Neighbourhood Police are now teaming-up with prison security staff to target those trying to sneak-in drugs and items such as mobile phones.
West Inner Neighbourhood Policing Team are regularly working alongside prison staff, especially during visiting times.

* Click here to sign up to free news and sport email alerts from Armley Today.

In addition police will mount patrols outside the perimeter wall to prevent people throwing packages over into the prison yard.

They will also be using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology and mobile CCTV to identify any suspicious vehicles.
Information on people suspected of being involved in the supply of drugs, both inside and outside the prison, is being shared b etween police and prison staff.

The move supports recommendations for closer working between prisons and the police made in the 2008 Blakey Review into the effectiveness of Prison Service measures for disrupting the supply of drugs into prisons.

Insp Mark Bownass, of the West Inner NPT, told Armley Today: "Drugs supply into prisons not only undermines the efforts of drug workers, who aim to help users to break the cycle of drugs and crime but it also impacts on the wider community if people continue to offend on release to feed their addictions."

"Attempting to smuggle drugs or other contraband, such as mobile phones, into prison is a serious offence that carries severe penalties – a lengthy prison sentence in most cases.

"We have had some good successes recently in catching people. One woman with no previous convictions was sentenced to four years for attempting to smuggle drugs into the prison.

Trevor Brown, Head of Performance at HMP Leeds, said: "Our work with the police forms part of our strategy to disrupt the supply of illegal drugs into the establishment. Immediately following this exercise our performance indicators detected a significant reduction in illicit substance abuse."

* Anyone with information should contact police or the prison security department, or call Crimestoppers, anonymously and in confidence, on 0800 555 111.