Prison overcrowding worsens

[22 July 2008]

Some prisoners have been living and sleeping in toilet areas because of increasingly overcrowded jails.

Doncaster prison was found to hold almost 200 more inmates than it had space for. Two-man cells had been turned into three-man cells by putting extra beds in the toilet area. A report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons found that changes in sentencing policies resulting in longer sentences has led to an 'unexpected and unplanned increase in prison and probation populations'. The report also said that it was contradictory to reserve prison sentences for serious offenders only, when adequate resources were not in place for alternative options. The report stated that if anything, short custodial sentences actually increases the likelihood of reoffending.

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