UK prison population statistics

This briefing paper explores data on the UK prison population, including the population size and change over time, the demographic profile of prisoners, safety in prisons, and the cost per prisoner.

Prisons are devolved, so UK prison statistics are published separately for England and Wales (the Ministry of Justice), Scotland (the Scottish Government), and Northern Ireland (the Department of Justice). This briefing also compares the UK with other countries.

Prison population

Weekly prison population data are available for England, Wales and Scotland and quarterly data are available for Northern Ireland. 

England, Wales and Scotland and quarterly data are available for Northern Ireland. As of March 2024, the UK had a total prison population of approximately 97,700 people, comprising

• 87,900 in England and Wales,
• 8,000 in Scotland, and
• 1,900 in Northern Ireland.

The prison population fell in all jurisdictions during the Covid-19 pandemic. The starkest decline was between February and June 2020, when the prison population of the UK as a whole reduced by 5,500 people or by 6%.  It has steadily grown since then to its pre-pandemic level.

In addition to snapshots on particular days, all jurisdictions publish an average annual prison population. This was 80,798 people in England and Wales, 7,422 in Scotland and 1,685 in Northern Ireland in 2022/23.

Change over time

Up until 2015, the prison population had been generally increasing in size, with the sharpest increases happening in the mid-1990s and the 2000s. After that it flattened off, even falling in Scotland and Northern Ireland prior to the pandemic.

The graph below shows prison population change relative to 1900 (and relative to 2000 for Northern Ireland).

The prison population of England & Wales quadrupled in size between 1900 and 2018, with around half of this increase taking place since 1990.  The Scottish prison population almost doubled in size since 1900 and rose 60% since 1990.

The data series for Northern Ireland begins in 2000. Between 2000 and 2022/23 the prison population of Northern Ireland increased by 58%. As of March 2024, it was around 1,900 which was historically high.

Prison population per capita

To put the prison population in context, it is possible to calculate the number of prisoners per 100,000 people in the general population. As of March 2024, there were approximately:

• 134 prisoners per 100,000 of the population in England and Wales
• 136 per 100,000 in Scotland.
• 88 per 100,000 in Northern Ireland.

Projections

Prison population projections are made separately for the three jurisdictions. Those for England and Wales are the most long-term and project a prison population of between 95,100 and 114,200 by 2027.

Further statistics

The availability of more detailed data on the prison population varies by jurisdiction. Where available, this briefing contains statistics on:

• Sentence length and offences for which prisoners were convicted
• Age of prisoners
• Nationality
• Ethnicity and religion
• Over-crowding
• Safety in prisons (assault, self-harming, deaths in prison, drugs)
• Prisoner escapes and absconds
• Cost per prisoner

An Excel spreadsheet is also provided which contains the underlying data to the charts in the briefing.