Safety in custody quarterly bulletin: September 2016
Source: data.gov.uk (2018-05-25)

Safety in Custody. Data on assaults, self-harm and assaults in prisons in England and Wales. Headline figures produced quarterly with more detailed figures produced annually in April.

Published 26 January 2017 
Revised on 1 March 2017 
Safety in Custody Statistics Bulletin, England and 
Wales, Deaths in prison custody to December 2016, 
Assaults and Self-Harm to September 2016 
Key Findings 
Deaths up 38% 
overall, self-inflicted 
up 32% 
2016 has seen a record level of 354 deaths in prison custody, up 
97 from the previous year. Three of these were homicides, down 
from 8. There was a record high of 119 self-inflicted deaths, up 
29, 12 of which were in the female estate. The rate of self-inflicted 
deaths has doubled since 2012. The likelihood of death in custody 
is 1.7 times higher than in the general population, while self-
inflicted death is 8.6 times more likely. 
Self-harm incidents 
up 23% 
Self-harm reached a record high of 37,784 incidents, up 6,967 
from the previous year. Female establishments saw a small fall of 
2%. There was also a slight fall in incidents requiring hospital 
attendance in the most recent quarter. 
Assault incidents up 
31% 
Assaults have continued to increase, reaching a record high of 
25,049 assault incidents in the 12 months to September 2016, up 
5,995 from the previous year. 3,372 of these were serious 
assaults, up 28% from the previous year. The most recent quarter 
and 12 months were the highest on record for all types of assault. 
Prisoner-on-prisoner 
assaults up 28% 
There were 18,510 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults, up 4,097 from 
the previous year, of which 2,644 were serious, up 30% from the 
previous year.  
Assaults on staff up 
40% 
There were 6,430 assaults on staff, up 1,833 from the previous 
year. Serious assaults on staff have trebled since 2012, reaching 
761 in the most recent year. 
Safety in custody statistics cover deaths, self-harm and assaults in prison custody in England and 
Wales, with figures in quarterly summary tables presented on a 12-month rolling basis over a 10-
year time-series. Supplementary annual tables, providing more in depth statistics on deaths, self-
harm and assaults on a calendar year basis, underlying data files with pivot tables providing 
lower level granularity, and a guidance technical document are also available alongside this 
bulletin, and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/safety-in-custody-
statistics 
 
We are changing how our quarterly bulletins look, and would welcome any 
feedback to xxx@xxx.xx 
For other feedback related to the content of this publication, please let us know at 
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1 Deaths  
Deaths up 38% overall, self-inflicted up 32% 
 
2016 has seen a record level of 354 deaths in prison custody, up 97 from the previous year.  
There was a record high of 119 self-inflicted deaths, up 29 from the previous year. 
Figure 1: Rate of deaths per 1,000 prisoners, 12 months ending December 2007 to 12 
months ending December 2016, with annualised quarterly rates for the last 2 years 
 
In 2016 there were 354 deaths in prison custody, an increase of 38% compared to the previous 
year. This is both the highest number of deaths in the time series and the highest rate, at 4.1 
deaths per 1,000 prisoners. The most recent quarter is not as high as the first two quarters of 
2016, but is the third highest quarter on record, and is an increase on the previous quarter. 
Quarterly death figures should be considered with caution, due to greater volatility and the 
potential for seasonal effects. Long term trends and more detail are presented in annual tables1. 
There were 119 apparent self-inflicted deaths, up 32% on the previous year, the highest on 
record. On a rate basis this is 1.4 per 1,000 prisoners, the highest in recent years, and double the 
rate in 2012, but at a similar level to the previous peak during 2002 and 2003. Within the female 
estate there were 12 self-inflicted deaths at a rate of 3.1 per 1,000 prisoners, both figures the 
highest since 2004. This compares to 5 deaths in 2015 at a rate of 1.3 per 1,000 prisoners.  
There were 3 apparent homicides in 2016, down from the record high of 8 in the previous year. 
Homicides in prison custody remain relatively rare, accounting for around 1% of all deaths over 
the last ten years. 
There were 196 deaths due to natural causes, up 33% from the previous year. This is the highest 
in the time series. Natural cause deaths were at a rate of 2.3 per 1,000 prisoners, up from 1.7 per 
1,000 in the previous year. This increase in natural cause deaths is largely explained by the 
ageing prison population, and is responsible for half of the year-on-year rise in deaths overall.  
In 2016, 36 ‘other’ deaths occurred, 28 of which are ‘awaiting further information’ prior to being 
classified. These deaths were either inconclusive after toxicology and post-mortem, meaning 
classification cannot be arrived at until inquest (which can be a considerable time after the death), 
or the results had not been received by the time of publication. There has been a particularly high 
number of deaths awaiting further classification in this period, and as such, the number of ‘other’ 
deaths is not directly comparable with earlier years. It is likely the number of deaths of the 
remaining classifications will be revised upwards once classifications have been made. 
                                                 
