Source · Deaths in custody

PPO Fatal Incident Reports

6,563 incidents 5,801 published 1,698 recommendations 1,676 self-inflicted 3,427 natural causes

Deaths in custody investigated by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. Among the incidents indexed here, 26% are recorded as self-inflicted. Source: PPO.

Theme: safety · Remove

Incidents

91 records

Brian Fletcher

HMP Hewell

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published5 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 10 July 2026

Peter Williams

HMP Littlehey

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 13 May 2026

Peter Magloire

HMP Wormwood Scrubs

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 25 February 2026

Alexander Boy

HMP Wandsworth

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 30 April 2026

Amanda Fitzpatrick

Edith Rigby House Approved Premises

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 24 March 2026

Daniel Bailey

HMP Lindholme

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 26 June 2026

Raymond Wallace

HMP Lowdham Grange

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 21 July 2026

Dave McKillop

HMP Stafford

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 26 June 2026

Jason Sedgwick

HMP Littlehey

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 4 August 2026

Ronald Meikle

HMP Woodhill

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 20 February 2026

Johnpaul Digweed

HMP Garth

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published4 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 28 August 2026

Dean Collins

HMP Birmingham

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 17 April 2026

James Glendenning

HMP Manchester

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 2 October 2026

Patrick Maughan

HMP Lowdham Grange

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 24 April 2026

David Glass

HMP Altcourse

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 2 October 2026

Alexander Rodgers

HMP Wymott

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 9 June 2026

Jeffrey Long

HMP/YOI Moorland

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published11 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 14 August 2026

Frazer Williams

HMP Guys Marsh

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published9 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 20 March 2026

Isaiah Olugosi

HMP Wormwood Scrubs

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published7 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 24 August 2026

Norman Loseby

HMP Isle of Wight

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published6 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 25 June 2026

Keith Saunders

HMP Peterborough

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 17 July 2026

Dylan Woodhead

HMP Hindley

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published4 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 14 August 2026

Brian Lomas

HMP BirminghamDate of death 2 May 2025

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 19 December 2025

Roy Anderson

HMP RanbyDate of death 10 March 2025

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 5 December 2025

Darren Stapleton

HMP PeterboroughDate of death 4 February 2025

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 12 September 2025

Alex Davies

HMP/YOI StyalDate of death 24 December 2024

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 17 November 2025

Brian Acott

HMP LewesDate of death 17 September 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 20 May 2025

Eric Stringer

HMP Wormwood ScrubsDate of death 23 August 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published4 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 4 April 2025

Christopher Ash

HMP BirminghamDate of death 26 June 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 4 July 2025

Lewis Brown

HMP BirminghamDate of death 27 May 2024

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 4 April 2025

Rakeem Malik

HMP Long LartinDate of death 20 May 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 6 December 2024

Jacob Blow

HMP ExeterDate of death 9 May 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 9 October 2026

Ashley Ferrie

HMP Fosse WayDate of death 13 February 2024

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 13 March 2025

Sean Higgins

HMP RochesterDate of death 7 February 2024

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published6 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 7 March 2025

Brian Field

HMP Full SuttonDate of death 4 February 2024

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 13 December 2024

Daniel Fielding

HMP LiverpoolDate of death 19 January 2024

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published6 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 25 July 2025

Matthew Osborne

HMP Lowdham GrangeDate of death 25 November 2023

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 5 February 2026

John Kenny

HMP/YOI ParcDate of death 21 October 2023

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published1 recommendation indexed

PPO entry published 27 September 2024

Ricky Crosher

HMP Lowdham GrangeDate of death 11 October 2023

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 3 December 2025

Darren Barker

HMP PeterboroughDate of death 12 September 2023

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 17 October 2024

Raymond Cartwright

HMP RisleyDate of death 6 August 2023

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 22 November 2024

John Rombach

HMP StaffordDate of death 17 July 2023

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 9 May 2025

Damon Hardman

HMP LewesDate of death 8 June 2023

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 21 July 2025

Rolandas Karbauskas

HMP Lowdham GrangeDate of death 25 March 2023

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published6 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 7 February 2025

Michael Tucker

HMP WaylandDate of death 22 March 2023

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 13 June 2024

Ryan Harding

HMP/YOI ParcDate of death 8 January 2023

Other non-naturalInvestigation: Report published3 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 13 February 2026

