Detoxing prisoner, 41, found dead in cell two days after being jailed

A prisoner withdrawing from drugs was found dead in her cell just two days after being jailed, a watchdog has said. Nicola Birchall was locked up at HMP Styal near Wilmslow on February 2, 2018 while on remand for drug dealing.

The 41-year-old was a long-term drug and alcohol user who was in poor physical and mental health. When she arrived at Styal she was 'detoxing' from opiates, an investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman said.

During her first two days in the female-only prison she 'vomited a great deal'. But, investigators say, prison staff considered this to be 'normal' for inmates who were withdrawing and didn't seek medical advice.

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At 9.10am on February 4, Ms Birchall's cell was unlocked, but the officer 'did not obtain a response from her'.

Around an hour later cellmates alerted officers that Ms Birchall was 'unresponsive'. Paramedics were called and attempted resuscitation, but Ms Birchall was pronounced dead at 11.15am.

A coroner later concluded Ms Birchall's death was the result of long term and ongoing drug use, which included a severe respiratory disease. PPO inspector Sue McAllister said the healthcare Ms Birchall received in prison was 'equivalent' to that she would have received on the outside, but she also raised a number of concerns.

Ms McCallister said that while inmates are observed hourly during their first night in prison, after that there are no 'formal observations' on women who are detoxifying. The inspector also raised concerns about the 'First Night Centre', where inmates spend their first night in custody, being staffed by officers who have no 'specialist training in the management of