The UK’s prisons aren’t just overcrowded – they need to be better designed

The UK government has taken urgent action to address the prison capacity crisis, announcing early release for several thousand non-violent offenders.

For years, politicians of all stripes have used prisons and incarceration as a populist cause to gain votes. The result is an overstretched, overcrowded prison system that is bad for prisoners, prison staff and communities.

Around 20% of prisoners in England and Wales are held in prisons built during the Victorian era, where living...