OVERCROWDING in prisons such as Durham is "feeding crime and creating more victims", according to campaigners.

Figures released today (Monday) show three in four men’s jails across England and Wales are holding more people than they are designed for.

Ministry of Justice (MoJ) data, analysed by the Howard League for Penal Reform, shows how prisons have been forced to cram more people into cells as prisoner numbers have grown and other jails have closed.

At its worst, overcrowding can mean two prisoners sharing a 6ft-by-10ft cell designed for one with little ventilation and an unscreened toilet at the foot of the bunks.

Official inspections have found prisoners spending up to 23 hours a day in such conditions, as overcrowded prisons lack the resources to house people safely, give them something to do and reduce reoffending following release.

Increased overcrowding has coincided with deep staff cuts and a rise in the number of suicides, self-harm incidents and violent attacks behind bars.

Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “Caging men in squalor with nothing to do all day is never going to help them become law-abiding citizens on release.

“Far too many people are being sent into already overcrowded jails and the need to stem the flow is now urgent.

“Government must get a grip on a prison system in crisis that is feeding the crime problem and creating more victims.”

The most overcrowded prison was Leeds, which was designed to accommodate 669 prisoners but was holding 1,218 at the end of January.

Other prisons with huge overcrowding problems include Durham, designed to accommodate 591, but holding 922 and Doncaster, designed for 738, but holding 1,120.

Prisons Minister Andrew Selous said: “We always have enough space within our prisons to accommodate all offenders, and will never be in a position where we can't imprison those sentenced by the courts.

“All prisons have safe population levels and published statistics show that crowding is at its lowest levels since 2007/08.

“This Government has considerably increased the adult male prison capacity from the level inherited at the end of the last Parliament.”

Between the end of January 2013 and the end of January this year, the prison population, excluding immigration removal centres, rose from 83,062 to 83,680. Over the same period, 12 prisons were either closed or had roles changed and the number of places was cut from 78,935 to 75,374.