Howard League for Penal Reform calls for cut in prison population after 2,000 deaths in jail over a decade

Ministry of Justice figures show Portsmouth Coroner's Court reported one death in prison between 2011-2019.

Central Hampshire Coroner's Court, covering Winchester jail, reported 33 deaths.

The figures also show a death in a bail hostel, that of 66-year-old Anthony Walker who died by hanging at The Grange in Waterlooville 13 days after his release from prison for assaulting his wife in November 2017.

Across England and Wales, 2,317 deaths were reported over the decade in all prison facilities, or within seven days of an inmate's release from custody – with 313 last year alone.

Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: ‘The thousands of people who have died in prison are the victims of a system that puts political expediency above preventing crime and keeping people safe.

‘It is time to reduce the prison population and save lives.’

Separate figures from the MoJ show 59 per cent of prison deaths across England and Wales were from natural causes during this time, and 31 per cent were self-inflicted.

Winchester jail saw seven suicides in a three-year period with hundreds of incidents of self harm, a report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons said in January this year.

A government spokesman said: ‘Self-harm remains a concern which is why we have already trained more than 25,000 staff in suicide prevention, introduced the key worker model and renewed our partnership with the Samaritans to provide emotional support for prisoners.’