Violence between inmates persists at prison - report

Violence between inmates remained high at an overcrowded Victorian prison, a watchdog has found.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons revisited HMP Leicester in August following concerns raised by inspectors during their last full inspection in 2025.

The Independent Review Progress (IRP) report published on Monday, also highlighted inmates continued to face long delays for mental health transfers, cells still in poor condition and the facility's overall use of force remained among the highest in the country.

In response to the report, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), which runs the prison on Welford Road, said a number of improvements were noted but admitted there was "more to do".

In August 2025 during an unannounced visit, inspectors found Leicester had the highest assault rate among comparable reception prisons, and high drug use put staff and inmates at risk.

According to inspectors, living conditions remained poor, with overcrowded accommodation, damaged cells and ageing infrastructure.

There were long-standing concerns in health care and prisoners lacked access to challenging and useful education, skills and work opportunities.

The progress of the category B prison, which was built in 1874, was reviewed between 10 and 12 August.

Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, said "progress was not universal".

"Prisoner-on-prisoner violence remained unchanged and use of force comparatively high," he stated in the report.

"The prison had recently introduced positive initiatives to address these issues, but at the time of our review it was too early to see the full impact of these.

"Patients still waited too long for transfer to specialist mental health beds, and the ageing infrastructure continued to affect living conditions."

The chief inspector said that although leaders had secured funding for a major refurbishment programme, the work was not due to start until later this year.

He warned that substantial improvements to the "poor" living conditions depended on this building work being delivered as planned.

Taylor praised some positive changes, stating the new governor had brought "fresh impetus" and "clearer priorities" to the prison.

He said progress was most evident in safety, and although violence between inmates remained high, overall rates of violence had reduced by 18%.

His report also noted that 21% of random drug tests were positive for illicit substances, compared to 29% in the six months before the last inspection.

There was also a "notable positive practice" of daily data sharing between the prison and healthcare teams, resulting in improved access to services.

The chief inspector added even though there continued to be a high turnover of prisoners, staff could now account for them more reliably.

His report added Ofsted found reasonable progress made across all four themes it reviewed.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: "This report recognises real improvements at the prison, with violence and drug use falling thanks to stronger leadership and hard-working staff.

"But there is more to do. That's why we've introduced a new 28-day limit for hospital transfers, and we're investing £300m in prison and probation maintenance this year to improve conditions and keep prisons secure."

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