CHILDREN'S safety is being jeopardised when they visit their mothers at a prison near York, it was claimed today.

Visitors to Askham Grange Jail have to meet inmates in the dining room, which is inappropriate and unsafe for children, says the Board of Visitors in its annual report.

"This is a totally unsuitable area for such an activity; it would fail a Health And Safety audit," it claims.

"No creche is available, therefore children need to be carefully watched."

The Board claims that, with an increase in the number of inmates and an expansion of the prison's mother and baby unit, a proper visitor centre is vital.

The prison's governor, Dawn Elaine, denied the dining room was unsafe, other than potential risks from running into tables.

She also said there was no capital investment funding in place at present to build a new visitor centre.

However, she accepted the dining room was "less than desirable" for visits, and alternative premises within the prison complex were being sought to accommodate visitors.

The possibility of creche facilities for the children of visitors was also being investigated. She stressed that many prisoners did not receive visits at the prison, going out to meet visitors or going home to see their families.

The Board's report also criticises the rate of pay for women at the jail, claiming that rates were lower than at other prisons and had not been increased for four years, reducing inmates' purchasing power.

The governor denied rates were lower than other comparable prisons, and said the lack of a pay rise had been a national decision rather than one taken at Askham.

The report praises the education department's achievements in the face of budget cutbacks, but says arts and crafts classes should be reinstated at evenings and weekends.

Dawn Elaine said: "Wouldn't it be lovely?"

She said education had to concentrate on training to increase women's chances of finding work on leaving prison.

The report suggests too many women are being transferred to Askham when they are unsuitable for open conditions, affecting the prison's stability.

The governor said the jail had to adapt to changes in the type of inmate who came to Askham Grange nowadays.

Updated: 11:07 Saturday, October 19, 2002