NORTHUMBERLAND'S prison is performing worse than it did before the pandemic, according to the latest official ratings.

The Prison Reform Trust said the latest reports on prison performance show the system is experiencing a "perfect storm" of rising prison population and poor working conditions.

Figures from the Ministry of Justice's prison performance report give ratings based on four main priority areas, security, training, drug and alcohol addictions, and readjustment to society.

The report shows Northumberland prison received a score of 66 per cent for the year to March 2023, meaning it had a "good performance" rating.

It was a fall from 68 per cent in 2019-20, the last year ratings were handed out.

Separate data from the Home Office found the rate of prisoners living in overcrowded conditions increased from 21 per cent in 2021-22, to 23 per cent in the most recent year to March.

However, just 26 of the estimated 1,334 prisoners in Northumberland were in crowded accommodation.