An unannounced inspection of a Kent jail has praised its new governor but highlighted a lack of translators for foreign prisoners and described some cells as "barely fit for purpose".

In his visit to the 200-year-old category C men's training prison in County Road, Maidstone , chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor said some cells were "dark, cavernous and sometimes damp" with poor ventilation and little natural light and "barely fit for purpose".

But he added: "Our most concerning finding was that there was limited use of the translation service by staff.

"This meant that some potentially vulnerable prisoners, who may have been at risk of suicide or self-harm, were not adequately assessed or triaged, particularly when they first came into the prison."

He said key documents from the Home Office were only printed in English and some men claimed they had been asked to sign documents they did not understand.

But he praised new governor Dawn Mauldon who joined from Standford Hill Open Prison on Sheppey in April.

He said: "A clear and active lead was being given by the present governor who had been in post for six months. She was very visible and her positive tone and realistic approach were appreciated by staff and prisoners.

"Her aims and priorities were clear, set out in a straightforward and positive self-assessment report and staff were aware of her values."

On the condition of the cells, he said: "These spartan conditions were, in part, mitigated by very high standards of cleanliness and the fact that most prisoners were in single cells."

He said there was a programme to improve the showers and added: "The governor, well-liked by both prisoners and staff, had begun to make improvements, setting clear, suitable and well-communicated priorities.

"This included an improvement in the regime, which meant that since September, prisoners in work or education were out of their cells for seven hours and 45 minutes a day while those who were unemployed had four hours. This was much better than we had seen in most of our recent category C inspections."

But he said Ofsted rated the provision of suitable work or education for 579 foreign offenders as "inadequate" and said the situation had not improved since a previous visit in 2018. There was no English teacher which, he said, was a "huge loss".

He added: "In our survey, the number of prisoners who told us that staff treated them with respect had reduced compared with our last inspection and this finding was backed up by our observations on the wings and in many discussions with prisoners.

"There were some excellent officers who engaged with the men very well and the atmosphere in the prison was mostly good but some staff did not appear to understand the needs of this group of prisoners, particularly the many who were contesting their immigration status.

"We were told of cases where prisoners had reported to officers that they were feeling depressed and were told to fill out an application form to mental health services."

He said prisoners' anxiety was increased by Home Office delays in processing cases.

He concluded: "Although this report contains some disappointing findings, with a new and effective governor in place I was left with the sense that Maidstone is a prison that will continue to improve. I hope this report will be used as a springboard to drive forward progress."

The inspection in October identified 15 key concerns, of which five were priorities. They were:

1. Staff did not have enough understanding of the needs of vulnerable, anxious and distressed prisoners;

2. Professional interpretation services were not used enough;

3. Systems dealing with prisoners’ applications and complaints were ineffective and led to frustration;

4. Hospital appointments and orders for medical equipment were not managed well.

5. There were not enough staff in education, skills and work.

Other concerns said oversight of the use of force were weak, too many staff were passive or distant with prisoners and some parts of the building were "barely fit for purpose" with some cells too small, damp and cold with damaged windows, no toilet screening and damaged furniture.

The food was unpopular with prisoners and had deteriorated since the previous inspection.

Some pharmacy services were not effective and post was frequently delayed because too few staff knew how to use the 'itemiser' which detects illegal substances in the mail. Delays could be more than a week and sometimes up to three weeks which the inspector said was "unacceptable".