When Bryony was held in prison, she says self-harm was “rife”.
The then 27-year-old – who had no criminal record – was arrested when she was having delusions she was being poisoned.
After her mother’s death from pancreatic cancer, Bryony (not her real name) started to develop mental health problems while she was a university student.
They culminated in a psychosis where she believed there was a tapeworm in her brain which was killing her. Bryony thought a local takeaway worker had poisoned her food with tapeworm eggs.
In the midst of her psychosis in 2017, she threatened to kill the man if he didn’t admit to drugging her and put a match through the door of the takeaway.
Bryony was arrested for malicious communication and attempted arson and placed on remand in the mental-health wing of HMP Styal in Cheshire.
Warning: This story contains references to self-harm
Once in prison, Bryony said she was “so depressed” that she self-harmed for the first-time.
Image: Bryony suffered mental health problems at the time she was held in prison
“I couldn’t see any other option,” she said.
“It was basically a way to cope with my surroundings.
“When you’re psychotic and depressed, being locked away in a cell is one of the worst things you can do to someone.”
Prisoner ‘tried to disembowel himself’
The extent to which mentally unwell prisoners are going to hurt themselves has been revealed in a new report seen exclusively by Sky News.
And there are concerns the problem is being worsened by people with mental health problems being held in prisons for too long before they are transferred to psychiatric hospitals.
The report, from chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor, says some mentally unwell prisoners are “so driven to harming themselves they have… removed teeth or maimed themselves to the point of exposing their own intestines, frequently causing life-changing injuries”.
Mr Taylor told Sky News: “We came across a case where a prisoner was, in effect, attempting to disembowel himself.”
Despite these shocking examples, some prisoners are waiting more than a year to be transferred to psychiatric hospitals.
Image: The chief inspector of prisons’ report says inmates are suffering life-changing injuries from self-harm. File pic: PA
NHS guidance says the time between the identification of the need for hospital admission and the transfer to hospital should take no more than 28 days. For those with an urgent need, the transfer should take place faster.
Mr Taylor said this is not happening in 85% of cases – and the average wait time is almost three months.
Prison officers receive limited training in mental health and risk being injured in their interactions with unwell prisoners.
Therefore, many unwell prisoners who are dangerous or difficult to manage end up in solitary confinement for long periods, worsening their condition.
Latest figures show there was a 17% increase in the rate of self-harm incidents among prisoners in England and Wales in the year to June 2023 – with a record level for female inmates.
The Ministry of Justice said there were “notable differences in self-harm trends by gender” – as the rate in female prisons increased “considerably by 63% to a new peak (6,213 incidents per 1,000 prisoners)”, compared to a rise of 3% in male prisons (555 incidents per 1,000 prisoners).
‘She was suffering, really suffering’
Sarah Reed had schizophrenia and was sent to HMP Holloway in 2015.
She was sent to the prison for psychiatric reports to be obtained to confirm whether she was fit to stand trial for an alleged assault, which occurred while she was sectioned as a patient at a psychiatric hospital.
Image: Sarah Reed died after ‘unacceptable delays in psychiatric assessment’
In prison, Sarah was taken off her antipsychotic medication and placed in segregation, where her health rapidly declined.
Sarah’s mother Marilyn Reed told Sky News: “She kept saying ‘mum, I need my meds, I can’t sleep’. She also had these two black eyes. She was suffering, really suffering.
“The last thing she said to me was ‘get me out of here’.”
On 11 January 2016, Sarah was found unresponsive in her cell.
An inquest jury concluded unacceptable delays in psychiatric assessment and failures in care contributed to her death.
A court heard how she spent her final days in a filthy cell, kept in virtual isolation with no visits or telephone calls to family.
The prison closed in July 2016.
Image: Marilyn Reed spoke to Sky News about the death of her daughter Sarah
According to the chief inspector for prisons, there are two reasons for the long delays in transferring acutely mentally unwell prisoners to mental health facilities: bureaucracy and the lack of beds in psychiatric facilities.
Latest NHS figures show 90.5% of overnight beds reserved for mental illness are occupied.
While there are long delays in transferring prisoners to hospital, Mr Taylor says he has concerns about the way prisons are used “as an alternative to a hospital bed”.
Prisons continue to be used “as a place of safety”, which means people can be remanded in custody during a mental health crisis solely because there are no available hospital places.
Image: Chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor
Mr Taylor described hearing about a woman who had deliberately jumped in front of traffic four times in the hope that it would end her life. The woman was arrested for a public order offence and remanded in prison.
The draft of the Mental Health Bill sought to remove the use of prison as a place of safety and to reform the Bail Act to prevent courts from remanding defendants for their own protection, solely for mental health reasons.
