It ruins you. You dont. Youre not a person any more, you just exist. Three years ago, the prison was privatised. French Company Sodexo won the 15 year contract, promising the government it could save £130 million. When the initial shock of the privatisation came out, the staff were shocked that it had happened but then we thought well maybe it could be a good thing we might see a big change. You train as part of a team. Jim reid was a dog handler and Prison Officer with more than 20 years experience. His optimism didnt last long. They got rid of 96 uniform staff over 200 in total. I myself was part of a dog team erm, and we were told, youre gone. Since 2011, around half a billion pounds has been taken from the Prison Budget in england and wales. As the Prisoner Population was rising, more than 6,000 officers were lost. Jim reid took redundancy but colleagues who stayed at northumberland say theyre overwhelmed. Ive seen experienced staff crying in the main street. And theyve said i cannae take it, i cannae take it anymore. Its horrendous up there for staff when they open doors theyre pulling knives on them, fights, and the drugs so theres a lot to deal with even for experienced staff. Last year, sodexo took on 23 new officers. Im one of them. During our nine week training course, we were told that wed been taken on to help turn the prison around. Its a big ask. Not all of the smoke is from cigarettes. In the evenings, prisoners usually get a couple of hours to socialise before theyre locked in their cells. Sodexo says we should always be on the lookout for drugs, weapons and Mobile Phones. But its not that easy. Even with the new staff like me, im the only officer on this landing right now. And theres nearly 30 of them. Were supposed to be in charge. I cant safely challenge them when im by myself. And the prisoners know that. The prisoner lying on the floor has smoked a drug called spice. His forearms moving around uncontrollably. His eyes completely vacant, doesnt know what hes seeing and face completely expressionless. Spice is now one of the most popular drugs in prison. Its a cheap, chemical alternative to cannabis, only many times stronger. Spice is a potent, terrible drug, hallucinating, become violent. Theyre Walking Around zombiefied off theirface, completely off their face. The effects of the drug start to wear off. The prison nurse arrives and an ambulance is on its way. 0fficers tell me they dont always call the nurse when prisoners react badly to spice. It happens too frequently. Its not just here. Prisoners regularly film themselves on Mobile Phones smoking spice. 58 Prison Deaths in england and wales have been linked to the drug. Hes gone. Hmp northumberland is a training prison. It holds medium to low Security Prisoners in its 15 house blocks. Theyre supposed to study or work. Preparing for life on the outside. Nearly a quarter of new prisoners in england cant read or write to the level expected of an 11 year old. The education and training they receive here is provided by outside contractors. Teachers try their best. But some of what i see is not impressive. This is an Employability Skills class. I see three Prisoners Colouring in a picture of the childrens cartoon character, peppa pig. Prisoners colouring in peppa pig or anything similar is inexcusable. Sir martin, who used to run the prison service, hasnt seen any of my secret footage. Hes now advising the government. The art of reducing re offending is not complicated. If you get somebody employable and get them into a job, the probability of them not going back to serious crime is hugely increased. These classes are provided by a Company Called novus. They told us theyve investigated my concerns and sent a report to the government. Prisons are supposed to be among the most secure institutions in the country. But, small amounts of drugs have always come in during prison visits. This prisoner has tried to swallow packages of heroin passed to him by a visitor. Ifind this package of drugs hidden in the sock of another and hand it in. But theres far more spice in the prison than can ever get in during visits. 0n the very same day i started work at Hmp Northumberland, staff made a massive find. Just on one house block, they found 2. 5 kilos of spice. It was laid out over a table, it would have filled up two backpacks worth. Its incredible. It has a prison value of a quarter of a million pounds, much more than it would be worth on the outside. Some of the spice was barely hidden in a prisoners wardrobe. There could have been more. 0fficers dont know how much had already been sold. How theyve been allowed to have that quantity of drugs in a cell, its unbelievable, its a major breach of security. All the officers ive spoken to think every inch of the block should have been searched. They say, in the past, it would have been. 0fficers tell me they think there was no lock down because it would have cost sodexo money. They say if theyre deployed to a search, they cant also get prisoners to education, work and training. And sodexo gets paid partly based on how many inmates attend. This prisoner burgled to fund his cocaine habit. 