Prison system in the UK - Statistics & Facts
Key insights
- Number of prisoners in custody in the UK 2023
- 92,803
Detailed statistics
Number of prisoners in the UK 1900-2023
- Largest UK prison by population 2023
- HMP Oakwood
Detailed statistics
Largest prisons in the UK 2023
- Average annual cost of a prison place in England and Wales 2022
- 46,696 GBP
Detailed statistics
Expenditure per prison place in England and Wales 2015-2022
Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic
Further recommended statistics
Overview
10
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in the UK 1900-2023
- Basic Statistic Incarceration rate in the UK 2008-2022
- Basic Statistic Largest prisons in the UK 2023
- Basic Statistic Number of spare prison places in England and Wales 2022-2024
- Basic Statistic Government spending on prisons in the UK 2009-2023
- Premium Statistic Expenditure per prison place in England and Wales 2015-2022
- Basic Statistic Number of prison officers in England and Wales 2010-2023
- Basic Statistic Number of prisoner escapes in England and Wales 1995-2023
- Basic Statistic Opinion on prison living conditions in Great Britain 2019-2024
- Basic Statistic Incarceration rate in European countries in 2022
Overview
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in the UK 1900-2023
Number of prisoners in the UK 1900-2023
Number of prisoners in custody in the United Kingdom from 1900 to 2023
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Basic Statistic
Incarceration rate in the UK 2008-2022
Incarceration rate in the UK 2008-2022
Incarceration rate in the United Kingdom from 2008 to 2022, by jurisdiction (per 100,000 inhabitants)
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Basic Statistic
Largest prisons in the UK 2023
Largest prisons in the UK 2023
Largest prisons in the United Kingdom in 2023, by prisoner population
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Basic Statistic
Number of spare prison places in England and Wales 2022-2024
Number of spare prison places in England and Wales 2022-2024
Number of spare prison places in England and Wales from January 2022 to April 2024
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Basic Statistic
Government spending on prisons in the UK 2009-2023
Government spending on prisons in the UK 2009-2023
Public sector expenditure on prisons in the United Kingdom from 2009/10 to 2022/23 (in billion GBP)
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Premium Statistic
Expenditure per prison place in England and Wales 2015-2022
Expenditure per prison place in England and Wales 2015-2022
Average annual overall resource expenditure per prison place in England and Wales from 2015 to 2022 (in GBP)
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Basic Statistic
Number of prison officers in England and Wales 2010-2023
Number of prison officers in England and Wales 2010-2023
Number of prison officers in England and Wales from 2010 to 2023 (in 1,000s)
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Basic Statistic
Number of prisoner escapes in England and Wales 1995-2023
Number of prisoner escapes in England and Wales 1995-2023
Number of prisoner escapes from prisons and prison escorts in England and Wales from 1995/96 to 2022/23
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Basic Statistic
Opinion on prison living conditions in Great Britain 2019-2024
Opinion on prison living conditions in Great Britain 2019-2024
Are prison living conditions too easy? (October 2019 to January 2024)
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Basic Statistic
Incarceration rate in European countries in 2022
Incarceration rate in European countries in 2022
Incarceration rate in selected European countries in 2022 (per 100,000 inhabitants)
Demographics
8
- Basic Statistic Number of prisoners in England and Wales 1900-2023, by gender
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in Scotland 2004-2022, by gender
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2002-2023, by age group
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in Scotland 2009-2022, by age group
- Basic Statistic Number of prisoners in Northern Ireland 2022, by age
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by ethnicity
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by religion
- Premium Statistic Number of foreign prisoners in England and Wales 2023, by foreign nationality
Demographics
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Basic Statistic
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 1900-2023, by gender
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 1900-2023, by gender
Number of prisoners in custody in England and Wales from 1900 to 2023, by gender
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in Scotland 2004-2022, by gender
Number of prisoners in Scotland 2004-2022, by gender
Number of prisoners in custody in Scotland from 2004/05 to 2021/22, by gender
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2002-2023, by age group
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2002-2023, by age group
Number of prisoners in custody in England and Wales from 2002 to 2023, by age group
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in Scotland 2009-2022, by age group
Number of prisoners in Scotland 2009-2022, by age group
Number of prisoners in custody in Scotland from 2009/10 to 2021/22, by age group
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Basic Statistic
Number of prisoners in Northern Ireland 2022, by age
Number of prisoners in Northern Ireland 2022, by age
Number of prisoners in custody in Northern Ireland in 2022, by age group
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by ethnicity
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by ethnicity
Number of prisoners in custody in England and Wales from 2015 to 2023, by ethnicity
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by religion
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2015-2023, by religion
Number of prisoners in custody in England and Wales from 2015 to 2023, by religious faith
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Premium Statistic
Number of foreign prisoners in England and Wales 2023, by foreign nationality
Number of foreign prisoners in England and Wales 2023, by foreign nationality
Number of foreign prisoners in England and Wales in 2023, by leading foreign nationalities
Prison Safety
4
- Premium Statistic Number of deaths in prison custody in England and Wales 1978-2022
- Basic Statistic Number of suicides among prisoners in England and Wales 2000-2023
- Premium Statistic Number of assaults at prisons in England and Wales 2003-2023
- Basic Statistic Number of self-harm incidents at prisons in England and Wales 2004-2023
Prison Safety
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Premium Statistic
Number of deaths in prison custody in England and Wales 1978-2022
Number of deaths in prison custody in England and Wales 1978-2022
Number of deaths in prison custody in England and Wales from 1978 to 2022
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Basic Statistic
Number of suicides among prisoners in England and Wales 2000-2023
Number of suicides among prisoners in England and Wales 2000-2023
Number of self-inflicted deaths in prison custody in England and Wales from 1st quarter 2000 to 2nd quarter 2023
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Premium Statistic
Number of assaults at prisons in England and Wales 2003-2023
Number of assaults at prisons in England and Wales 2003-2023
Number of assault incidents at prisons in England and Wales from 1st quarter 2003 to 2nd quarter 2023, by type
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Basic Statistic
Number of self-harm incidents at prisons in England and Wales 2004-2023
Number of self-harm incidents at prisons in England and Wales 2004-2023
Number of self-harm incidents at prisons in England and Wales from 1st quarter 2004 to 1st quarter 2023
Sentence Length
4
- Premium Statistic Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2022 by length of sentence
- Basic Statistic Average length of prison sentences for all offences in England and Wales 2000-2022
- Basic Statistic Average length of prison sentences for offences in England and Wales 2022/23
- Basic Statistic Opinion on prison sentences not being harsh enough in Britain in 2019
Sentence Length
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Premium Statistic
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2022 by length of sentence
Number of prisoners in England and Wales 2022 by length of sentence
Number of prisoners under sentence in England and Wales in 2022, by length of sentence
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Basic Statistic
Average length of prison sentences for all offences in England and Wales 2000-2022
Average length of prison sentences for all offences in England and Wales 2000-2022
Average custodial sentence length at all courts to immediate custody for all offences in England and Wales from 2000 to 2022 (in months)
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Basic Statistic
Average length of prison sentences for offences in England and Wales 2022/23
Average length of prison sentences for offences in England and Wales 2022/23
Average custodial sentence length at all courts to immediate custody in England and Wales in 2022/23, by offence group (in months)
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Basic Statistic
Opinion on prison sentences not being harsh enough in Britain in 2019
Opinion on prison sentences not being harsh enough in Britain in 2019
Share of people in Great Britain who think that court sentences are not harsh enough in 2019, by politics and age group
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