The bill also proposed a statutory time limit of 28 days to complete transfers from prisons to hospital.
However, the bill was not included in the King’s Speech in November 2023, meaning that there will be no legislative reform of the Mental Health Act.
Image: Sky’s Alice Porter spoke to Bryony
Prison ‘made illness 10 times worse’
Bryony spent six months in prison before appearing in court where she was given a hospital order and transferred to a mental health facility.
There she was given a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and began treatment.
“I started to get better straight away,” she said.
“I don’t know if getting arrested and getting sent to prison was the right response.
“I think perhaps it might have been more beneficial if I’d have been taken straight to hospital instead of prison.
“I’ve never seen people so ill before. And prison just made that illness 10 times worse.”
A government spokesperson said: “Offenders are entitled to access mental health support in prison, where they are also helped to get off drugs and into rehabilitation.
“NHS England is investing in post-custody care to help prison leavers access their community-based health services – helping to reduce reoffending, cut crime and protect the public.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK
In parts of Birmingham, the stench is overwhelming – enough to make you heave.
At a block of flats in Highgate, in Birmingham city centre, we find a mountain of bin liners full of rubbish spewing out of the cavernous bin store, which is normally locked.
Mickel comes out to speak to us, while all around bin liners lie open, with the contents for all to see, including used nappies and rotting food.
Image: Mickel says they’ve had ‘foxes and rats, literally the size of cats’
Image: Outside Mickel’s flat in Highgate, bin liners lie open, spewing out rubbish
We both find it hard to keep talking amid the awful smell.
“We’ve had foxes and rats, literally the size of cats, flies, it’s just nasty, something needs to be done,” he says.
Image: Chris says the situation is ‘overwhelming’ as she’s ‘terrified of rats’
Around the corner, I meet Chris, in her dressing gown, popping the bins into her bin store beneath her flat before work.
She unlocks it, and although it isn’t bursting out on to the street yet, it is getting full.
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She says the situation is “overwhelming” as she’s “terrified of rats”. But, even so, she has sympathy for the striking bin workers.
“It’s not an easy job; they must have a heart of gold to do that job,” she says.
“Pay them whatever they need, they deserve it.”
Image: Striking bin workers at Lifford Lane tip, south of the city centre
Image: There’s an awful smell coming from a mountain of bin liners outside Mickel’s flat in Highgate
At Lifford Lane tip, south of the city centre, Brigette has pulled up alongside picketing workers. The back seat of her car is full of rubbish.
She apologises for the terrible waft, mixed with air freshener.
“It’s very pungent, isn’t it? Not nice,” she admits.
“It’s unfortunate, I have some sympathies for all the parties, but, equally, we have a duty of care to stay clean and tidy.”
She says she has her rubbish and that of her elderly aunt and plans to make weekly trips to the tip until a resolution in this pay dispute between the council and the Unite union is found.
The US is “our closest ally” but “nothing is off the table” in response to Donald Trump’s 10% tariffs on imports from the UK, the business secretary has said.
In a statement following the US president’s nearly hour-long address to the world, Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “We will always act in the best interests of UK businesses and consumers.
“That’s why, throughout the last few weeks, the government has been fully focused on negotiating an economic deal with the United States that strengthens our existing fair and balanced trading relationship.”
Mr Reynolds reiterated the statements from the prime minister and his cabinet over the past few days, saying the US is “our closest ally”, and the government’s approach is to “remain calm and committed to doing this deal, which we hope will mitigate the impact of what has been announced today”.
Image: Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds says “nothing is off the table” following the tariffs announcement. Pic: PA
But he continued: “We have a range of tools at our disposal, and we will not hesitate to act. We will continue to engage with UK businesses, including on their assessment of the impact of any further steps we take.
“Nobody wants a trade war, and our intention remains to secure a deal. But nothing is off the table, and the government will do everything necessary to defend the UK’s national interest.”
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‘Get back round the negotiating table’, say Tories
The Conservative Party’s shadow business and trade secretary described the US president’s announcement as “disappointing news which will worry working families across the country”.
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6:39
Sky’s Ed Conway examines how economies across the world are impacted by tariffs
Andrew Griffith hit out at the government for having “failed to negotiate with President Trump’s team for too many months after the election, failed to keep our experienced top trade negotiator, and failed to get a deal to avoid the imposition of these tariffs by our closest trading partner”.
“The chancellor’s emergency budget of just a week ago with its inadequate headroom is now at risk, casting uncertainty about more taxes or spending cuts,” he continued. “Sadly, it is British businesses and workers who will pay the price for Labour’s failure.”