1 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/562902/safety-in-custody-deaths-dec-15-final.xls 

 
 
- 3 - 
2 Self-harm  
Self-harm incidents up 23% 
 
Self-harm continued to increase, reaching a record high of 37,784 incidents of self-harm, up 6,967 
from the previous year. Female establishments saw a small fall of 2% in self-harm. 
Although the most recent quarter had the highest self-harm levels on record, this coincided with a 
slight fall in incidents requiring hospital attendance. 
Figure 2: Rate of self-harm incidents per 1,000 prisoners, 12 months ending September 
2007 to 12 months ending September 2016, with annualised quarterly rates for the last 2 
years  
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
Sep-07
Sep-08
Sep-09
Sep-10
Sep-11
Sep-12
Sep-13
Sep-14
Sep-15
Sep-16
Incidents per 1,000 prisoners
Total
Annualised quarterly rate
 
In the 12 months to September 2016 there were 37,784 reported incidents of self-harm (a rate of 
443 per 1,000 prisoners), up 23% on the previous year. This is the highest number of self-harm 
incidents in the time series, and the most recent quarter was the highest quarter on record. Of all 
self-harm incidents in the 12-month period, 2,583 incidents required hospital attendance, up 25% 
on the previous year.  
10,761 prisoners self-harmed (a rate of 126 prisoners per 1,000), up 19% from the previous year. 
Those that self-harmed did so, on average, 3.5 times. Greater detail on self-harm is presented in 
the annual self-harm tables2. 
Figure 3: Rate of self-harm incidents per 1,000 prisoners by gender of establishment, 12 
months ending September 2007 to 12 months ending September 2016 
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
Sep-07
Sep-08
Sep-09
Sep-10
Sep-11
Sep-12
Sep-13
Sep-14
Sep-15
Sep-16
Incidents per 1,000 prisoners
Male establishments
Female establishments
 
                                                 
2 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/519429/safety-in-custody-self-harm-to-2015.xls 

 
 
- 4 - 
Self-harm trends differ considerably by gender, with a rate of 374 incidents per 1,000 in male 
establishments (with incidents up 31% on the previous year) compared to a rate of 1,898 per 
1,000 in female establishments (a 2% reduction from the number of incidents in the previous 
year). Overall there was little change in how prolific self-harmers were in both male and female 
establishments, with an average of 3.2 incidents per self-harming individual in male 
establishments, up slightly from 3.0 in the previous year, and an average of 6.3 incidents per self-
harming individual in female establishments, compared to 6.4 in the previous year.  
While self-harmers in female establishments were twice as prolific as those in male 
establishments, self-harmers in male establishments had more than four times the proportion of 
self-harm incidents that require hospitalisation (8.0% in male establishments compared to 1.8% in 
female establishments). 
Although the most recent quarter, from July to September 2016, had the highest self-harm levels 
on record, with 9,995 incidents of self-harm, this coincided with a slight fall in incidents requiring 
hospital attendance (625 incidents requiring hospital attendance, 6.3% of all self-harm incidents). 
 

 
 
- 5 - 
3 Assaults 
Assault incidents up 31%; prisoner-on-prisoner assaults up 28%; assaults on staff up 40% 
 
Assaults have continued to increase, reaching a record high of 25,049 assault incidents in the 12 
months to September 2016, up 5,995 from the previous year. 3,372 of these were serious assaults, 
up 28% from the previous year. The most recent quarter was the highest on record. 
Figure 4: Rate of assaults overall per 1,000 prisoners by gender of establishment, 12 
months ending September 2007 to 12 months ending September 2016, with annualised 
quarterly rates for the last 2 years  
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Sep-07
Sep-08
Sep-09
Sep-10
Sep-11
Sep-12
Sep-13
Sep-14
Sep-15
Sep-16
Assaults per 1,000 prisoners
Total
Males
Females
Annualised quarterly rate for total assaults
 
