In 2023, there were 311 deaths in prison custody in England and Wales, compared with 301 in the previous year, and 371 in 2021, which was the most deaths reported during this time period.

Analysis of the risk of suicide and drug-related deaths among prisoners, including the number of deaths, standarised mortality ratios and age-standardised rates, England and Wales, 2008 to 2019.

In 2023, there were 3.6 deaths per 1,000 prisoners in prison custody in England and Wales, compared with a death rate of 3.7 in the previous year.

There were 93 self-inflicted deaths in prison custody in England and Wales in 2023, compared with 76 in the previous year. During the provided time period, the 2017 had the highest number of prison suicides at 124.

This is qualitative data from a focus group conducted in September 2020 within a study that examined how the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (seek to) effect change in prisons following prisoner suicides and how death investigations could have more impact on prison policy and practice. The study ran from 2019-2021.

Within this project, a focus group was conducted with former prisoners in England and Wales (n=5):

Across jurisdictions, prisoner suicide rates consistently exceed those amongst comparable groups in the general population (Zhong et al., 2021). Deaths in coercive institutions threaten the right to life, which is ‘the most fundamental of all human rights [and a] condition of the enjoyment of other rights’ (Owen and Macdonald, 2015: 121). The high rates of suicide and self-harm in prison are of international concern (Dear, 2006). Prison suicide reduction has been designated a priority activity by the World Health Organisation (2007) and England and Wales’ Ministry of Justice (2016). generating very significant harm and costs (Roulston et al., 2021; Author, 2021). Peer support is part of the (international) response to suicidal prisoners, but too little is known about the experience of these interventions.

For data storage and analysis purposes the transcript has been carefully anonymised with any potentially identifiable details removed. Within the transcript the 5 former prisoners have deliberately not been differentiated between to protect their identity. Because of the sensitivity of this research, transcripts of follow up support and analysis groups have been omitted due to the participants still being identifiable following transcript anonymisation.

Further information about the project and links to publications are available on the University of Nottingham SafeSoc project webpage https://www.safesoc.co.uk

In May 2019, Dutch courts refused to deport an English suspected drug smuggler, citing the potential for inhuman and degrading treatment at HMP Liverpool. This well publicised judgment illustrates the necessity of my FLF: reconceptualising prison regulation, for safer societies. It seeks to save lives and money, and reduce criminal reoffending.

Over 10.74 million people are imprisoned globally. The growing transnational significance of detention regulation was signalled by the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Torture/OPCAT. Its 89 signatories, including the UK, must regularly examine treatment and conditions. The quality of prison life affects criminal reoffending rates, so the consequences of unsafe prisons are absorbed by our societies. Prison regulation is more urgent than ever. England and Wales' prisons are now less safe than at any point in recorded history, containing almost 83,000 prisoners: virtually all of whom will be released at some point. In 2016, record prison suicides harmed prisoners, staff and bereaved families, draining ~£385 million from public funds. Record prisoner self-harm was seen in 2017, then again in 2018. Criminal reoffending costs £15 billion annually. Deteriorating prison safety poses a major moral, social, economic and public health threat, attracting growing recognition.

Reconceptualising prison regulation is a difficult multidisciplinary challenge. Regulation includes any activity seeking to steer events in prisons. Effective prison regulation demands academic innovation and sustained collaboration and implementation with practitioners from different sectors (e.g. public, voluntary), regulators, policymakers, and prisoners: from local to (trans)national levels. Citizen participation has become central to realising more democratic, sustainable public services but is not well integrated across theory-policy-practice. I will coproduce prison regulation with partners, including the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman, voluntary organisations Safe Ground and the Prison Reform Trust, and (former) prisoners.

This FLF examines three diverse case study countries: England and Wales, Brazil and Canada, developing multinational implications. This approach is ambitious and risky, but critical for challenging commonsensical beliefs. Interviews, focus groups, observation and creative methodologies will be used. There are three aims, to: i) theorise the (potential) participatory roles of prisoners and the voluntary sector in prison regulation ii) appraise the (normative) relationships between multisectoral regulators (e.g. public, voluntary) from local to (trans)national scales iii) co-produce (with multisectoral regulators), pilot, document and disseminate models of participatory, effective and efficient prison regulation in England and Wales (and beyond) - integrating multisectoral, multiscalar penal overseers and prisoners into regulatory theory and practice.

