Drugs and overcrowding still significant at prison

The number of men taking their own lives, the use of drugs and overcrowding remain significant problems at HMP Leeds, a report has found.

The Category B prison, which houses almost 1,000 inmates, was last year found to have the highest number of self-inflicted deaths in all adult male prisons in the UK.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons visited in March to follow up on concerns raised in 2025, and said leaders had taken those "seriously" but efforts to improve were hampered by "severe overcrowding, high rates of drug use, self-inflicted deaths and lack of time out of cell for many men".

HM Prison Service said it was investing in improving security and strengthening support to reduce self-harm.

The report said a new governor took up post six months before the latest review and brought "drive and determination through her proactive leadership style."

But it said too many prisoners were still developing a substance misuse problem while in the prison and there was "little evidence that use of illicit drugs had reduced".

"Leaders told us some men were being paid to get recalled and bring drugs into the jail," it said.

"Security at the main gate had weaknesses that needed addressing."

The report said many men were still not spending enough time out of their cells and most "shared overcrowded and cramped cells designed for one".

"Many had little time out of cell, because the regime was frequently curtailed and access to education, work and other activities was limited," the inspection in July 2025 found.

The report said this remained a problem.

Since the previous inspection, the report said, another three men had taken their own lives and there were three serious self-harm incidents where the prisoner had to be resuscitated.

However, it said, some aspects had improved since the July inspection, notably that concerns were better shared between the prison, healthcare providers and the NHS concerning "acutely mentally unwell men".

Support for prisoners returning to the community was also improving, it said, and while nearly 200 men were still remanded and recalled each month, the concern that they were not getting enough practical support had been addressed by the prison redeploying resources and planning a residential unit to improve their access to agencies.

This response was "impressive and "better than we usually see", the report said.

Staff-prisoner relationships and cleanliness had also improved, and there was "significant" and "reasonable" progress in education, skills and work, with significant support in place for prisoners with special educational needs and disabilities.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "We welcome the inspectors' recognition of improvements in the support for new arrivals.

"However, the prison is still operating under immense pressure.

"That is why we are already taking urgent action to tackle the spread of drugs by investing over £40m in new prison security nationally and reduce self-harm by strengthening support for prisoners who may be at risk."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.