Deteriorating conditions within the prison estate have been a concern for many years. HM Inspectorate of Prisons (the Inspectorate) has consistently reported that many prisoners endure unsafe, poor and overcrowded living conditions. Between 2015–16 and 2019–20, the Inspectorate rated more than 40% of prisons it inspected as ‘poor’ or ‘not sufficiently good’ for safety.14 In their written evidence to us, stakeholders and academics also told us of the “dreadful … and often totally inappropriate...

Deteriorating conditions within the prison estate have been a concern for many years. HM Inspectorate of Prisons (the Inspectorate) has consistently reported that many prisoners endure unsafe, poor and overcrowded living conditions. Between 2015–16 and 2019–20, the Inspectorate rated more than 40% of prisons it inspected as ‘poor’ or ‘not sufficiently good’ for safety.14 In their written evidence to us, stakeholders and academics also told us of the “dreadful … and often totally inappropriate conditions” within prisons.15 The Ministry recognised that the prison estate did not meet the basic standards of being decent and secure, and told us th Type: conclusion | Number: 7 | Response status: not_addressed Government response: 1.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Ta rget implementation date: January 2021 1.2 The department will write to the Committee in January 2021 to update them on the department’s plans for prison building and the broad scope of the strategy