Exclusive: campaigners demand new sentencing guidelines after data reveals a dramatic rise in the chance of a prisoner’s baby dying
Women in prison have a seven-times higher probability of suffering a stillbirth than those in the general population – an increase from a five-times higher probability since the data was last collected two years ago – the Observer can reveal.
Figures obtained through freedom of information requests sent to 11 NHS trusts serving women’s prisons in England also showed that for the years 2020-22, 25% of babies born to women in prison were admitted to a neonatal unit afterwards – almost double the national figure of 14%.
