A CORONER has called on the government to take action to prevent future prisoner deaths after a Worcestershire man was found dead while on remand.

Shaun Dewey, 30, of Bewdley, was found dead in his cell on April 13, 2018 in HMP Bristol, with an inquest ruling he had taken his own life.

He was awaiting trial after being charged with the murder of Andrew Owen and had moved from HMP Hewell for his own safety that January due to self-harming and feeling under threat from inmates.

However, suicide and self-harm prevention procedures called Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT), which had been in place previously, were withdrawn by HMP Bristol staff in February 2018.

Following his death, Dewey’s family instructed specialist lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate if more could have been done to help him. An inquest, which concluded this week, found there was a failure by HMP Bristol to “act sufficiently” to safeguard Dewey during his struggle with anxiety, depression and separation from his family.

The senior coroner for Avon, Maria Voisin, confirmed she will issue a Prevention of Future Deaths report.

It will call on the government to consider the higher risk of suicide among prisoners on remand, who are held in prison alongside convicted prisoners while awaiting their trial.

And whether national guidance needs to be changed to reflect this.

Dewey’s family said: “Prisons have a duty of care in relation to the safety of those under their supervision and we were shocked to see the range of issues which Shaun faced.

“All we can hope now is that lessons are learned and no other family has to go through what we have.”