0n the inside hes still on drugs. Now its spice. Prison isnt helping him change his ways. Hmp northumberlands perimeterfence. Jim reid used to regularly patrol inside the fence with a dog, intercepting drugs which had been thrown over. Sodexo scrapped all that, and told him to drive around outside the perimeter on his own. It was supposed to deter people from throwing items over the fence. It was a joke. Every member of staff knew security was a joke. 0n patrol one afternoon, jim ran into trouble. I was coming up the road here. We had intelligence there was going to be a package dropped off. One or two bodies, i dont know, were hiding behind this hedge. As i came up this way, they threw a boulder or brick or whatever they threw. It went bang. It was a huge bang and it shattered the windscreen. I veered off to the right and ended up in this ditch over here. Jim escaped serious injury. Other staff doing the same job have been threatened or attacked, too. Sodexo told us they work closely with the police, to deliver significant successes in the constant battle to disrupt drug supply and illegal activity. There used to be regular, dedicated search teams across Hmp Northumberland. Officers have told us now there are none. This officer is supposed to be thoroughly checking the locks, bolts and bars in these cells. He does three cells in just 20 seconds. This prisoner is in for burglary. Were calling him john. He seems disorientated and scared. Hes being kept in his cell until the spice wears off. As he starts to come round, i can make out what hes been trying to tell me. Later i find out why. He says hes being bullied. When i see him again, hes totally out of it on spice. Other inmates think its hilarious. I think theyre spiking him, giving him cigarettes laced with spice. Straightaway, throws up on his bed over his pillow and rolls straight over on his face into it. He has no idea there is sick everywhere his face in it. He has no idea he is in a prison. He is just not functioning at all. I told a more experienced officer that hes being bullied. It seems to mejohns vulnerable and being failed by the prison system. Right across the prison service, The Plain Truth is that there are too few Prison Officers. The great danger is some officers have retreated from interaction with prisoners, to the ends of wings where they are perhaps observing prisoners. Thats very, very dangerous. You have to have a place which is safe and secure. There arent enough officers to deal with the violence here either. A fights broken out. By the time officers get there, its all over. So they check the cctv. I see one Prisoner Stomping on another. I see the result of an attack on another prisoner. And there are weapons in this prison. This knife was photographed inside, im told, in the last few weeks. Last year 305 ambulances were called to the prison injust seven months. Thats nine a week. And its not a safe environment for officers either. 35 were attacked at Hmp Northumberland in 2015. Im told about a recent assault. After this prisoner was told his tv would be confiscated for beating up another inmate, he refuses to go back in his cell. Then he threatens me. 0thers officers tell me they dont confront prisoners, because theyre not confident back up will arrive to protect them if theyre attacked. There were 6,430 assaults on prison staff in england and wales last year. Thats 17 a day the highest ever recorded. Prison officers staged a series of walk outs. They said they didn . T feel safe and had lost confidence. At Hmp Northumberland, officers feel their authority has gone, too. Just over a year ago, prisoners at Hmp Northumberland filmed themselves having a party and apparently taking drugs. The party happened here on house block six. While i was there, staff made an astonishing find. 0fficers Think Prisoners were wearing the black clothing to sneak out at night and avoid being seen by cctv cameras. Tin snips, wire Cutting Tools. Staff soon find out what theyve been used for. The hole in an internal security fence meant prisoners could collect drug deliveries thrown over the outer perimeter. Thats a major breach of security. Any tampering with any fencing should have been picked up earlier. It should have been inspected. But how were they able to sneak out of their block in the first place . House block 6 is supposed to be for well behaved inmates about to transfer to open prisons. They arent locked in their cells at night. Doors to the outside are supposed to be alarmed. Im sent to check them after the discovery of wire Cutting Tools and make my own astonishing find. An alarm should go off. It doesnt. I was told problems with the alarms were reported three weeks earlier. I suppose theyre constantly testing the system. I get a chance to speak to the governor, tony simpson. Even he admits hes let the wrong sort of prisoners onto the block. The governor also told me house block 6 a Prefab Building is ten years past its sell by date. We estimate that