NEARLY 900 DRUG FINDS, 17 DEATHS IN A YEAR, AND INMATES LOCKED UP FOR 21 HOURS A DAY

A DAMNING inspection report into one of the UK’s largest prisons has revealed a shocking collapse in standards at HMP Parc in Bridgend, where widespread drug use, soaring violence, and 17 inmate deaths defined a year of crisis.

The prison is the nearest long term jail to Pembrokeshire with hundreds of inmates there from our local area.

The unannounced inspection in January 2025 uncovered nearly 900 incidents of drug finds in 2024 alone, with half of prisoners saying it was easy to get drugs inside. On the prison’s A and B wings, 70% of inmates said drugs were easy to obtain, and 34% admitted developing a drug or alcohol problem after arriving.

The prison, privately run by G4S, was once hailed as a flagship establishment. But the report by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons lays bare the reality of a facility overwhelmed by addiction, violence, and staff turnover, all following a change in management contract and the departure of the respected long-time governor Janet Wallsgrove.

“The prison had become far too violent,” the report states, with a 60% rise in recorded self-harm since the last inspection. Between February and May 2024 alone, eight inmates died from suspected drug-related causes, many linked to synthetic opioids like nitazenes.

SHOCKING FINDINGS

894 drug finds in a year—more than any other similar prison

17 inmate deaths in 2024, including multiple overdoses

30% of all drug tests were positive

Up to 21 hours a day in cells for many prisoners

Self-harm incidents up 60% since 2022

41% of inmates reported being bullied by other prisoners

Inspectors found that many prisoners were left idle, with poor access to work, education or training. Nearly a fifth were unemployed and locked up for most of the day. Even those motivated to work or learn were trapped by delays in allocation.

“The regime was inconsistent and left many inmates bored, frustrated and hungry,” the report adds. Food was deemed inadequate by the majority of prisoners, with meagre portions and little fresh produce. The prison shop lacked healthy options, and fruit and vegetables were scarce.

LEADERSHIP TURMOIL AND DRONE DELIVERIES

After Wallsgrove’s departure in 2023, her replacement lasted less than a year. The management vacuum coincided with a new contract awarded to G4S, a transition that “destabilised the prison” and saw violence and drug use spiral.

Despite an impressive effort from security teams—who intercepted 894 drugs packages—illicit substances continued to pour in. Parc became a prime example of drone-facilitated trafficking, with deliveries often targeting vulnerable windows in cells.

The prison had no enhanced gate security for staff, and the rollout of secure windows was still ongoing at the time of the inspection. Drug-detection tech developed with Bath University was one of the few bright spots, but inspectors said it was not enough to stem the tide.

The disciplinary system was also in disarray. In 2024, over 5,000 adjudications were recorded, a quarter of which were abandoned or delayed. There were also over 800 incidents involving use of force by staff, yet bodycam footage was only available in 54% of cases.

HOPE UNDER NEW LEADERSHIP

There were signs of hope. Since new director Will Styles took over in June 2024, no further drug-related or self-inflicted deaths had occurred. Staff morale, recruitment and retention were improving.

Styles introduced a two-year recovery plan and stabilised the leadership team. Inspectors praised his honest self-assessment and noted the beginnings of a cultural shift. Enhanced collaboration with the education provider and initiatives like ‘Parc Tank’ (a business incubator for inmates) were flagged as positive steps.

MENTAL HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE FAILURES

Healthcare services, transferred from G4S to NHS Wales in 2023, were still under-resourced. Dental care was so limited that routine treatments were unavailable, with prisoners encouraged to report pain just to get seen. Mental health services were swamped, and one inmate had waited over two months for a hospital transfer.

The report highlighted 1,962 self-harm incidents in the previous 12 months, and found the mental health referral process overly complex and underperforming. Over 500 prisoners had been referred to the mental health team in the past three months alone.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND PATH AHEAD

Inspectors issued 14 key concerns—eight of them requiring urgent action. These include high violence, poor mental health provision, weak offender management, inadequate food, and lack of work or training opportunities.