This is an innovative study. Punishment scholars have paid limited attention to regulation. Participatory networks of (former) prisoners are a relatively...

This statistic shows the number of self-inflicted deaths among prisoners in custody in England and Wales in 2019, by nationality type. The highest number of such deaths was among UK nationals. It should of course be noted that there were more UK nationals as prisoners at this time than any other nationality type.

This statistic shows the number of self-inflicted deaths among prisoners in custody in England and Wales in 2019, by ethnicity. The highest number of such deaths was among white prisoners with 74 registered deaths.

This is qualitative data collection of semi-structured interviews conducted between December 2019-October 2020 within a study that examined how the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (seek to) effect change in prisons following prisoner suicides and how death investigations could have more impact on prison policy and practice. The study ran from 2019-2021. Internationally, prisoner mortality rates are up to 50% above those in the community. Although prisoner deaths are frequent and have significant implications across a broad range of stakeholder groups, these harms are rarely acknowledged. We address this by examining how the PPO (seek to) effect change in prisons following prisoner suicides and how death investigations could have more impact on prison policy and practice from semi-structured interviews with multisectoral stakeholders. Within this project, 46 semi-structured interviews were undertaken with multisectoral stakeholders: 17 PPO staff (who work across England and Wales from a base in London), 8 prison Governing Governors (representing 8 prisons), 11 regional SCGLs (representing all but two regions nationally) and 9 Coroners (who represent 9 of the 92 separate coroners’ jurisdictions in England and Wales) and bereaved family members (n=1). These professional groups have received limited consideration in previous research despite International laws, e.g. Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, requiring that all deaths in state detention are independently investigated. In England and Wales, prisoner deaths are externally investigated by at least the police, PPO and Coroner. These police, ombudsman and coroner investigations can be very disruptive and cause uncertainty and anxiety for all involved. The research demonstrates how the harms of prisoner deaths and investigations are broadly unacknowledged and radiate widely. We sought to stimulate both i) more substantive support for all those caught up in prison suicides and death investigations and ii) reconsideration of how prisoner deaths are investigated. For data storage and analysis purposes, the participants were divided into four categories: 1) Prison and Probation Ombudsman staff (PPO); 2) Governing Governors (Governors); 3) Safer Custody Group Leads (SCGLs); 4) Coroners (coroners); 5) bereaved family members (prisoner family). Because of the sensitivity of this research 3 SCGL transcripts have been omitted due to the participants still being identifiable following transcript anonymisation.

Further information about the project and links to publications are available on the University of Nottingham SafeSoc project webpage https://www.safesoc.co.uk

In May 2019, Dutch courts refused to deport an English suspected drug smuggler, citing the potential for inhuman and degrading treatment at HMP Liverpool. This well publicised judgment illustrates the necessity of my FLF: reconceptualising prison regulation, for safer societies. It seeks to save lives and money, and reduce criminal reoffending.

Over 10.74 million people are imprisoned globally. The growing transnational significance of detention regulation was signalled by the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Torture/OPCAT. Its 89 signatories, including the UK, must regularly examine treatment and conditions. The quality of prison life affects criminal reoffending rates, so the consequences of unsafe prisons are absorbed by our societies. Prison regulation is more urgent than ever. England and Wales' prisons are now less safe than at any point in recorded history, containing almost 83,000 prisoners: virtually all of whom will be released at some point. In 2016, record prison suicides harmed prisoners, staff and bereaved families, draining ~£385 million from public funds. Record prisoner self-harm was seen in 2017, then again in 2018. Criminal reoffending costs £15 billion annually. Deteriorating prison safety poses a major moral, social, economic and public health threat, attracting growing recognition.

Reconceptualising prison regulation is a difficult multidisciplinary challenge. Regulation includes any activity seeking to steer events in prisons. Effective prison regulation demands academic innovation and sustained collaboration and implementation with practitioners from different sectors (e.g. public, voluntary), regulators, policymakers, and prisoners: from local to (trans)national levels. Citizen participation has become central to realising more democratic, sustainable public services but is not well integrated across theory-policy-practice. I will coproduce prison regulation with partners, including the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman, voluntary organisations Safe Ground and the Prison Reform Trust, and (former) prisoners.

