ALMOST 5,000 additional days of imprisonment were imposed on inmates for breaking the rules at HMP Risley.

Research by the Howard League for Penal Reform has revealed how 4,747 days were added onto the sentences of serving inmates at the Warrington Road prison in 2017.

This is more than double the number of days handed out in 2016 at the category C prison.

At Thorn Cross prison, this figure rose to 54 additional days in 2017 compared to zero in 2016.

Across England and Wales, the total number of additional days handed down has more than doubled in three years – from fewer than 160,000 in 2014 to almost 360,000 in 2017.

It means that almost 1,000 years of extra imprisonment were imposed last year.

Frances Crook, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “The explosion in the use of additional days of imprisonment has been a catastrophe for the prison system.

"Rather than solving problems, it has created new ones – piling more pressure on the prison population and worsening overcrowding, which in turn leads to more drug abuse and violence.

“These figures illustrate the urgent need for reform. We need to see a culture change in jails, from top to bottom.

"A prison that resorts again and again to further punishment is an unhealthy prison.

“Scrapping the imposition of additional days would make prisons safer, fairer and less likely to churn out people who go on to reoffend in the community.

"It has worked in Scotland and, with the right approach, it would work here, too.”

The report reveals disparities in how frequently additional days are imposed at different prisons across England and Wales.

Based on its research, the Howard League is calling for prison inspection guidelines to be augmented.

Under the current system, two people breaking the same rule can receive different punishments.

People held on remand or serving indeterminate sentences cannot receive additional days.

The Ministry of Justice defended the policy which is currently in place.

He said: “The public would expect any prisoner who uses a mobile phone behind bars, who attacks prison staff or who smuggle in drugs to be punished and spend more time in prison.”