Hundreds of people could have been raped while in prison without any action being taken by authorities, according to figures published yesterday. 

New statistics collated by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) showed that 1 in 100 prisoners in England and Wales had reported being sexually abused.

This would mean that more than 1,650 prisoners have been forced into sexual acts against their will.

“There is an urgent need to determine the nature and scale of sexual abuse in prisons,” said the Howard League for Penal Reform’s commission on sex in prison chairman Chris Sheffield.

The very first independent review of sex behind bars found that it was hard to know all the facts on rape in prison due to information being hidden or under-reported.

While the commission was able to interview former prisoners on the issue, the Ministry of Justice barred any access to current inmates. 

League chief executive Frances Crook said this was “particularly disappointing.”