Prisoners are being forced to live in ‘appalling and sometimes inhumane’ conditions according to a new investigation into the ‘crumbling’ prison estate.

It has found that conditions in prisons across England and Wales are dangerous and unhygienic. It blamed short-term thinking and ‘chronic underinvestment’ for the problems now being faced.

The report, a compilation of investigations by Independent Monitoring Boards, highlighted ‘cockroach infestations, biting flies infesting showers, dead rodents rotting on the wings, and cells taken out of use due to bedbugs.’ Prisoners even reported being bitten by rats.

There were also issues with leaking sewage, broken roofs causing contaminated water to spill onto wings, and fire alarms that went off so frequently staff began to ignore them when they sounded.

The physical condition of the estate is also putting prisoners in danger. At HMP Pentonville, a prisoner was killed in 2016 by a weapon believed to have been smuggled in through a window, and two prisoners escaped through their windows soon after. Eight years later the replacement of these windows has yet to be completed.

The Chair of the Independent Monitoring Boards blamed not only the lack of funding, but also the ‘inefficient spending of what little money there is, and the lack of autonomy afforded to Governors to implement solutions.’

Her statement continued: ‘Prisoners are enduring appalling conditions across the board, yet they often lack the motivation to submit complaints, as the dire state of things has become normalised for those most affected. Whether they are eating, working, sleeping, or receiving medical care, the shocking level of neglect reported by local IMBs across the country, and the impact of this on those living in these conditions, cannot be ignored.’

The body has called on the government to ‘heed this warning against continuing down the same path.’