CHILDREN have been arming themselves with weapons at a scandal-hit jail where wardens have "given up", according to a damning report.
The "shocking" findings were laid bare by inspectors after the Cookham Wood young offenders' institution was plunged into emergency measures earlier this year.
Cookham Wood holds "some of the most challenging yet vulnerable children in the criminal justice system", watchdogs said.
Chief Inspector of Prisons Charlie Taylor was so concerned by the "appalling" conditions he discovered at the Kent prison in April that he demanded urgent improvements from justice secretary Alex Chalk.
The watchdog told how boys were found in solitary confinement for "days on end" during an inspection, including two being held in such conditions for more than 100 days.
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The use of solitary confinement was to "manage conflict" between inmates in the wake of many children fashioning makeshift weapons from kettles and other metal objects to protect themselves.
Inspectors also found the facility in "poor overall condition with dirty living units and broken equipment".
Detailed findings of the inspection, published today, set out how violence was "rife" and weapon making was "widespread" at the detention facility in Rochester which holds 77 boys.
The report said 228 weapons were found in the six months leading up to the inspection - a much higher number compared to similar establishments.
Security checks were also found to be "inadequate", while nearly a quarter of the boys said they felt unsafe.
Mr Taylor's team found the conditions at the YOI had deteriorated and were now of "considerable concern".
Members of the 360-strong team of staff were described as "demoralised" and "frightened", with some seeming to have "given up" and "no longer even bothered to wear the correct uniform to work".
Meanwhile, some of the 24 senior bosses "stayed out of sight in their offices", according to the watchdog.
Mr Taylor called for "urgent, concerted and long-term commitment" from prison leaders to improve standards.
Failure of leadership at the highest levels
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He said: "These findings would be deeply troubling in any prison but given that Cookham Wood holds children, they were completely unacceptable.
"As a result, I had no choice but to write to the secretary of state immediately after the inspection and invoke the urgent notification process."
The Prison Reform Trust described the report as "shocking" and said it revealed a "failure of leadership at the highest levels of the youth justice system".
The charity's chief executive Pia Sinha added: "It is difficult to comprehend how a youth offender institution with five staff to every child could deliver such poor outcomes, particularly on safety and purposeful activity.
"Prison leaders cannot maintain safe and purposeful regimes by issuing instructions from behind closed doors."
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "This is a deeply concerning report and we are already taking decisive action to address the serious issues it raises.
"The new governor at HMYOI Cookham Wood, appointed shortly before the inspection, is being supported by a boost in staff numbers and a new taskforce to drive down violence.
"This is helping to deliver progress - with incidents of violence falling, fewer young people being kept apart and more getting the hours of education they need to turn their back on crime."
Cookham Wood was previously the home to Moors Murderer Myra Hindley when it operated as a women’s jail.
Serial killer Hindley and her lover Ian Brady murdered five children aged 10 to 17 in the 1960s.
The jail was converted to a young male offenders prison in 2007.
It was reported last year that inmates there were being treated to widescreen TVs, comfortable sofas and musical instruments.
The Sun revealed in May how more than 75,000 kids have been arrested for crimes including murder, rape and possessing child abuse images over the past five years.
