Forest Bank prison wings locked down after fight ends with 'inmate being slashed across the face'

Two wings at Forest Bank prison in Salford were locked down after a fight ended with an inmate being 'slashed across the face', the M.E.N. can reveal.

The drama happened on Sunday night - one prison source said it was the result of heightened tensions between rival gangs.

Today (Monday) officials at the under-fire privately-run prison said 'the prison regime is operating normally'. One source at the Salford prison said wings E2 and H2 went into lockdown following 'big gang fights' in which two inmates were said to have been hurt.

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One was said to have been 'slashed across his face' and was taken to hospital. The prison, operated by facilities management giant Sodexo for the on behalf of the Ministry of Justice as part of a billion pound contract, has faced calls for it to be brought to back under state control and for an official review after an M.E.N. investigation revealed 'a dangerous jail where cost cutting managers have lost control'.

Today prison officials refused to confirm details of any injuries but they did say one inmate required treatment.

An HMP Forest Bank Spokesperson said: “We can confirm an altercation between two prisoners took place on Sunday (24 September) resulting in one prisoner needing treatment. It is normal practice that a wing is locked up following any incident to allow for operational assessment. We can confirm that the prison regime is operating normally.

"This incident is now subject to a police investigation so it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”

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