if sodexo closed it, with the loss of a0 beds, they would lose £16,000 per week. Sodexo say theyve invested at least £3 million in safety and security, which are their top priority, and recruited an additional 37 staff. They say after viewing the programme, we will of Course Investigate where necessary and take appropriate action. The government say theyre determined to make our prisons places of safety and reform and have promised to spend an extra £100 million a year on 2,500 new officers in england and wales. I think the staff already there whose confidence has been eroded, i think we need to concentrate on recovering their confidence and i think some of that will come as they see additional colleagues arriving to work alongside them. Im not being glib, it will take some time. Back at Hmp Northumberland, despite my new intake, it still feels chaotic. Im becoming used to the stress and the threat of violence. But im not prepared for what i see next. Its an officer hes talking about. There have been reports Officers Health is being put at risk by spice smoke in prison. Until now, theres been little evidence. Its not the first time officers here have been felled by inhaling spice smoke. Ive been told at least three members of staff have also needed Hospital Treatment in the last seven months. Hes taken to hospital and later recovers. I spent two months undercover at Hmp Northumberland. I saw Prison Officers unable to maintain control, much less help rehabilitate prisoners. If we take people and lock them up and dont use that period when they are literally captive, to try to do something, which makes it less likely that theyll go and burgle someones house when they get out, then were just losing a golden opportunity. Few of us will experience life inside. But all of us have a stake in stopping prisoners returning to crime. Hello, there. Weve got a bit of rain in the forecast for wednesday. Wednesday starts off cloudy, grey, misty and murky. Some sunshine in northern scotland, for Northern Ireland. Rain in the south west will be heavy, and will continue northwards and eastwards through the day. Could see some heavy bursts in the midlands and the south. We have good spells of sunshine across northern scotland. And generally speaking it is going to be quite mild, temperatures about 9 11 celsius. Through wednesday night the wet weather clears away and turns drier for england and wales. Mist and fog starts on thursday morning. But to the north, this area of low pressure will bring some blustery showers and windy conditions to Northern Ireland and scotland. Some sunshine, 9 10 degrees, 10 12 across england and wales. Friday morning starts with dense fog in places, but that will shift to allow some brighter weather for friday afternoon. Welcome to bbc news. We go live to the Southern Indian State of andhra pradesh. 20 20 seconds. 20 seconds. We are here because they are just about to launch a rocket carrying a Record Number of satellites into space. That is 104 satellites into space. That is 104 satellites on a single mission. Five, four, three, two, wine, zero. Plus one, two. Applause it is carrying only three indian satellites most of the load are nano satellites from other nations, including 96 from the united states. The previous record holder was a Russian Mission which placed 37 satellites into orbit a few years ago. Lets cross live to delhi, Sanjoy Majumder has been watching the launch. It isa it is a big moment for india . Absolutely. As you know, india has had a very successful space programme. It has really created a reputation for being a very reliable space launch. A low cost alternative as well. I was speaking yesterday to people who follow Space Science very closely, they were trying to explain to me why the launch is so significant. It is notjust that there are so many satellites, but there are so many satellites, but the fact that it is so complex. Although the satellites are small, you must ensure they do not collide when they are launched. It is a very complex procedure which is why eve Ryo Ne Complex Procedure which is why everyone associated with the launch has been so anxious about it. India have been pressing ahead, this business of putting commercial satellites into space has been growing for a few years. China and japan have also outlined old Space Exploration plans. Many people are saying if it were the Russians And Americans in the 60s, it is now the indians and the chinese who are the space rivals. In 2013, india sent a satellite to mars at a fraction of the cost of a satellite that was sent by the united states. I think it was one tenth of the cost. There was a joke that the movie gravity cost four times more than the indian satellite launch. It underlines how strongly india has approached this new market, basically allowing countries to take advantage of its technology, also the fact that it is being offered at a very competitive price. Thank you very much for that. The pictures on your screen now, live from the space centre in india that has sent a Record Number of satellites into