Drug addicts at Armley Jail are to be given acupuncture to help cure their habit.

Staff at the prison, which houses many Bradford inmates, are being trained in the alternative treatment, which will become available as soon as the training has been completed.

The move is part of the prison's on-going battle against Drugs and is highlighted in the annual report of prison watchdogs, the Board of Visitors at HMP Leeds.

The report, which is sent to the Secretary of State, says security surrounding drugs at the prison continues to be a major problem, with inmates and visitors becoming increasingly inventive.

Drugs are frequently thrown over the wall into exercise areas, and people continue to send drugs by post, or smuggle them on their person.

The report also highlights severe concerns over the Health Care Centre at the prison which has 1,254 in-mates, and urged the Sec-retary of State to take action

It states: "The holding of mentally disturbed inmates and violent inmates, and the inadequate process for assessing and moving inmates to other establishments which cater for these individuals, is totally unacceptable. If it were not for the dedicated the caring staff in the Health Care Centre the situation would be out of control.

"The staff are there to care for and administer to the inmates who require medical attention, not to be attacked and assaulted by inmates who clearly should have expert care in the correct establishments for the mentally ill."

Overcrowding at the prison, built in 1847 to house 642 inmates, also remains a problem, as does dealing with violent prisoners.

The number of staff injured in the segregation unit has risen to 58 in the past year.

And on a number of occasions so many prisoners have been segregated they have had to be held in other areas of the prison.

Meanwhile, the number of prisoners serving life sentences has doubled in the past year from 12 to 24 - mainly because of new laws which allow judges to recommend a life sentence for repeat offenders.

The report states there have been improvements over the past 12 months and praises the "strong leadership and determination to take Leeds Prison forward" by Governor Stacey Tasker.

Improvements have included the building of a new Gate house, and the refurbishment of visiting and staff areas.