PRISON inspectors warned yesterday that plans to swell the number of inmates at a Wigan young offenders’ institute could jeopardise the safe running of the facility.

Chief Inspector of Prisons Nick Hardwick said that “significant but necessary” improvements had been made at HMYOI Hindley, but added that overcrowding was putting boys’ safety at risk and that the improvements were “fragile.”

An announcement that the number of young adults held was to increase significantly has raised inspectors’ fears.

Inspectors visited Hindley’s two sites, which hold 161 boys mostly aged 16 and 17, and praised the quality of education, learning and skills provided and said the quality of teaching was good and sometimes outstanding.

Resettlement work was also good, with well-organised services, and relationships between boys and staff had improved.

But HM Inspectorate of Prisons found serious cause for concern in the consideration being given to withdrawing funding from the Willow Unit.

The unit is a psychologically-informed resource for boys with the most complex problems.

“The boys Hindley holds are now more vulnerable and more challenging than ever and, as in other YOIs we have inspected, the evidence of this inspection suggests a much more fundamental review is required about how best to hold these boys safely and securely,” said Mr Hardwick.

In 2012, 17-year-old Jake Hardy killed himself at Hindley. An inquest identified a number of serious failings that contributed to his death.