Staff shortages an issue amid ‘deeply worrying’ prison deaths in England

Inquests flag up gaps in the care of prisoners in relation to at least nine deaths in custody since 2021

Prison understaffing and workload issues have been flagged in at least nine inquests into deaths in custody since the start of 2021, according to an Observer analysis of coroners' reports.

Issues raised include gaps in monitoring of prisoners due to understaffing, a lack of prison-based clinical staff and shortcomings in the keyworker programme. Coroners have also repeatedly identified problems with staff training and the assessment, care in custody and teamwork (ACCT) process for prisoners identified as being at risk of suicide or self-harm.