Three prisoners who escaped from Erlestoke Prison, near Devizes, scaled part of the two-mile-long perimeter fence with a ladder made from a greenhouse.

Robert Deveney, 27, Samuel Kerrigan, 21, and Frank Rearden, 29, used a makeshift ladder made from scrap metal from a prison greenhouse and scaled the 18-foot high razor wire perimeter fence, within minutes of going to work within the prison on Tuesday morning.

The three were recaptured by police after they crashed a car stolen from a Little Cheverell farm.

An internal inquiry led by the governor of another prison has begun and is expected to take up to three weeks.

Deveney, who is serving three-and-a- half years for burglary, Kerrigan, who is serving nine years for robbery and assault, and Rearden, who is serving four- and-a-half years for burglary, are believed to have given prison officers the slip when they were being moved from the living unit in the prison to their places of work at about 8.45am.

Prison officers could not account for the three when a roll call was taken at 9am and a search began. At about 9.30am the ladder was found by the fence.

The three escapees made their way to nearby Glebe Farm where they stole a Fiat Uno belonging to farm worker Simon Gregory, 32.

He and colleague Robert Howat, 42, gave chase on a quad bike and they found the Uno wrecked at the bends near Black Dog crossroads.

Mr Howat said: "They didn't put up any kind of a struggle because they had hurt themselves in the crash. They were soaked from the shoulders down so they must have tried to wade through the stream there."

Erlestoke governor Jayne Blake had requested extra money from the Prison Service to fund extra security measures following an escape in August, when an inmate used bed sheets to scale another part of the fence.

Following that escape, the Prison Service agreed to extend security but not to the entire fence.

Mrs Blake, who has been governor since last November, added: "I have asked the Prison Service for financing to cover the entire fence with movement detectors and sensors and they said it would be considered."

All three have been charged with escaping lawful custody and aggravated taking a vehicle without consent, and were remanded in custody for a week by North Wiltshire Magistrates Court, Chippenham, yesterday.

Deveney is further charged with driving while disqualified, without insurance and criminal damage to the farm gate.

The Prison Officers' Association this week expressed concerns about security of the Sarum unit, one of the wings in the prison. Deveney, Kerrigan and Rearden were not based in Sarum unit.