Four prisoners died at HMP Lincoln last year, which is above the average in the country.
Stats from the Ministry of Justice show that 301 people died in prison custody in England and Wales, including 74 self-inflicted deaths, which are not only suicides but also accidents caused by the person involved.
But the 2022 figures are lower than in 2021 when 371 people died – the highest number in a calendar year since current recording practices began.
However, when working out the average number of prisoners who died across England and Wales as around 2.4, this means that Lincoln prison was above average.
Lincoln had four deaths in 2022, while HMP North Sea Camp near Boston and Morton Hall in Swinderby both recorded none.
MoJ also states that prisons in England and Wales recorded 54,761 incidents of self-harm in the 12 months to the end of September 2022, at a rate of one every nine-and-a-half minutes, according to the Howard League for Penal Reform. No specific numbers were broken down for Lincoln or the county specifically for self-inflicted deaths though.
Over the same period, prisons in England and Wales recorded 20,872 assaults – an 11% rise on the figures for the previous 12 months. The 2022 total for assault incidents (including fights) at HMP Lincoln was recorded as 101, with eight labelled as ‘serious’.
At Morton Hall, there were a total of 16 assaults (including fights). The full figures were unavailable for HMP North Sea Camp.
There were 71 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults at HMP Lincoln, 13 at Morton Hall, but none at HMP North Sea Camp.
At HMP Lincoln, there were 32 assaults on staff, with three at Morton Hall, but the full figures were unavailable at HMP North Sea Camp.
A Prison Service spokesperson said: “The number of self-inflicted deaths remains lower than before the pandemic and is falling further, but we are continuing to invest in making prisons safer – including round-the-clock prisoner helplines and further training for staff.
“This is on top of up to £125m we’re spending on prison security, including scanners to stop the weapons, drugs and phones that fuel violence and self-harm in the first place.”
Andrea Coomber KC, Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “These grim figures lay bare the scale of the mental health crisis in prisons across England and Wales.
“The alarming rate of self-harm incidents – one every nine-and-a-half minutes – should alert everyone to the intolerable conditions faced by people living and working behind bars.
“While the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic appears to be behind us, six people die in prison each week.
“Although restrictions in the community were eased long ago, thousands of men and women in prison remain locked in their cells for more than 20 hours each day. The number of people held on remand is at its highest level for more than half a century. The damage caused by all this is widespread, and yet still not fully understood.
“As the government presses ahead with its wrong-headed plans, building more prisons with no thought for the consequences, these tragedies lie forgotten in the background. The Howard League will keep bringing them to the fore.”
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