Despite G4S’s claims of “solid progress,” the inspectorate made it clear that major reforms are still needed. If the current director remains and receives the backing he needs, the report says Parc “may begin to recover.”

A spokesperson for G4S said: “We are encouraged that HMIP recognises that we are making progress. We are determined to ensure the men in our care are safe, supported and can feel optimistic about their futures.”

But with more than 1,700 men inside and nearly 900 drug finds in a single year, the question remains: how did one of Britain’s most successful prisons fall so far, so fast?

Sentencing of Nerys Lloyd continues at Swansea Crown Court

A FORMER police officer who led a group paddleboarding trip that ended in tragedy has been heavily criticised by victims’ families during sentencing proceedings at Swansea Crown Court.

Nerys Lloyd, 39, admitted four counts of gross negligence manslaughter and a breach of health and safety laws, following the deaths of four people on the River Cleddau in Haverfordwest in October 2021.

The trip, which had been advertised online at £149 per person including accommodation and supervision, ended in disaster when the group were swept over a weir during dangerous river conditions.

The victims were Morgan Rogers, 24, Nicola Wheatley, 40, Andrea Powell, 41, and Lloyd’s co-instructor, Paul O’Dwyer, 42. All were described as beginner or intermediate paddleboarders, with little knowledge of the hazard ahead.

The court heard the river was in flood at the time, with a strong current and a dangerous drop of around 1.3 metres over the weir, except for a narrow fish ramp just wider than a paddleboard.

Prosecutor Mark Watson KC said Lloyd had only a basic instructor qualification, which was not appropriate for guiding a group on a river in such conditions. He told the court nearly two tonnes of water per second was flowing over a one metre-wide section of the weir at the time.

Lloyd was the only member of the group who successfully navigated the fish ramp. The others were swept over the weir and thrown into the fast-moving water.

Families of the victims have condemned Lloyd’s decision to lead the group out in such conditions, calling her actions reckless and accusing her of showing no remorse.

Andrea Powell’s husband, Mark, said his wife would have experienced “sheer panic” and described Lloyd’s failings as “monumental,” labelling her arrogant and careless.

Teresa Hall, mother of Morgan Rogers, told the court: “You guided Morgan to her death,” and described the agony of imagining her daughter struggling to breathe.

Survivor Gemma Cox gave a harrowing account of trying to rescue fellow paddleboarders, saying she had no idea what a weir was and would never have joined the trip had she known.

Another survivor, Melody Johns, called for better safety awareness and regulation, warning that many boards are sold without quick-release leashes that could save lives. A third survivor, Jemma Dugdale, urged organisations including Paddle UK, Paddle Cymru, Sport Wales and Sport England to take action to prevent similar tragedies.

The court also heard that Lloyd was suspended from South Wales Police at the time of the incident, following a caution for an unrelated fraudulent insurance claim. She had not carried out risk assessments or collected next-of-kin information before the trip, causing delays in informing families after the incident.

Following the deaths, Lloyd reportedly said: “It’s my fault 100% … I just turned around and they all fell over.”

The sentencing hearing is due to conclude on Wednesday (Apr 23).

A TEMPLETON woman has admitted making repeated nuisance calls to emergency services and assaulting a police officer.

Ann Gatley, aged 78, of Chapel Hill Lane, appeared before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court charged with two offences following incidents earlier this month.

The court heard that between April 7 and April 9, Gatley persistently misused the public communications network with the intention of causing annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety.

She was also charged with assaulting a female police officer in the Narberth area on April 9.

Gatley pleaded guilty to both offences when she appeared in court on Thursday (Apr 11).

Magistrates adjourned sentencing to allow for a pre-sentence report to be prepared. Gatley is due to appear at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on May 6.

She was granted bail until that date, with a condition that she must not contact emergency services unless in a genuine emergency.