Serial killer Rose West, 72, is 'on her last legs' and 'prepared to die' behind bars at HMP New Hall

Rose West, who alongside husband Fred tortured and killed a minimum of 10 women and girls at their Gloucester "house of horrors", has deteriorated to the point where she can barely walk without assistance and requires a personal evacuation plan for prison emergencies. West has been serving a whole-life sentence since 1995, and sources say her health has declined so sharply in recent months that she "cannot leave her wing" and has come to terms with dying in prison. Staff are reportedly obliged to help her during evacuations despite widespread reluctance to do so, with one source warning that the duty of care creates "paperwork and potentially puts officers in danger".

Her victims included her own daughter Heather West and stepdaughter Charmaine West.

Earlier this year West was disciplined after allegedly sexually assaulting a young inmate she had groomed for weeks.

A source says she is "rotting away" in her cell, surviving on shepherd's pie and curry.