In 2005, 54,455 untried people were remanded into custody - less than half of all remanded prisoners go on to receive a prison sentence.  Just over 1 in 5 of the women's prison population are on remand, one of the fastest growing groups in the prison population.  The Prison Reform Trust have released press statements in an attempt to highlight the plight of people held on remand. You will find these statements here.

Key facts

• One in five (19%) of men and 18% of women held on remand before trial in 2005 were acquitted.  The vast majority received no compensation for this period of incarceration.
• Only half of all remanded prisoners go on to receive a prison sentence. In 2005, 53% of men on remand received an immediate custodial sentence and 41% of women.
• The remand population in prison decreased by 2% to 12,996 at 31 October 2007 compared to October 2006. Within this total, the untried population decreased 2% to 8,282 and the convicted unsentenced population decreased 3% to 4,714.
• In Scotland, the average daily remand population in 2006/07 was 1,567, up 26% compared with the 2005/06 figure of 1,242 and the highest level ever recorded.
• Two-thirds of people received into prison on remand awaiting trial are accused of non-violent offences. In 2005, 16% were remanded into custody for theft and handling of stolen goods.
• In 2005, 54,455 untried people were remanded into custody. In the same year 49,104 people were remanded into prison convicted but awaiting sentence. 
• At the end of October 2007 there were 957 women on remand, 1 in 5 of the population.
• Women on remand have been one of the fastest growing groups among the prison population. There was a 105% increase in the number of women remanded into custody between 1995 and 2005, compared to a 24% increase for men.
• According to research by the Office for National Statistics, more than a quarter of men on remand have attempted suicide at some stage in their life. For women remand prisoners the figure is even higher. More than 40% have attempted suicide before entering prison.
• On 30 June 2005 there were 1,900 people on remand awaiting trial for over three months – 23% of the total. 
• A significant proportion of those held on remand have been in prison previously. One study found that 65% of respondents had been remanded into custody before.
• Remand prisoners suffer from a range of mental health problems. According to the Office for National Statistics more than three-quarters of male remand prisoners suffer from a personality disorder. One in ten have a functional psychosis and more than half experience depression. For female remand prisoners, nearly two-thirds suffer from depression. Once again these figures are higher than for sentenced prisoners. Research has found that 9% of remand prisoners require immediate transfer to the NHS.
• In 2006-07, 30% of suicides were committed by remand prisoners.
• Remand prisoners are more likely than sentenced prisoners to have a history of living in unstable or unsuitable accommodation. Research by the National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders (Nacro) has suggested they are five times more likely to have lived in a hostel prior to imprisonment.
• More than two in three of all prisoners are unemployed when they go to jail. But research by Nacro has found that remand prisoners are less likely than sentenced prisoners to have had a job before prison. The minority of remand prisoners who do have jobs are very likely to lose them whilst in prison.
• One in four men and half of all women on remand receive no visits from their family.
• Prisoners on remand are half as likely to have received advice on resettlement than sentenced prisoners,  and will receive no discharge grant.
• Research by the Prison Reform Trust has found that prisons are failing to equip remand prisoners to prepare for trial. The study found that only 48% of prison libraries in jails holding remand prisoners stock the standard legal texts that under Prison Service regulations they must provide.

For full references please see the Bromley Briefings Prison Factfile