CLAIMS that Canterbury Prison is at crisis point because of overcrowding have been denied by the Home Office.

It follows a new report by the Prison Reform Trust which labels the city jail as one of the 10 most overcrowded in the country. Campaigners say the prison has 57 per cent more inmates than it should.

Trust director Juliet Lyon said: "It is putting intolerable pressure on prison staff, harming resettlement hopes for prisoners, damaging family ties and threatening public safety.

"The Prison Reform Trust calls on the Government not to wait for the next suicide or disturbance in a jail, but to act now to reduce prison numbers."

Home Office spokesman Matthew Freear said the current population at Canterbury Prison was 291.

He admitted that was nearly 57 per cent more than the "certified normal accommodation" but still below the jail's operational maximum capacity of 304.

He said: "It does mean that prisoners are having to double up in some cells and, of course, it would be better if there were fewer. But the level is still below that of what is considered unsafe."