DARTMOOR Prison is safe for inmates but more work is needed, concludes the latest report by the Inspectorate of Prisons.

Nick Hardwick, the chief inspector of prisons, said: 'At its last inspection in 2010, inspectors found that prisoners did not feel safe and, despite the efforts of the new management team, the establishment had regressed and was still grappling with poor staff attitudes and culture.

'This inspection was more encouraging, and demonstrable improvements had been made in the key areas of safety and resettlement. There remained, however, significant challenges.'

One area that needed attention was in the provision of purposeful activity for prisoners.

Inspectors concluded:

l Dartmoor was now a much safer prison, proactive and reasonably effective in addressing the number of violent or antisocial incidents

l arrangements to support those in self-harm crisis were good

l the application of security procedures were measured and proportionate

l the use of illicit drugs was reasonably low

l improvements in the culture were evident

l work to address diversity was improving, most notably for older and disabled prisoners; and work towards resettlement had improved significantly, with a well focused needs analysis and strategy, though some offender management work was unsophisticated.

But inspectors were concerned to find that:

l first-night accommodation was poor

l conditions in the segregation unit and the quality of case management and care planning required significant improvement

l many prisoners expressed mixed views about staff engagement

l little had been done since the last inspection to understand better the negative perceptions of black and minority ethnic prisoners

l wings were shabby, some cells were cold and damp and staff shortages had impacted badly on the delivery of health care provision

l leadership and management of purposeful activity needed to improve, while allocation arrangements were poor, resulting in a tenth of the population being unemployed.

Mr Hardwick said: 'The challenges faced by this establishment remain. Addressing some quite difficult environmental problems and confronting longstanding and powerful cultures and perceptions will take considerable and persistent management effort.

'We have recorded progress but in almost every area there was more to do, indeed quite considerably so. There were signs, however, that sustained and more embedded improvement was now within reach of the establishment.'