Weekend prison visiting suspended

Visits to the Island's prison are suspended this weekend.

Government says it's a precautionary measure while enquiries continue into a small number of unexplained Coronavirus cases in the north of the Island.   

The decision was taken following a risk assessment and in consultation with the prison’s healthcare partners, to protect staff, offenders and visitors.

Acting Prison Governor Leroy Bonnick said: ‘We are following protocols which have been put in place in health and care settings to minimise risk, as a number of our prisoners have vulnerabilities. It is not possible during visiting sessions to maintain social distancing between prisoners and visitors, so for this weekend, we are suspending visits while the situation is monitored. We are currently installing features such as plexi-glass sheets in the visiting area, to ensure safe visiting in the future.’

He added: ‘The suspension is being kept under review and a decision on restoring visiting will be made on Monday (26 April). We are currently operating a COVID-safe, near normal regime in the prison which includes exercise and association sessions.'