Cramped Victorian prisons limiting rehabilitation, chief inspector says

Charlie Taylor says old, overcrowded jails in England and Wales were never designed for education and training

The cramped conditions of Victorian prisons in England and Wales are limiting the rehabilitation opportunities for thousands of offenders, an official watchdog has said.

As the Guardian launches a visual investigation into the state of Victorian prisons in inner cities and towns, the chief inspector of prisons, Charlie Taylor, said 19th century jails could also be incredibly noisy and distressing" for autistic people.