Thomas Goldring

HMP WinchesterDate of death 29 December 2022

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published4 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 19 December 2025

Matthew Xavier

HMP HighpointDate of death 16 December 2022

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published2 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 30 August 2024

Anthony O’Connell

HMP SwalesideDate of death 18 September 2022

Self-inflictedInvestigation: Report published9 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 8 July 2024

Sebastian Mularz

HMP HullDate of death 17 August 2022

Natural causesInvestigation: Report published6 recommendations indexed

PPO entry published 21 July 2025

Top recommendation themes

healthcare (299) safeguarding (238) emergency_response (158) record_keeping (140) communication (130) policy (125) mental_health (115) safety (106) training (91) medication (80)

Learning & thematic publications

112 cross-establishment publications

Learning Lessons Bulletins (50), thematic reviews (2), consultation responses (11), Policy into Practice (5), annual reports (7) and FOI responses from the Ombudsman's disclosure log (37): the systemic patterns the Ombudsman draws from many investigations.

Title	Type	Date	Source
The number of complaints received by the PPO from 1 January 2023 onwards by people held in immigration removal centres and in short-term holding facilities	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
Annual Report 2025 to 2026	Annual report	Jul 2026	PDF
To provide information on prisons in the United Kingdom with forty or more self-inflicted deaths in the last ten years, alongside their total	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
The three English prisons with the highest number of self-inflicted deaths between 2016 to 2026 (excluding HMP Leeds), with annual breakdowns	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
The total number of prison deaths that occurred while the individual was located in a segregation unit per calendar from 2021 to 2025	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
The number of drug-related deaths in prisons in England and Wales from 2010 to 2025	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
A breakdown of the epilepsy deaths in Welsh prisons from the PPO’s Learning Lessons Bulletin on epilepsy deaths	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
The number of people held in prison, either serving a sentence or on remand, who have died by suicide between 2016 to 2026, broken down by each prison in Yorkshire	FOI response	Jul 2026	PDF
PPO response to JSC Inquiry into Children and Young Adults in the Secure Estate	Consultation response	Jun 2026	PDF
The number of upheld complaints made to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) about accommodation from 2024 to 2025.	FOI response	Apr 2026	PDF
Fatal Incident Investigations Learning Lessons Bulletin Issue 21: Segregation	Learning Lessons Bulletin	Mar 2026	PDF
Fatal Incident Investigations Learning Lessons Bulletin Issue 22: Self-inflicted deaths in reception prisons	Learning Lessons Bulletin	Mar 2026	PDF
HMP Elmley prisoner deaths by year from 2010 to 2025	FOI response	Feb 2026	PDF
Complaints to the PPO about inadequate access to sanitary products since 2020	FOI response	Feb 2026	PDF
The number of health-related deaths in prison	FOI response	Feb 2026	PDF
How many complaints did IPCI receive from prisoners during 2024?	FOI response	Feb 2026	PDF
How many complaints has the PPO received regarding lost property by HMP Peterborough	FOI response	Feb 2026	PDF
Fatal Incident Investigations Learning Lessons Bulletin Issue 20: Epilepsy	Learning Lessons Bulletin	Nov 2025	PDF
Annual Report 2024 to 2025	Annual report	Jul 2025	PDF
The number of deaths linked to drug taking in prisons in England and Wales between 2020 to 2024	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
How many prisoner deaths has the PPO been notified of each year, or started investigating, where there is a suspicion the death was drug-related?	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
The number of prisoners who died where no care plan was in place as found in PPO fatal incident investigations (1 February 2023 to 16 September 2023)	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
Provide a list of deaths by suicide in English prisons since 2022	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
The PPO response time for all cases in last three and current financial year	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
The number of self-inflicted deaths recorded in prisons from 2019 to 2024	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
The number of individuals in prisons, young offender institutions and approved premises in England and Wales and/or within 14 days of being released from prison were at the time of their deaths subject to an IPP	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
To confirm when the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman’s (PPO) Yarl’s Wood special investigation report was completed	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
To provide the total number of Prevention of Future Deaths (PFDs or Regulation 28 letters)	FOI response	Jun 2025	PDF
Policy into Practice: Handling of prisoners’ property	Policy into Practice	Mar 2025	PDF
Policy into Practice: Handling of property complaints	Policy into Practice	Mar 2025	PDF