This FLF examines three diverse case study countries: England and Wales, Brazil and Canada, developing multinational implications. This approach is ambitious and risky, but critical for challenging...

This statistic shows the number of self-inflicted deaths among prisoners in custody in England and Wales in 2019, by time in current prison. According to the statistic, most such deaths occurred among prisoners that had spent more than one year in a given prison.

This statistic shows the rate of self-inflicted female deaths during prison custody per 1,000 prisoners in England and Wales from 2010 to 2019. Between 2015 and 2016 the source reported a significant rise in self-inflicted deaths, with more than 2 female prisoners per 1,000 prisoners having died due to self-inflicted causes.

This statistic depicts the rate of self-inflicted male deaths during prison custody per 1,000 prisoners in England and Wales from 2010 to 2019. According to the source, 1 per 1,000 prisoners died due to self-inflicted causes in 2019.

This statistic shows a distribution of hanging/self-strangulation self-inflicted deaths among prisoners in custody in England and Wales in 2019, by ligature used. The majority of such suicides were enabled by the use of bedding materials.

As of February 2025, El Salvador had the highest prisoner rate worldwide, with over 1,600 prisoners per 100,000 of the national population. Cuba, Rwanda, Turkmenistan, and the United States, rounded out the top five countries with the highest rate of incarceration. Homicides in El Salvador Interestingly, El Salvador, which long had the highest global homicide rates, has dropped out of the top 20 after a high number of gang members have been incarcerated. A high number of the countries with the highest homicide rate are located in Latin America. Prisoners in the United StatesThe United States is home to the largest number of prisoners worldwide. More than 1.8 million people were incarcerated in the U.S. at the beginning of 2025. In China, the estimated prison population totaled 1.69 million people that year. Other nations had far fewer prisoners. The largest share of the U.S. prisoners in federal correctional facilities were of African-American origin. As of 2020, there were 345,500 black, non-Hispanic prisoners, compared to 327,300 white, non-Hispanic inmates. The U.S. states with the largest number of prisoners in 2022 were Texas, California, and Florida. Over 160,000 prisoners in state facilities were sentenced for rape or sexual assault, which was the most common cause of imprisonment. The second most common was murder, followed by aggravated or simple assault.

There were 9.7 homicides for every million people in England and Wales in 2023/24, unchanged from the previous year, but a decline when compared to 2021/22, when the rate was 11.6. In 2022/23, the homicide rate among UK jurisdictions was highest in Scotland, at 10.4 homicides per million people, and lowest in Northern Ireland, which had a homicide rate of 6.8. Throughout this provided time period, the homicide rate for Scotland has declined substantially. From 2003/04 to 2013/14, Scotland had the highest homicide rate among UK jurisdictions, with a peak of 27 homicides per million people recorded in 2004/05. Uptick in violent crimes since the mid-2010s In 2002/03, there were 1,047 homicides in England and Wales, but by 2013/14 this had fallen to just 533, with similar declines also evident in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Unlike the in the latter two jurisdictions, however, there was a noticeable uptick in homicides in England and Wales from 2016/17 onwards, with 720 recorded in 2019/20. Additionally, there has been a surge in violence against the person offences in England and Wales, rising from around 600,000 in 2012/13, to more than 2.1 million ten years later in 2022/23. It is unclear what exactly is driving this trend, but in an attempt to reverse it, the UK government has started to increase the manpower and funding available to UK police forces. Struggles of the UK justice system Recent boosts to police funding come after almost a decade of austerity was imposed on most public services. Although some government departments were protected from this, the Ministry of Justice saw its budget decline from 9.1 billion pounds in 2009/10,to just 7.35 billion pounds in 2015/16. Although the Justice Budget has also increased recently, there are several signs that the system as a whole is under pressure. There is a significant backlog of cases at Crown Courts in England and Wales, with serious offences taking an average of almost two years to pass through the court system. Meanwhile, prisons are struggling with severe capacity issues, along with upticks in violence and self-harm.