Decision report 201102599

Summary
Mr C, who is a prisoner, complained because he was unhappy with the prison's decision not to supply scissors to the prison barbers. He also complained because the prison were not providing cleaning fluids for the hairdressing tools.
Our enquiries confirmed that the prison had taken the decision not to provide scissors to the prison barbers in the interest of safety and security. We were satisfied the prison had taken a decision they were entitled to take and Mr C's unhappiness with that decision was not grounds for us to pursue the complaint further.

The prison also told us they had taken steps to reinforce local procedures for hairdressing tool hygiene and control. This included providing disinfectant cleaning wipes for the hairdressing tools and reviewing local instructions available to prison barbers and staff. In light of this, we were satisfied the prison had taken proper and reasonable steps and we did not uphold this part of Mr C's complaint.