Female prison worker hospitalised after bashing at Metropolitan Remand Centre

A woman has been hospitalised after she was assaulted by inmates at the Metropolitan Remand Centre on Friday, raising fresh concerns about staff safety.

Another incident has occurred at the Metropolitan Remand Centre in Ravenhall. Picture: Joe Castro

A female worker was taken to hospital after a prison bashing that has raised fresh concerns about the safety of staff dealing with new inmates.

The worker is believed to have been assaulted on Friday in the Billingham unit of the Metropolitan Remand Centre.

It is understood the victim was from an outside agency but working in the prison.

It comes after a number of nasty incidents at the MRC in recent months.

A female officer was punched in an attack in the jail’s Attwood as she served food last Wednesday.

Five staff were assaulted by an enraged inmate last month in the Cambridge unit.

Faeces were tipped over staff at an Attwood unit work console in November last year.

One corrections source said remand prisons were a more challenging environment than jails for sentenced offenders.

Those on remand have not gone through the courts and often come straight from police custody for having just committed crimes of violence.

They may be drug-affected or have serious untreated mental health issues, the source said.

“Violence continues to climb against officers and now inclusive of community service providers offering opportunities to benefit the individual,” the source said.

He said staff were increasingly under attack with few consequences for perpetrators.

A Department of Justice and Community Safety spokeswoman said staff responded to Friday‘s incident quickly.

“One person was transported to hospital by ambulance for further assessment,” she said.

“We take violence very seriously and refer all allegations of criminal activity and serious incidents to Victoria Police for investigation.”