the money.
We do it because we are sick and tired of the mainstream media constantly trying to undermine the men and women who put their lives on the line to keep you and your family safe.
How many MSM journalists who speak ill of the emergency services have actually dared to don the uniform and risk their own lives to save the life of a complete stranger? If you would like to help back our mission of reporting on fact-based news, then please consider helping to support us financially.
You can support emergency services news from as little as £1. It only takes a minute. Every contribution, however big or small, is vital for our future.
Please help us to continue to highlight the life-saving work of the emergency services, NHS and armed forces by becoming a supporter.