In the 12 months to September 2016 there were 25,049 assault incidents (a rate of 293 incidents 
per 1,000 prisoners), an increase of 31% on the previous year, and is the highest in the time 
series. Of these, 3,372 were serious assaults, up 28% on the previous year. Since 2012, serious 
assaults have more than doubled (2.6 times higher).  
Figure 5: Rate of prisoner-on-prisoner assaults and assaults on staff, 12 months ending 
September 2007 to 12 months ending September 2016, with annualised quarterly rates for 
the last 2 years  
0
50
100
150
200
250
Sep-07
Sep-08
Sep-09
Sep-10
Sep-11
Sep-12
Sep-13
Sep-14
Sep-15
Sep-16
Assaults per 1,000 prisoners
Prisoner on prisoner
Prisoner on prisoner annualised quarterly rate
Assaults on staff
Assaults on staff annualised quarterly rate
 
There were 18,510 prisoner-on-prisoner assaults in the 12 months to September 2016 (a rate of 
217 per 1,000 prisoners), up 28% on previous year. Of these, 2,644 were serious prisoner-on-
prisoner assaults, up 30% on the previous year. 

 
 
- 6 - 
There were 6,430 assaults on staff in the 12 months to September 2016 (a rate of 75 per 1,000 
prisoners), up 40% on the previous year. Of these, 761 were serious assaults on staff, up 26% on 
the previous year. 
The most recent quarter was the highest quarter on record for all types of assault, with 6,837 
assaults, 957 of which were serious, occurring in the three month period from July to September 
2016. Greater detail on assaults is presented in the annual assaults tables3. 
The rise in assaults since 2012 has coincided with major changes to the regime, operating 
arrangements and culture in public sector prisons. For example, restructuring of the prison estate 
including staff reductions, which have reduced overall running costs, and an increasing 
awareness of gang culture and illicit psychoactive drugs in prisons. As well as the dangers to 
both physical and mental health, trading in these illicit drugs can lead to debt, violence and 
intimidation. 
3.1 
Serious assaults 
Serious assaults are those which involve one or more of: a sexual assault, detention in outside 
hospital as an in-patient; requires medical treatment for concussion or internal injuries; or incurs 
any of the following injuries: a fracture, scald or burn, stabbing, crushing, extensive or multiple 
bruising, black eye, broken nose, lost or broken tooth, cuts requiring suturing, bites, temporary or 
permanent blindness.                                                     
Figure 6: Number of serious assaults total, serious prisoner-on-prisoner assaults, and 
serious assaults on staff, 12 months ending September 2007 to 12 months ending 
September 2016  
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
Sep 07
Sep 08
Sep 09
Sep 10
Sep 11
Sep 12
Sep 13
Sep 14
Sep 15
Sep 16
Number of Assaults
12 months to
Serious assaults
Serious prisoner on prisoner assaults
Serious assaults on staff
 
After a prolonged period of stability in the time series of serious assault incidents of all types, 
there has been a clear quarter on quarter upward trend since December 2012 in serious assaults, 
serious prisoner-on-prisoner assaults and serious assaults on staff. Since 2012, the number of 
serious assaults of all types has more than doubled, and serious assaults on staff have trebled.  
                                                 
3 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/519430/safety-in-custody-assaults-to-2015.xls 

 
 
- 7 - 
Further Information 
Accompanying files 
As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release: 
 
A technical guide providing further information on how the data is collected and 
processed, as well as information on the revisions policy and legislation relevant to 
sentencing trends and background on the functioning of the criminal justice system. 
 
A set of summary tables for the latest quarter, and annual tables for the latest calendar 
year. 
 
Underlying data files with pivot tables, giving lower level granularity. 
 
National Statistics status 
National Statistics status means that official statistics meet the highest standards of 
trustworthiness, quality and public value. 
All official statistics should comply with all aspects of the Code of Practice for Official 
Statistics. They are awarded National Statistics status following an assessment by the Authority’s 
regulatory arm. The Authority considers whether the statistics meet the highest standards of 
Code compliance, including the value they add to public decisions and debate. 
It is the Ministry of Justice’s responsibility to maintain compliance with the standards expected for 
National Statistics. If we become concerned about whether these statistics are still meeting the 
appropriate standards, we will discuss any concerns with the Authority promptly. National 
Statistics status can be removed at any point when the highest standards are not maintained, and 
reinstated when standards are restored. 
 
