A new programme of instruction and support will be given to trainee prison officers to help them avoid being manipulated into illicit relationships by experienced criminals.

The Prison Service in England and Wales is developing the scheme, which will offer mentors and advice to trainee officers on how to handle complex relationships with prisoners.

It comes as statistics show that prison officers are more likely to be younger and have less experience than a decade ago. It also follows the prosecution of more than a dozen former prison officers after becoming involved in financial and sexual relationships with inmates.

They include Alicia Novas, 20, who was jailed for three years after working at HMP Five Wells in Wellingborough where she became involved with Declan Winkless, 31, and smuggled cannabis into prison.

The case of Linda De Sousa Abreu, of Fulham, south-west London, who was jailed for 15 months last year after being filmed having sex with an inmate in HMP Wandsworth, prompted widespread concerns.

A source said: “New staff are having to deal with criminals, sometimes twice their age, who have influence within prisons, and many have money too. If you enter with little experience of prison life, it can be daunting, harrowing and disorientating.

“There will be tailored training to ensure that prison officers can recognise the signs that they may be being manipulated or targeted or compromised.”

Ministry of Justice officials are close to completing Enable , a 12-month training programme that aims to provide new recruits with greater support. At present, all new officers receive 10 weeks of initial training on security and the prison environment, followed by seven weeks of face-to-face training before entering the male estate.

The new programme draws on findings by the prisons minister, Lord Timpson, a year before he joined the government.

The independent review of foundation training delivery for prison officers, drawn up by Timpson in 2024 at the behest of the last government, called for mentoring schemes for new staff.

The review, which has been seen by the Guardian, says: “Too often, prison officers feel alone and would benefit from a sounding board. We saw good examples of effective listening and mentoring packages in establishments, but they were not universal and appeared to be of variable quality.

“However, at present, the support available for new officers in continuing to develop their own professional practice is also variable, and far more pastoral support is needed.”

Natasha Porter, chief executive of Unlocked Graduates, a charity which has placed about 1,000 mainly young female graduates into prison officer roles, said she has used “reflective practices” – in which trainees regularly discuss their prisoner relationships with peers or a mentor – to ensure that their work remains professional.

“Without support, mentoring or training and professional guidance, they can easily become vulnerable to someone who is an expert in manipulation,” she said.

Some prison staff are “set up” by prisoners so they can be manipulated, Porter said, adding: “We are dealing with really experienced manipulators, particularly some of the sex offenders. There needs to be spaces created to reflect on those relationships with prisoners.”

Figures showed that there were 22,067 prison officers in full-time equivalent employment at the end of 2025. The total length of experience among staff in the Prison Service was 213,125 years. This meant that, on average, they had 9.7 years of experience.

This is a sharp fall compared with December 2010, when there were 24,501 full-time equivalent prison officers who had 329,353 years of experience. This equated to 13.7 average years of experience.

Mark Fairhurst, the national chair of the Prison Officers Association, said ensuring the officers have support should have been a priority before the recent spate of scandals. “Once again our employer is reactive rather than being proactive. I fail to see where the mentoring of new recruits will surface from due to the complete lack of experience among staff anywhere. I also have zero faith in this being rolled out in a timely manner,” he said.

Prison Service sources emphasise that changes to training are not solely due to inexperienced staff or a rise in inappropriate relationships. A Prison Service spokesperson said: “Prison officers are the backbone of our service, working every day in some of the toughest conditions. That is why getting training right is essential to delivering punishment that works to cut crime.

“New officers already complete 10 weeks of intensive training, but we are going further by developing a programme that better blends learning with real-world experience behind the prison gates.”