Secure facilities in police stations situated in the basement, and far from the guardroom, are lit both day and night, in order to enable operation of the video surveillance cameras. This situation is particularly detrimental for persons placed in these premises who are then unable to rest or sleep properly at night. The inspectors noted that these cells were often lit by an external spotlight, giving off a strong light. Moreover, the fittings in the secure facilities of police stations and gendarmeries often amount to no more than the existence of a concrete bench. It was noted that in old premises the dimensions of these benches did not correspond to those of the mattresses, rendering sleeping arrangements unstable and constituting an obstacle to persons in police custody being able to lie down and rest between questioning sessions. In collective cells, it is even more difficult for the latter to have access to rest and protect their privacy. This question of the fitting out and equipping of cells in a manner which contravenes the requirement for rest provided for by law, needs to be resolved through the elaboration of norms enabling persons in police custody to rest in a lying position and to have the benefit of placement in individual cells. Old premises need to be renovated and adapted accordingly. 1.1.3 Spatial Organisation which Guarantees the Security of Persons Imprisoned persons rarely have facilities at their disposal, call buttons or intercom devices211, enabling them to attract the attention of staff. The absence of facilities of this kind obliges them to beat violently upon the doors when they want to call or attract attention. In some cases secure rooms and sobering up rooms are located on a different floor from the guardroom; this architecture does not make it possible to ensure adequate security for prisoners. This location is a source of needless anxieties and tensions. The placement of facilities in locations of this kind should therefore be ruled out. 1.1.4 The special situation of Punishment and Solitary Confinement Cells and Secure Rooms Placement in cells and rooms of this kind does not justify endangering the prisoner’s physical or mental well-being. In prisons, rather than being intended for the enforcement of disciplinary sanctions, cells in the solitary confinement wing are notably intended for the protection of the persons occupying them. They should comply with the same norms as those of ordinary prison buildings and, for example, provide sufficient space for normal activities which may be conducted inside them and have the benefit of access to natural light and adequate ventilation, as well as a partitioning system for the bathroom ensuring privacy. In reality, this is not always the case. Thus, in one long-stay prison, the inspectors ascertained that the eight cells of the solitary confinement wing were different from the institution’s other cells. Five had windows whose hinged sections did not open. The only opening was located at the top of the window: a gap 20 cm high and 60 cm wide, covered in expanded metal212. The window as a whole was made secure from the exterior by bars. Apart from the absence of light, these fittings raised the question of ventilation of the cell, in a region of the South of France, which is hot in the summer. 211 212 With regard to intercom devices, see the Annual Report of the Contrôle Général for 2012, p. 43 et seq. The window as a whole measured 1 m by 0.60 m. 133