Prisons ombudsman informed of death of much-loved Corby man following spell in custody

A referral has been made to the ombudsman following the death of a Corby man in hospital.

Cherished father-of-two Ross Springham had been in HMP Wandsworth for a short spell and, following an incident on Saturday (March 20), he was taken to hospital where he tragically died.

The 29-year-old grew up in Corby and leaves a heartbroken family in the town He had family members with him when he died who have been comforted by the fact he was able to become an organ donor to help save several lives.

His death has been referred to the independent Prisons and Probation Ombudsman whose job it is to investigate fatal incidents in custody so that lessons can be learned.

Mr Springham had been due before Westminster Magistrates' Court on March 15 after pleading guilty to an incident in London earlier this year but could not appear as he was due to undergo a mental health assessment by doctors.

No cause of death has been made public and his death is now expected to be referred to the coroner.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: “HMP Wandsworth prisoner Ross Springham died in hospital on March 20. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed.”

In the 12 months to June 2020, there were 294 deaths in prison custody, a decrease of 5 per cent from 309 deaths during the previous 12 months. Of these, 76 deaths were self-inflicted and the majority of the remainder were from natural or unattributed causes.

In 2019, independent charity INQUEST, which has worked with bereaved families for forty years, called for reform and has raised concerns over inadequate healthcare and repeated failures which it says could have contributed to some of these deaths.