UK prisons are in crisis. Vulnerable prisoners, particularly those with mental health and substance abuse problems, are being thrown into chaotic and violent prisons that simply do not have the resources to cope. Increasingly, they self-harm or resort to other forms of violence, putting prison staff at unprecedented risk. The prison service is on the brink, and only a radical reform can save it.

Whilst the government promises prison reform, we are seeing prisons such as Liverpool, Nottingham, Birmingham and Exeter spiral into chaos. Prisoners are spending too long in prisons that cannot safely accommodate them. Unless there is substantial new funding for the prison service, sentencing inflation – which has driven up the size of the prison population – must be controlled and reversed.