Village jail plan 'designed using Lego'

A controversial third prison planned for a South Staffordshire village looks like it was designed using a piece of wood and children's building blocks, a meeting was told.

Residents desperate to stop a four-storey jail being built in Featherstone – already home to Feathersone Prison and Brinsford Young Offenders Institution – have issued a call to others to help fight the plans. Around 20 attended a meeting of the parish council last night where the planned jail, which would house 1,620 inmates, was criticised as too big.

Commenting on a line drawing of the plan, ex-prison officer Barry Pickering, aged 59, of Oaks Drive, Brinsford, said: "The person who designed that prison must have had a bit of MDF wood and a Lego set and designed it with that.

"It's not thought out at all. It's a horror story for the area and for the people that live here and I've only scratched the surface.

"It will be a national prison – they will be brought from every corner of the UK to fill it up."

Parish councillor John Brindle said it appeared the designer had decided where the accommodation blocks would go by simply drawing three crosses on a piece of paper.

The Ministry of Justice plans are for land next to the existing Featherstone Prison and Brinsford Young Offenders' Institution but have sparked concerns about the amount of traffic it would generate and planned facilities such as a gym.

The parish council is calling for the Government to pump extra cash into the village's amenities if the plan goes ahead.

Councillor Frank Beardsmore, chairman of Featherstone Parish Council, said: "This is the time for people to stand up and be counted so we can ensure views are represented."

A meeting will take place at Featherstone Community Centre, in Baneberry Drive, at 7pm on November 6 to get a campaign under way.

Hundreds of flyers will be handed out around the village for residents.