NINE people took their own lives in prisons in the West Midlands in 2015 – including at Hewell prison near Redditch – as the suicide rate behind bars remained at an alarmingly high level, says the Howard League for Penal Reform.
They were among a total of 18 people who died in the region’s prisons last year, according to data published by the Ministry of Justice.
Three people took their own lives in Hewell prison. Deaths by suicide were also recorded in Birmingham, Brinsford, Dovegate, Long Lartin, Stoke Heath and Swinfen Hall prisons.
