High-risk transgender women inmates have been allowed to move around a female prison without individual supervision, a new report has revealed - prompting outrage from feminist campaigners.
E Wing at HMP Downview in Sutton, Surrey, is reserved for trans women with a history of sexual or violent offending who are in possession of a gender recognition certificate (GRC) stating their gender as female.
Established after trans prisoner Karen White sexually assaulted two female inmates at HMP New Hall in West Yorkshire, it is intended to separate potentially dangerous offenders from women inmates, many of whom are victims of sexual abuse.
Jail bosses previously followed official guidance to ensure every inmate was subjected to one-on-one supervision by a prison officer when they left E Wing and mixed with female prisoners for activities, education, religious services and social visits.
But this policy was later suspended - with trans women receiving the same monitoring as any other prisoner when they are in the rest of the prison, according to a new report by Downview's Independent Monitoring Board (IMB).