Contact 
Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:  
Tel: xx-xxxx-xxxx  
Email: xxx@xxx.xx  
 
Other enquiries about these statistics should be directed to:  
Kate Shaw 
Performance and Analysis Group  
NOMS Agency  
Clive House  
70 Petty France 
London  
SW1H 9EX  
 
Next update: 27 April 2017 
URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/safety-in-custody-statistics  
 
© Crown copyright 
Produced by the Ministry of Justice. 
Alternative formats are available on request from xxx@xxx.xx 
 

 
 
- 8 - 
Annex A - Comparison of deaths in custody with the general 
population 
Annex A is updated annually on a calendar year basis when the underlying general population 
data4 become available from the Office of National Statistics, coinciding with the annual 
release of deaths in custody data. 
The prison population is very different from the general population: around 95% of the prison 
population are male, there are no prisoners aged under 15, and relatively few are over 60, 
relative to the general population. As a result, rates of deaths in prison custody cannot be 
compared directly with those for the general population. One technique used for comparing 
mortality rates for different populations is known as the Standardised Mortality Ratio (SMR). 
The SMR provides a means of making like for like comparisons of the death rate in prison 
custody to that of the general population of England and Wales, by adjusting for age distribution 
and gender. Figure A1 below presents the SMR of the prison population, compared to the 
expected level from the general population. Where the likelihood of death is the same as would 
be expected based on the general population, the SMR would have a value of 1 (depicted by the 
green line - a ratio of 1:1). Due to the adjustments, there is a margin of error around the SMR 
estimates, depicted on the graph as the range of values, within which there is 95% confidence 
the true value falls, by lines around the point estimates. 
Figure A1: Annual Standardised Mortality Ratio (SMR) for prison population, relative to 
general population (adjusted for age and gender), 2010 to 2016, England and Wales 
 
In 2016, the likelihood of prison mortality was 1.7 times greater than in the general population 
(there is a margin of error around this estimate, with 95% confidence, the true figure lies within a 
range of 1.5 times as likely to 1.9 times as likely). Across the time series, the likelihood of prison 
mortality has been significantly higher than in the general population, but in 2016 the ratio has 
increased to be significantly higher than those between 2010 and 2013 in the presented time 
series.  
 
                                                 
4 Death figures for the general population, as used in SMR calculations, are derived from the Office of 
National Statistics (ONS) Mortality Statistics at the following link 
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/vsob1/death-reg-sum-tables/2014/sb-deaths-first-release--2014.html and 
national population figures come from the Population Projections Statistics at the following link: 
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/npp/national-population-projections/2014-based-projections/index.html   

 
 
- 9 - 
Figure A2: Annual Standardised Mortality Ratio (SMR) for self-inflicted deaths in the prison 
population relative to suicide in the general population (adjusted for age and gender), 2010 
to 2016, England and Wales 
The Standardised Mortality Ratio in figure A2 above compares the rate of self-inflicted deaths in 
prison custody with the rate of suicide in the general population5, adjusting for age and gender. 
This ratio gives an indication how much greater the likelihood is of this kind of death in prison 
custody, compared to the wider population, on a more comparable basis. NOMS does not 
attribute intent behind self-inflicted deaths, and as such custody figures may include unintended 
deaths at one’s own hand in addition to suicides. These cannot be isolated from suicides. 
However, the ONS definition of suicide, as used for general population figures, includes 
“injury/poisoning of undetermined intent”. As such, the definitions are closely aligned. 
Across the time series, there has been a considerably higher likelihood of self-inflicted death in 
prison in relation to the likelihood of suicide in the general population. Since 2012 the ratio has 
been widening in the likelihood of self-inflicted death of offenders in custody and the likelihood of 
suicide among the general population. This rose considerably in 2016, with the likelihood of self-
inflicted death being 8.6 times greater (there is a margin of error around this estimate, with 95% 
confidence, the true figure falls within a range of 7.1 times as likely to 10.2 times as likely), which 
is significantly higher than the ratio seen in 2013 and prior years in the presented time series. 
                                                 
5 
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/suicide
sintheunitedkingdom/previousReleases