Prison officers are wearing new electronic sensors to enforce social distancing at a jail where there was a major covid outbreak earlier this year.
Staff at HMP Dovegate, in Moreton Lane, just outside Marchington, have been given the "personal proximity sensors" to help curb the spread of the virus.
They sound an alarm whenever anyone is within two metres and have been introduced weeks after nearly 150 inmates and staff at the Category B prison tested positive.
The outbreak now appears to have been brought under control, with the seven-day infection rate in the neighbourhood around the facility falling from 1,215.2 per every 100,000 people to 206.4, as of February 12.
The Pathfindr sensors have been introduced at all UK prisons run by private firm Serco after a successful trial at HMP Lowdham Grange, in Nottingham.
A Serco spokesman said: "Maintaining social distance in prisons is challenging, given the design and layout of the buildings, which include narrow walkways outside cells, together with the number of people resident and working in a prison.
"The trial at HMP Lowdham Grange used 50 sensors and Officers involved found the devices easy to use and reliable. Most importantly, they made them more aware of social distancing and, as a result, helped maximise adherence to social distancing wherever operationally possible, reducing the number of occasions when the two-metre social distancing rules were broken."
Wyn Jones, Serco custodial operation director, said: "Serco is very pleased at the success of this trial and we believe this device will help us to keep everyone safe, limit the spread of Covid among our staff and prisoners and reduce the number of staff absences due to track and trace relating to social distancing.
"Our top priority is to keep everyone in prison safe and well and everybody understands that maintaining social distancing in prisons essential in order to limit the spread of covid."
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