![[ image: width=150]](/olmedia/65000/images/_67397_Copy_of_ramsbotham.jpg)
![image: [ A prisoner claimed to have beaten every day for a month ]](/olmedia/65000/images/_67397_SCRUBS300.JPG)
The allegations that inmates are being abused come from a number of different sources.
The report expresses serious concern at the possibility of "a few unrestrained officers" tainting the reputation of the jail.
The report was compiled by the Board of Visitors, the body in charge of overseeing conditions at the prison.
"Some names crop up regularly in these allegations and some staff have privately acknowledged to us that `it goes on'," the report said.
Staff walkout
The report comes as staff staged a 45 minute walkout in protest at the allegations.
The Prison Officers Association said the staff felt they were all being tarred by the same brush.
The Secretary of the Wormwood Scrubs POA branch, Duncan Keys, said: "I think the allegations are absolutely shameful. As far as we can ascertain they are based on supposition, innuendo, myth, everything in fact except fact."
The Board of Visitors sent the report to the Home Office several weeks ago.
But claims of mistreatment of prisoners did not become public until Monday, when the Prison Service ordered an inquiry
Claims 'amount to torture'
The inquiry was prompted by a firm of London solicitors who handed over a dossier containing statements alleging assaults on 10 prisoners, dating back to October 1996.
Daniel Machover, a partner in the firm Hickman and Rose, said one prisoner claimed he had been beaten up by staff almost every day for a month.
"I would say the allegations in that case amount to torture," he said.
The firm is also following up complaints from a further 12 inmates.
"We think we have reached the tip of an iceberg," said Mr Machover.
Wormwood Scrubs is one of the biggest prisons in Europe, holding almost 1,400 inmates, both on remand and serving sentences.
The Prison Service Deputy Director General, Tony Pearson , said if the claims were true, "it would represent a serious failure by some officers to treat prisoners in a decent and humane manner.
"For this reason I have instructed a senior and experienced governor from outside of the region to undertake a full inquiry into whether the allegations can be substantiated," he said.
Chief Inspector 'surprised and horrified'
The prison was strongly criticised by Sir David Ramsbotham, the chief inspector of prisons, in his report last year.
He said he was "surprised and horrified" by conditions there, and he attacked "outdated staff attitudes prevailing everywhere, appearing to resist change at every turn".
He found "no firm grip on the deployment and management of staff ... there are unjustifiably high levels of staff present on wings with comparatively little activity".
Mark Healy, chairman of the Prison Officers Association, said his organisation had no knowledge of the allegations.
"The only comment I can make at this point is that our members will go along with any form of investigation. We will make it clear to our members that they will co-operate."
Straw finds prison claims disturbing
(19 Mar 98 | UK)
Prison probe after abuse allegations
(19 Mar 98 | UK)
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