A fifth of prisoners reported feeling unsafe at HMP Rochester, according to a new report.

Inspectors found levels of violence and self-harm were high, the use of force was high and increasing, drug use was rife and living conditions were poor.

The report comes after an unannounced inspection of the prison which holds 740 adult and young male inmates.

Inspectors found despite staffing being almost at the level needed, the prison was still not progressing and safety remained a significant concern.

Inspectors were concerned to find that:

• a fifth of prisoners reported feeling unsafe, first night and induction arrangements were inadequate and levels of violence were too high;
• mandatory drug testing suggested higher than expected levels of drug use and there was evidence of considerable amounts of new psychoactive substances in the prison, yet too many staff seemed complacent of the issue and its impact;
• levels of self-harm were high and care for those at risk was inadequate;
• the use of formal disciplinary procedures was high, use of force was high and increasing, and the use of the special cell was very high for a training prison;
• living conditions were poor and work to promote equality was weak;
• progress in education, training and work was undermined by poor attendance, and staff were not sufficiently attentive in getting prisoners to work or education on time; and
• resettlement work was disjointed and offender management required improvement.

However, inspectors were pleased to find that prisoners were generally positive about their relationship with staff, prisoners had very good access to time out of their cells, and the range of education, training and work was good.

Nick Hardwick, chief inspector of prisons, said: “Rochester is a prison which has gone through big changes in recent years but has not made the progress hoped for. It is a prison, however, not without advantages.

"It is near to having the number of staff it needs, it has sufficient activity and it has a clear purpose serving as a resettlement prison to its local community.

“We were told of plans for the future but our overriding impression was that it was a prison that just needed to focus on the basics.

"A robust drug strategy, cleaning the prison up, getting prisoners to work on time and some joined-up thinking about their approach to resettling prisoners would be good places to start.”

Speaking on the use of legal highs inside the prison, Michael Spurr, chief executive of the National Offender Management Service, said: “Staff are determined to tackle this and have already put in place additional security measures, as well as increasing awareness about the dangers and extending support to overcome substance misuse issues.

“Since this inspection, progress has also been made to improve safety and purposeful activity with more prisoners engaged in high quality work and training opportunities.

“We will use the recommendations in this report to drive further improvements over the coming months.”

The report comes after a BBC Panorama programme claimed staff have been abusing children at nearby Medway Secure Training Centre.

HMP Rochester became a dual purpose facility in 2011, catering for young offenders and adult category C prisoners.