He called on ministers to “swallow their pride” and “get back round the negotiating table to agree a fair deal to protect jobs and consumers in both the UK and the US alike”.
Relief in Westminster – but concessions to Trump to come
It has been quite a rollercoaster for the government, where they went from the hope that they could avoid tariffs, that they could get that economic deal, to the realisation that was not going to happen, and then the anticipation of how hard would the UK be hit.
In Westminster tonight, there is actual relief because the UK is going to have a 10% baseline tariff – but that is the least onerous of all the tariffs we saw President Trump announce.
He held up a chart of the worst offenders, and the UK was well at the bottom of that list.
No 10 sources were telling me as President Trump was in the Rose Garden that while no tariffs are good, and it’s not what they want, the fact the UK has tariffs that are lower than others vindicates their approach.
They say it’s important because the difference between a 20% tariff and a 10% tariff is thousands of jobs.
Where to next? No 10 says it will “keep negotiating, keep cool and calm”, and reiterated Sir Keir Starmer’s desire to “negotiate a sustainable trade deal”.
“Of course want to get tariffs lowered. Tomorrow we will continue with that work,” a source added.
Another source said the 10% tariff shows that “the UK is in the friendlies club, as much as that is worth anything”.
Overnight, people will be number-crunching, trying to work out what it means for the UK. There is a 25% tariff on cars which could hit billions in UK exports, in addition to the blanket 10% tariff.
But despite this being lower than many other countries, GDP will take a hit, with forecasts being downgraded probably as we speak.
I think the government’s approach will be to not retaliate and try to speed up that economic deal in the hope that they can lower the tariffs even further.
There will be concessions. For example, the UK could lower the Digital Services Tax, which is imposed on the UK profits of tech giants. Will they loosen regulation on social media companies or agricultural products?
But for now, there is relief the UK has not been hit as hard as many others.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has reacted furiously to Mr Trump’s announcement of a “destructive trade war”, and called on the government to stand up against “Trump’s attempts to divide and rule”.
“The prime minister should bring our Commonwealth and European partners together in a coalition of the willing against Trump’s tariffs, using retaliatory tariffs where necessary and signing new trade deals with each other where possible.”
Speaking on Wednesday evening at a White House event entitled ‘Make America Wealthy Again’, the US president unleashed sweeping tariffs across the globe.
Mr Trump held up a chart detailing the worst offenders – which also showed the new tariffs the US would be imposing.
The UK’s rate of 10% was perhaps a shot across the bow over the 20% VAT rate, though the president’s suggested a 10% tariff imbalance between the two nations. Nonetheless, tariffs of 10% could directly reduce UK GDP by between 0.01% and 0.06%, according to Capital Economics.
A 25% duty on all car imports from around the world is also being imposed from midnight in the US – 5am on Thursday, UK time.
The UK government had been hoping to negotiate an economic deal with the US in a bid to avoid the tariffs, but to no avail. The government says negotiations will continue.
The Confederation of British Industry said “negotiating stronger trading relationships with all like-minded partners will be foundational to any success”.
The business secretary is expected to make a statement in the House of Commons on Thursday, and we are also expecting to hear from the prime minister.
A man has been charged with 64 offences in connection with an investigation into a Hull funeral directors, Humberside Police has said.
An investigation was launched into Legacy Independent Funeral Directors after officers received reports of concern for the care of the deceased in March 2024.
Following a 10-month investigation by Humberside Police, Robert Bush, 47, formerly of Kirk Ella, East Yorkshire, has been charged with 64 offences.
The force says the charges include 30 counts of prevention of a lawful and decent burial and 30 counts of fraud by false representation relating to the deceased recovered from the funeral premises.
Bush has also been charged with two counts of theft from charities and one count of fraudulent trading in relation to funeral plans – encompassing 172 victims – between 23 May 2012 and 6 March last year.
He also faces one count of fraud in relation to human ashes involving 50 victims between 1 August 2017 and March 2024.
The force said the charges related to 254 victims in total – comprising 252 people and two charities.
Police recovered 35 bodies during a raid on the funeral directors in March last year.
In April 2024, the force confirmed that it was impossible to identify any of the human ashes using DNA profiles.
Bush has been bailed with conditions and will appear at Hull Magistrates’ Court on 25 June.
In a statement, deputy chief constable Dave Marshall said the force had updated the families of 35 deceased with the development and has made initial contact with additional victims who may have been affected.
“My sincerest thanks go out to those affected for their patience and understanding,” he said.
“They have always been the priority and at the very heart of the entire investigation and this will remain, and we would please ask their privacy is continued to be respected.”
A 55-year-old woman arrested in July 2024 has today been released with no further action to be taken.