DARTMOOR Prison needs an injection of Government cash for urgent refurbishment work, according to a new report.
The Independent Monitoring Board?s annual report has highlighted two main areas of concern ? the gymnasium roof, which has been leaking for the last 20 years, and C-wing, which was closed in 2002 and continues to be an ?eyesore?.
The board, chaired by Jackie Sweet, has sent its findings to the Home Secretary, David Blunkett, and is urging him to make funds available for the repair work to be carried out.
Mrs Sweet said: ?The wing continues to be an eyesore, with 100 boarded up cells.
?We are told that if refurbishment is approved, work will commence in June 2005.
?The board is urging the Home Secretary to investigate this inaction.?
Referring to the gymnasium, she said: ?This has been an area of great concern to the board since 1984 and the roof still leaks badly.
?We urge the Home Secretary to ensure funds are available to replace this facility as soon as possible.?
The publication of the IMB report comes a month after HMP Dartmoor found out it was not going to be privatised.
And the jail recently climbed from level 1 to level 2 in the prison service performance rating system.