What’s Driving the Alarming Rise in State Custody Deaths?

A growing body of evidence highlights a deepening crisis in state custody, with increasing deaths in prisons, police custody, and immigration detention.

Deaths in prison

A UK government report  published on 30 January of this year has revealed a crisis in prison safety, with self-harm incidents in both male and female prisons reaching their highest rate and number since records began in 2004. Despite repeated calls for reform, prison deaths continue to rise, with 109 deaths already recorded in 2025 alone. In 2024, 342 people died in prison, which marks the highest number of prison deaths since the peak of COVID-19 in 2021, when 371 lives were lost. Of all self-inflicted deaths, nearly one fifth occurred in the first 30 days of being imprisoned and prisoners who were on remand (awaiting trial in prison) continued to have a higher rate of self-inflicted deaths than sentenced prisoners.

A long-term analysis by INQUEST, an independent organisation monitoring deaths in state custody, highlights systemic failures in prison safety, with 3,722 deaths recorded between 2013 and 2025, exposing deep flaws in the prison system. Since 2016, over 1,000 self-inflicted deaths have occurred, pointing to a severe mental health crisis behind bars. INQUEST has long documented the failings that contribute to these preventable tragedies. Their research has shown that prisons routinely ignore warnings about unsafe conditions, fail to act on recommendations from previous inquests, lack the resources necessary to provide appropriate mental health care and suicide prevention measures, and lack accountability when preventable deaths occur. The ongoing crisis raises serious concerns about the government’s ability to ensure the safety and dignity of those in custody.

Deaths in police custody

Deaths in police custody reflect the same alarming trends seen in prisons. The 2023/24 period saw the highest number of police-related deaths for nearly a decade, alongside a 10% increase in police use of force. INQUEST’s latest data shows that 2025 has already seen four police-related deaths, including two in custody. In 2024, there were 28 deaths, with 14 occurring in custody and three resulting from police shootings.

A coalition of organisations including INQUEST, Liberty, the Centre for Women’s Justice, and the United Friends and Family Campaign has raised alarm over a Home Office review that could weaken police accountability by reversing key legal decisions on police use of force and unlawful killing in inquests. The review follows the prosecution of Metropolitan Police officer Martyn Blake, who fatally shot Chris Kaba in 2022 and was found not guilty of murder in 2024. Force continues to be used disproportionality used against Black people, adding to the irrefutable evidence of structural racism embedded in policing practices. People from BAME backgrounds are over twice as likely to die from restraint-related incidents and from police use of force, and nearly twice as likely to have mental health-related factors in their deaths.

Since 1990, there have been 1,918 deaths following police contact in England and Wales, encompassing fatalities in custody, police shootings, and deaths from pursuits or road traffic incidents. 426 of these deaths were following contact with the Metropolitan Police. Despite claims that officers face excessive scrutiny, only one police officer has been convicted of manslaughter in this time. This persistent lack of accountability, coupled with systemic failures such as the criminalisation of mental health, inadequate care, and deeply entrenched racial disparities, may all be contributing factors in the escalating number of deaths in police custody.

Deaths of immigration detainees

Data from INQUEST also highlights the ongoing risks faced by detainees in the UK. Since 2000, a total of 42 deaths have been recorded in Immigration Removal and Detention Centres. An additional 16 deaths have occurred among immigration detainees held in prisons.

The UK’s immigration detention system has long been criticised for its harsh and indefinite nature. Detention is an administrative process, not a criminal one, yet thousands of people seeking asylum and other migrants are held in prison-like conditions with no time limit on their detention. The UK has one of the largest detention estates in Europe and is the only European country without a legal time limit on detention. Detainees can be held:

• On arrival in the UK.
• When their visa or leave to remain expires.
• After an asylum claim is refused, even if they have no right to appeal.

The figures reveal concerning patterns, including spikes in self-inflicted deaths in some years, such as 2017, when six people lost their lives in detention. These deaths raise serious concerns about the treatment and well-being of detainees in immigration custody. As recently as October of last year, a 26-year old male Theophile Kaliviotis died at an immigration removal centre near Gatwick airport. The rising number of deaths in immigration detention underscores the harmful and oppressive nature of indefinite detention, compounded by inadequate healthcare and the systemic disregard for the mental health, dignity, and humanity of detainees.

Addressing the Crisis

The escalating number of deaths in UK prisons, police custody, and immigration detention centres reveals a systemic crisis that severely impacts the safety and rights of those in state custody. Despite growing evidence and calls for reform, the government’s response has been insufficient, placing vulnerable individuals at greater risk. This crisis highlights the pressing need for comprehensive legal reform, with a focus on alternatives to detention and a stronger commitment to rehabilitation, mental health care, and safeguarding human rights.

The Human Rights Department at Saunders Law offers expert legal assistance and representation in civil claims against the police and prisons. We also have extensive experience in and are renowned for our death in police and prison custody inquest work. 

For a free, no-obligation, initial discussion to see if we might be able to help, please make an enquiry online.