SHOCKING statistics show a total of 122 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults took place at HMP Long Lartin from 2024 to 2025.
According to the latest figures, the number of attacks at the South Littleton jail, had increased from just 15 five years earlier.
Similarly, the number of assaults by inmates on staff at HMP Long Lartin has risen from 29 in 2020/21 to 114 in 2024 to 25.
The increased rate of violence in prisons can be attributed to many reasons, including overcrowding, lack of purposeful activity, staffing levels, security and poor mental health.
HMP Long Lartin has a reported population of 571 inmates in 2024.
The figures, along with national statistics, have been obtained and highlighted by Legal Expert.
The prison population has increased annually for the last 30 years, rising from 43,000 in 1994 to over 88,000 in 2024.
Ministry of Justice statistics show, in the past year, there were 10,568 assaults on prison staff and 20,570 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults – seven per cent and nine per cent increases on five years ago, respectively.
The figures – for both prisoner-on-prisoner and inmate-on staff assaults – are at their highest in the past five years.
Institute for Government figures found, in crowded accommodation, for each 10 additional prisoners per 1,000 prisoners, there was around one more prisoner-on-prisoner assault and around one-and-a-half more staff assaults.
Patrick Mallon, a solicitor at legal firm JF Law, said: “The alarming year-on-year rise in assaults in UK prisons is a stark reflection of a system under immense strain.
“With prison populations growing and a significant number of prisons now officially overcrowded, the Ministry of Justice is facing a growing crisis as this limited space creates an unstable environment where violence becomes increasingly common.”
In June 2025, Government research highlighted a link between overcrowded conditions and increased violence in prisons. Inmates are 20 per cent more likely to be involved in assaults in overpopulated jails.
Investment in prisons
The Government’s ‘Plan for Change’ aims to build 14,000 extra prison places by 2031.
A total of £40million is being invested nationally this financial year to fund security enhancements including window replacements, CCTV and control room upgrades, vehicle gates, biometrics and floodlighting.
The measures are aimed at boosting safety, combating the influx of drone activity and clamping down on suspected wrongdoing behind bars
Mr Mallon said the Prison Service had a legal duty to protect those in its custody and, similarly, that prison officers had a right to a safe workplace.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “These statistics once again lay bare the extent of the crisis facing our prisons – with levels of violence, assaults on staff and self-harm far too high.
“The Government has made it clear it will do whatever it can to protect our hardworking staff – which is why we are trialing tasers in prisons and mandated protective body armour for prison officers working with the most dangerous offenders.
“But it is clear fundamental change is needed, which is why we’re also reforming our jails so they create better citizens not better criminals.”
The prison continues to work to understand and reduce the causes of violence and challenge those who perpetrate through the use of adjudications, incentives, and formal investigations where relevant.
